Spring Babies

I don't know what it is about the Summertime but it makes me want to have another baby.

Maybe it's Virginia this time of year, with its long daylight hours, balmy heat and humid nights, heavy rains and intense thunderstorms, and a beckoning call to open air living. Or maybe it is the slower pace that we keep in the summer months of of June, July, and August. It all seems so suddenly easy. The mornings escape us with Merritt taking a nap at 10:30, and the afternoons are so carefree, they demand less structure and more adventure. I can create in the kitchen with the back door wide open as the kids play naked in the backyard. The sun is still up when Andy gets home for dinner. Bedtime follows closely behind and Roscoe and Merritt are so beat from our explorations of the day that they fall asleep without a fuss as their curls hit their bed sheets, which leaves entire evenings for Andy and me.  Perhaps it is human nature that we mate in the Summer so that we can have babies in the Spring like all other smart mammals.

It is true that whenever we find some peace and simplicity in our life we start to believe that we have it all it figured out. We can push away the fear that we sometimes carry, which whispers that we've taken on too much, that we weren't cut out for parenting in the plural sense, that we'll never have a full night's rest again in our lives; and then shortly after we settle in and decide it's a good time to get pregnant.

I'm definitely there, but also thinking that we'll hold off for a little while longer, although it is taking some effort not to just go for it. The boys start preschool in the Fall, and I'd like to try on that routine for a bit and also wrap up the lactation course that I'm midway through before willingly beginning what I anticipate to be a challenging pregnancy.

Roscoe has recently taken up an imaginary friend who he claims is his sister. She lives in North Carolina and has quite a history. I'm taking this as a sign that our family will be rounded out with a little girl on this next go 'round.

Ahoy matey!

Roughneck Roscoe & Muscles Merritt

Nightmare Noah & Mighty Mack

We took the kids on a pirate adventure yesterday.  Donning tattoos and swords they boarded a pirate ship, took down enemy pirates, and found the treasure chest at the bottom of the sea.

Outer Banks 2012

We were so excited about our trip to the beach that we decided to leave a day early.

We managed a relatively stress-free packing and loading of the car, which is out of the ordinary for us--we usually procrastinate or travel on a workday evening, which leaves us hurried and in a last minute frenzy. We had all of Saturday to prep, and left just after dinner. 

The short story is that we failed in our intention to have the kids fall asleep on the way and for us to have a quiet, uneventful ride to our midway destination. Instead, the boys were awake and fussy, we had to make several stops for screaming, and when we eventually made it to our home away from home the kids were so in awe of the hotel (not because it was special but because it was new to them) that they stayed wide awake until they crashed at 10:30pm. It must have been a good night for a party, too, because several rooms near ours were hopping, and the four of us were able to sleep only intermittently as a result of the noise.

But today was a new day and we woke up early, looking forward to getting back on the road. We stopped for a quick breakfast and had our toes in the sand by 9:00am.  

Check-in wasn't until 4:00pm and so we found ourselves with a lot of time on our hands. We took a long drive for nap and then enjoyed a much anticipated lunch at Pigman's barbecue. We decided to try a nature walk in Nags Head Woods, which turned out to be really cool. We found toads, turtles, butterflies, ornate spiders and other insects, deer, and even a snake. It was exciting for the kids and we enjoyed the shaded trails around the marshy swamps as reprieve from the heat. 

Afterward we stopped for custard and then met up with our family and cousins at the house.

Merritt (1 yr.), Roscoe (3 yr.), Noah (2 yr.), Mack (5 yr.)

It was a long but good day--a nice start to a full week ahead--and we're happy to be near the ocean and in good company.

Brotherly bonds

I've noticed the boys doing this a lot lately. Merritt reaching out for Roscoe, Roscoe reaching out to Merritt. It's a car thing. They pass snacks back and forth. They console each other when needed. I'm so glad my sister captured it on camera. (This is classic Roscoe.)

Berry CSA: weeks 10 &11

In week 10 we received blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, and plums. The plums reminded me of the variety that we could find in California growing on trees in our neighborhood, small and soft and so sweet.  

In week 11 we got blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, and doughnut peaches, which turned out to be one of my favorite fruits this year. Our CSA hit 100 days of strawberries this season which is impressive, and so we also got an extra carton of strawberries. You may guess as to how I felt about that!

For the most part we ate our fruit as it came to us, but I did bake a Three Berry Buttermilk Bundt Cake for 4th of July (phenomenal!), and a recipe for Blueberry Chocolate Banana Bread. Both have been added to my bank of go-to recipes for their simplicity and because they were really, really, good. Not to mention how gorgeous the final loafs were, your Summer houseguests will be impressed!

For the bundt cake I substituted oranges in place of the lemons. For the banana bread I omitted the bourbon (only because we didn't have any!) and substituted blueberries for the walnuts. 

Saturday in the City

We haven't had a free weekend day in a long time: no commitments, no schedule to keep.

An intense storm last night caused power outages throughout the city, and the community was bustling even earlier than usual this morning to clear the streets and yards from downed trees and limbs.

Sultry conditions at 6am foreshadowed the heat that came later in the afternoon, but we decided to get out for an early walk for breakfast and coffee while it was still relatively cool, and then Roscoe and I drove to the farmer's market to pick up our berry share.

Apricots, plums, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and peaches are all in season right now, and we got some of each. Roscoe also stopped at his favorite tent Sugar Baking Co. to chat for a long time with Morgan, as has become his routine, and to choose his usual Saturday morning treats to share with the rest of us.   

We also found some cherry tomatoes, pink and yellow brandywine tomatoes, golden and red beets, cantaloupe, potatoes, and string beans. Nap was fast approaching and we didn't have time to venture to the larger and busier South of the James market. We were happy with what we had foraged so we went home.

After snack Andy took the boys for a walk at nap time and I logged a couple hours working at my computer, editing a summary report of an evaluation that we conducted a few months ago.

When the boys woke up I got a turn to nap and then around 2pm we packed up our bathing suits and snacks and headed out for some water play. There was little shade but the kids were content in the water and a local band was playing nearby so Andy and I just kicked back with iced coffee and our goodies from the market--it's rare to find an activity for the kids that doesn't require our constant involvement so we thought it was especially nice. We kept the drinks flowing and the snacks coming but the boys were hot and ready to go after 45 minutes so we did a little shopping and then grabbed dinner to go.   

Merritt has been asleep for an hour now and Andy is putting Roscoe to bed as I type this.  We've planned a discussion for this evening to hash out roles and responsibilities for each of us now that my job is winding down and I have more or less assumed the role of a full-time stay at home mom. We've needed to shore up our expectations on both sides so this will be a good opportunity to outline a plan and to establish boundaries for each of us as we are both moving in new directions professionally.

Another Summer storm is brewing outside, the wind's kicking up and the thunder rolling.

Stay cool and happy Saturday night to all!

Another hot one

We welcomed the first official days of Summer with temps close to 100 degrees. The return on investment of our $4.00 sprinkler has been great.

Lots o' muddy baby bums, coming right up!

*More pictures taken by their nanny.  I don't know what I'm going to do without my camera for THREE weeks!!?

What makes your heart leap? Pinterest Edition.

In response to a writing prompt, I thought I'd share with you a few happy pins from my boards.

1. Hair Ties for the thirty-somethings 2.Button Pearls 3. Neon Nail Polish
4. Thunder In Our Hearts tote 5. Hayden-Harnett Reversible tote 

7. Cotton knitting needle wrap 8. Jelly bean bag tutorial
9. Kid's ceramic dinnerware in Veggie
10. Apple of My Eye tote 11. Hand pressed glass cake plate
12. A real hoot cookie canister

To a hot and happy summer

Despite the fact that I am still working, Summer is here and I'm really looking forward to creating a fun-filled, low stress time for all of us. This morning we brainstormed a list of activities that we hope to do together in June, July, and August.

-Visit an aquarium
-Visit the pet store
-Visit the National Zoo (to see see the monkeys)
-Visit our cousins in NC (a solo, overnight, weekday trip!)
-Open air bus tour of DC or a trolley tour of Richmond
-Swim lessons
-Kidzville at King's Dominion
-See a movie at the theater
-Visit our former neighbors in our old 'hood (and maybe go to the pool!)
-Harvest from the garden
-Take a nature walk
-The Flying Circus Airshow
-The Flying Circus Hot Air Balloon Airshow
-Bowling
-Walk the Vita fitness course at Byrd park
-Body paint
-Fireworks
-Splash park at Stony Point
-Fly a kite
-Walk across the Nickel Bridge
-Feed ducks
-Homemade popsicles
-Outdoor Summer concert
-Paint with water
-Make ice cream in baggies
-Slumber party with friends in NOVA
-Rent a movie to watch together
-Roscoe gets to plan dinner
-Go out for breakfast
-Visit Grandma and Grandpa
-Meet up with our Bradley friends in NOVA
-Tubing the James River (Adults only!)
-Paint at the clay studio
-Collect river or beach pebbles and paint them
-Water balloons
-Ride public transit (metro or bus)
-Camp out, even if it's just in the backyard
-Children's Museum of Richmond
-Baby pool in the yard
-Picnic
-Butterflies Live at Lewis Ginter
-Week at the Beach
-Bike ride adventure
-S'mores
-Finger paint with pudding
-Rain walk
-Splash park at Lewis Ginter
-Dance party
-Pinata
-Visit Tippy and E
-Parade
-Meet V at her comunity pool
-Try a new playground
-Visit Jamestown Settlement
-Explore the river, find a swimming hole

I left a few spaces blank so that we can add more activities as we dream them up. I've already thought of five more since I snapped the photo above. Maybe we'll get to all of these, and maybe we won't, but we'll never be bored!

What do you have planned this Summer?  Care to share?  Maybe we can add some of your ideas to our list! (Especially if you are local.)

Berry CSA: weeks 5 and 6

We are already a third of the way through our 20 week berry CSA. In week five we received six pounds of strawberries, a half pound of snap peas, a pound of asparagus and a pound of rhubarb. In week six we received four pounds of strawberries, four pints of blueberries, and one pint of raspberries.  Members receive a 20% discount on any additional produce purchased, so it adds value to buy up a few extra units of strawberries, raspberries, and/or blueberries, which we always do.  If there is anything left at the end of the week it becomes jam for toast or yogurt.

We're loving all this fruit, but I'll admit to being a little a lot lazy with our veggies. The asparagus was made to wait too long, and even though I had big (beer battered) plans for them, by the time I got to the bunch it was too late. Both weeks, the snap peas didn't make it much further than to be washed and left at eye level in the fridge so the kids could reach in and munch them for snacks, which only happened a handful of times.  I ate a few with some cheddar cheese but, well, we really should have given them away before they went bad.

A few things from the kitchen:

Raspberry Jam

Strawberry Buttermilk Sherbet

An instant family favorite. Although my preference would have been to use full fat buttermilk I grabbed low-fat by mistake, but it still turned out great--tangy and refreshing, with true-to-life strawberry flavor.

Blueberry Muffins

Ina's uncomplicated recipe makes a classic blueberry muffin. The batter alone is worth the effort, if you like to eat it straight from the bowl like we do.

Strawberry Rhubarb Bars

I didn't love this recipe. Maybe I was just in the mood for something sweeter, but a shortbread cookie crust would have been a better pairing. 

Mini Berry Trifles

We had some heavy cream just hanging out, so I decided to whip it up and layer it with berries for a festive to-go dessert for Andy's lunch on Monday. I ate mine (the bigger of the two) for breakfast, with an egg.

Strawberry applesauce

Strawberries and apples were made for each other and applesauce is too easy to make. I peeled and roughly sliced into quarters about 20 apples and then dumped into the pot a pound and a half of hulled strawberries, brought it to a boil and let it simmer for 30 or 40 minutes. I sweetened it with a tablespoon or two of maple syrup. The kids loved it, I ate it for dessert.

Oh, I almost forgot.  I made this strawberry dressing too.

Do you have a strawberry recipe that you think I would like?  

Backyard Garden 2012: Seedlings

For the last month or so, the garden space has been just a pile of dirt and Merritt and Roscoe have enjoyed digging for worms, rolling around in it, and driving their cars through it.

One morning early last week, Roscoe and I planted seedlings and now their dirt playground is off limits. Based on the antics of last week, I anticipate our biggest challenge this season to be to keep the kids and their trucks from trampling our food.

In the background is Andy's latest project: a playhouse for the boys!

This year's garden represents a modified version of what I had planned for, as we are still learning. We purchased most of our plants from the spring plant sale at Lewis Ginter. The farmers and gardeners were happy to share their knowledge and I learned that veggies like pole beans and sweet peas that I had planned to plant in May will likely bolt this late into the season, and that we'll have better luck planting them as fall crops in the late summer. Also, lettuce greens and carrots are best started from seed and planted in succession so that harvesting can occur on a weekly basis year round. The salad greens we have now may last for only a month or so, which will make room for something else as the season progresses. 

Herb pots

I like that gardening is an ongoing learning process, and I look forward to eventually cultivating a reliable combination of planting methods and crop variations to grow the kinds of food that we enjoy most, in predictable cycles throughout the year.

For now we have cherry tomatoes, yellow squash, heirloom tomatoes, zucchini, cantaloupe, watermelon, salad greens (tatsoi, mizuna, mixed leaf, and arugala), alpine strawberries; and herb pots brimming with mojito mint, peppermint, spearmint, dill, sage, parsley, basil, and rosemary.

Food Dehydrator: the new kitchen appliance

At the peak of the season, when our little garden was posing a real challenge to keep up with a formidable abundance of cherry tomatoes and squash, I decided to buy a food dehydrator. 

The Excalibur was delivered to our doorstep in less than a week. After we got over the amount of counter space that it covers, we developed adoration for the endless possibilities and marveled at the act of putting one thing in and getting another thing out.

In the last month of Summer, the low hum of that big black box serenaded the kitchen and the entire first floor of the house.  In addition to tomatoes, and with a carton of citric acid by my side, we've since dried figs, plums, and apples. Last week we made sweet potato "fries" and yesterday I finished drying marjoram, sage, and rosemary.  It is all too simple. And way more fun than I anticipated.

I'm enjoying the practicality that comes from making our own fruit snacks and preserving in-season produce for later use, and I like how it contributes to our bigger aspirations to bring wholesome and unprocessed foods to our plates.  

Rappahannock Central

For my birthday this year (in August), I was craving good food and fresh air--not unlike every other day of the year, it seems.

We took a day trip to Sperryville, Va. to check out Rappahannock Central, a restored apple packing house that now serves as a food co-op, an arts collective, and a cafe.

It was a quiet Saturday morning and we arrived before they officially opened so we made ourselves at home in an area designed just for the little ones.

When Cafe Indigo opened we were seated overlooking the Copper Fox Distillery. We shared a really satisfying lunch from locally procured goods--I had ginger carrot soup and a farm cheddar, apple, and arugula sandwich. Neapolitan ice cream was on the menu for dessert and we each had a scoop. Soo good.

Afterward we moseyed through the small industrial-barn styled studios and art gallery.

At last, we spent some time in the farm store where I happily picked out two chickens, lamb sausage, honey, white wine vinegar, eggs, and a phenomenal tapenade, from Everona Dairy, made with olives and nutty goat cheese. There was plenty more that I could have (and wanted to) toss into my bag, but I tried to save some of my enthusiasm for Sunday's farmer's market the following morning.

Do you seek out local food in your area? If you're curious to see what you have nearby, you can search www.localharvest.org for CSAs, farmer's markets, restaurants, and more.

It's been too long

Instead of sinking into the couch cushions to tap out the highlights of our days together, after dinner each night I lay quietly and read for a while as I nurse Merritt to sleep, the sunlight fading until I can't see the words on the page. Many nights the darkness is my cue to call it a day too. If there's anything truly worth doing at the end of a long, long day, it is to go to bed early. Other nights, I slip away from my little Merritt boy and head up to the loft to catch up on work email or to finally look my husband in the eye and have a grown up conversation. There are far too few hours in the day.

So much is happening around here that living in the moment has just been easier than trying to find time to document with photos and narrative. I miss the time that I used to carve out for my blog each night. The writing always feels good, and it's unreal how a few days turn into a week (or two!) and I find myself with way, way more to say than I know I'll ever find time to get down. Just gotta keep moving forward!

The weekends have been crammed with trips to the farmer's market, day visits to Richmond for house hunting, and family naps. If our house selling experiment goes through we're looking to close in mid to late October. I have yet to fully embrace the reality of the effort required to pack up and move all of our belongings. I think I'm in denial.

I've read at least 20 books since June began (many thanks to Merritt's sleep routine). We've been so inspired by the words of Michael Pollan, Nina Plank, Barbara Kingsolver, and Alice Waters. What began as a mother's day project in the backyard has, in the course of one summer, completely changed the way we eat and redefined our relationship with the food that we bring to our table. It's been a quiet revolution. My former relationship with food might have been characterized as mediocre, at best. In forging real life relationships with our food, through the people who grow and raise it, we've found our place within our local food chain. I thought I loved food before, but I think now that I'm in love.

The kids and I have been traversing our county during the week to forage for local food dealers, and pick your own fruit farms. I've been thrilled and impressed with what we've found so close to home.

Has your Summer reading inspired you in any way?

Cheese

I never considered cheese-making to be an extension of cooking, but lately I've come to think of it that way. I read about Ricki Carroll in the memoir Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. The Cheese Queen, as she is called, has been teaching novices how to make cheese for over 30 years. I ordered some basic supplies from her website the New England Cheese Making Company and at the end of last week finally found time to try my hand at making homemade mozzarella.

I came home from the gym at 7:30am, slung Merritt to my front, and dumped a gallon of organic whole milk into my stockpot. I was skeptical as I mixed in the citric acid but with some heat and agitation the whey started to separate from the curds! I let it sit for a few minutes, cut the curds, poured off the whey, added the rennet, heated and stirred it some more then scooped all the curds out of the pot and into a strainer. In another pot of hot water, I bathed the curds until they were warm enough to stretch (the fun part!) and pliable enough to mold into an imperfect ball.

Mozzarella in 30 minutes! We cooled it in an ice bath, wrapped it up, and saved it for dinner.

Our cheese had a flavor similar to store bought string cheese. Our first attempt was a success but, sadly, did not result in the tender milky mozzarella balls that we usually buy. The nuances of each batch can be manipulated at each step in the process, so I'll have to try it again. Ricotta cheese is another quick cheese to make, and would pair well with the boxes of farmer's market peaches and plums we have lying around in the kitchen.

worth repeating

On Monday I got a call from my doctor with good news that couldn't be elaborated on over the phone.

On Tuesday I went for a follow-up appointment and learned that the official diagnosis was a ruptured milk duct. After all that. However, I questioned why there was no mention in the report of fibroadenoma, as the first biopsy had indicated. My doctor thought it was a little strange as well, and left to discuss with the Pathologist his findings in more detail. He hadn't come in to work yet so my doctor said she'd investigate and give me a call back.

This morning I learned that the cores of tissue that the pathologist reviewed were in fact all ductal and breast tissue, which means that the tumor was missed entirely. The radiologist biopsied healthy breast tissue, and nothing else. I was told that sampling error is rare, but I'm a little suspicious as to how it is possible that the lump, which is not small, was not sampled at all.

All of this to say that I will need to have the procedure repeated.

I'm annoyed. I don't want to miss another week at the gym. I don't want to orchestrate another herculean feat of scheduling in order to be sure that Roscoe is cared for at home, and that I have a helper to accompany me with Merritt to my appointment. I don't really want to go through the procedure again and I definitely do not want to get a milk fistula--I felt lucky to have had the procedure once with no complications and I don't want to push it. Finally though, I don't want to be in limbo anymore. Not knowing affects me and it's hard not to think about it every day, especially when I spend every day with my boys.

Hopefully, I can schedule a repeat biopsy sooner rather than later.

Monday

It's been a day of no naps around here. So I turned my frown upside down with these:

Next up, a car trip for ice cream.

Who wants to join me?

August 13th is Can-It-Forward Day.

We've taken up the locavore scene in our area and it seems that eating seasonally goes hand in hand with knowing how to put up food for the winter.

We buy our meat from a farmer who owns Walnut Hill Farm at Elm Springs in Falmouth, Va. Every Sunday, under his tent at the farmer's market, I pick Jeff's brain on topics that range from the seasonality of chicken, to harvest routines, and even the feasibility of buying half of a cow for our freezer. Jeff is a kind man, and doesn't seem to mind my naivete. This past weekend when I mentioned an interest in learning how to can food he generously offered to teach me how to do it. A canning 101 class, you could say. And he told me to bring a friend or two to make it legit.

If you're curious about what canning is all about, and want to learn from a seasoned pro, AND you're up for a field trip to a farm to get your canning on, let me know. We're meeting up in the early morning of August 15th. I'm bringing boxes of peaches, tomatoes, and string beans (and whatever else I can find at the farmer's market on the 14th), along with a few crates of canning jars. I'm inviting you to do the same.

This is an exciting opportunity, and it's free! Leave a comment or send me an email at marblesrolling@gmail.com if you're interested and I'll share the details.

Soak it up

Roscoe discovers how to jump off the bed at 8:50 on a Summer morning.

Here's the deal

After over a year of debate and conversation dedicated to the housing market and our current mortgage we finally decided to throw our caution, fears, and regrets to the wind and put our house up for sale.

Just to see what might be possible.

We bought our home in 2006 just as the market began to crash. We sold our first house and moved into our second ignoring the recommendation of our mortgage broker who, at the time, was making his best effort to discourage us from buying.

We should have taken the hint.

Over the last 5 years the value of our home has depreciated. It is now worth close to 150,000 less than what we bought it for.

Depressing.

We're about to own the worst financial decision that we've ever made. We're short-selling this house and we made it official on Tuesday.

There are so many reasons why we want to move, I mentioned some of them last year in a tour of homes post.

We've now lived in this house for almost 4 years, and when the market turned our mortgage flipped upside down. In truth, we do not love living in the suburbs. And we especially dislike paying an inflated mortgage! We've realized through this experience that we are city folk, and that we thrive on access to good food, entertainment, and culture, and that we HATE long commutes, traffic jams, and not having outdoor spaces in which to stretch our legs.

If we could do it all over again, hands-down we would choose an older, smaller house closer to where we like to work and play. Especially now that we have children to consider. There's nothing worse than having the world at your fingertips (i.e., Washington DC adventures), but finding yourself trapped behind 2 hours of bumper to bumper traffic. We would love the opportunity to have an intimate relationship with the area in which we live, and to explore our community on foot. Furthermore, it would be awesome to live in an area where a true sense of community actually existed.

While those reasons are still true--save a few of the details--they aren't the reasons we're taking action now.

In short, we've come to terms with the fact that this house just wasn't a good investment. Yeah, we bought it to live in it, not just to make money, but still. It's a money suck that will require years before it is even worth what we paid for it.

We're cutting our loses and moving on.

Of course, the bank has the final say, but the hard part is over--the house is under contract--now we just wait.

With the prospect of not being tied to any one place, or tied down by a comical mortgage payment, we will be free to follow bigger dreams. I cannot wait!