Travels and Patience

Yesterday Samuel, Lisa and little Elsa traveled from Tennessee to Washington to visit for New Years. We were all ridiculously eager to see them, but I had really been missing them. Three and a half months with a family makes you really love them and miss things about them. It was much to my disappointment to receive a message from Samuel saying they were delayed in Salt Lake City. We continued to text throughout the day as they found flights and waited. After a long delay, they finally got in around seven (instead of 2pm). We had dinner and hung out. Elsa loves me and called me Gracie and comes to me, which makes me indescribably happy.

Ian and I went to practice his parallel parking. The five who have taken their driver's test have failed and so I was a little determined to help Ian. We'll see if he passes...

Patience is something I have never been good with. I have learned a good deal during the last few years, but for some reason or other, have a hard time gracing my siblings with said patience. Yesterday, amid the cooking, cleaning and waiting around for the visitors, I hit the point I had been dreading. Think about it from my perspective, I have no one but a baby to talk to from 6am-7pm (or sometimes later), My patience ran out and I was snappy. I think I made a good recovery and apologized, so all is well again.

Today we went to Canada to visit Granny (96), Grandma, Uncle Billy and Tracy. I made a whole bunch of tortilla wraps and potato salad as well as mini peanut butter pies and key lime pies. It was delicious. It was also a fantastic visit with the family although the drive back was miserably long. The 15 passenger van had 13 of the seats filled.

Anyway, this is what happens when I am in charge of putting the ganache on the peanut butter pies

Tomorrow starts the real party....

Canadia, Parties and Suits

So yesterday morning after a crazy evening the night before hanging out with some good friends for hours and hours (which was amazingly fun even though we didn't get back until 1 am), we left at 8 am for a trip to Canada to visit Grandma. The drive felt really short because I slept for a good deal of time.

Ever since I've been in Washington again, I've have really bad allergies. Don't really know if it is from the dogs and cats, the mold or dust, but I am having quite a hard time breathing with an itchy throat. Nothing helps. I'm really hoping it goes away because it affects what I do. Last time it lasted for a month before going away.

We hung out at Grandma's for 24 hours, played games, visited and just had a good visit. It was good to see her again although it was a really whirlwind visit. We're home again now and after a break and making the giant holiday shopping list, Ian, Ev and I went to Kohl's and JCPenneys to look for a suit for Ian for the 12th Night Ball.

We were just pulling up to Kohl's when we all saw this girl probably six years old outside the store and crying. Ian immediately told me to go see what was wrong with her and he would (illegally) park the car. I walked up to her and asked her if she was okay. She said she couldn't find her mom. I asked her which store they had been in and we were on our way to the customer service desk in Kohl's when she saw her mom and ran to her. It made me furious that the mom didn't even realize her daughter was gone and ignored her hug when the girl ran up to her.... Some people...

We found a suit and it looks great on him. We also found a gorgeous dress for Ev. A a-line dress with silhouettes of ladies in vintage looking dresses and hats.

Anyway, Christmas shopping and Mockingjay (and I know that sounds sooooo teenaged girl...) tomorrow with Mom.

Home

Do you remember that cannot-be-contained excitement when you were little and something "big" was coming up? Like birthdays, Christmas, snow days, outtings... I remember the first time I didn't get that feeling before the holidays and then before I knew it, it was over and we were back at the school and chore routine. From then on, I was waiting for that feeling to come back, the one were you can't sleep the night before or you wake up super early. Today, for the first time in a long time, I felt that feeling again. Today, I am flying home.

I woke up early today and couldn't fall back asleep because I am so excited. Confession: I watched Good Mythical Morning. Now, I'm almost completely packed, the sheets from my bed are washed and in the dryer so when I get back, it's to a clean room and I'm chilling while Elsa sleeps.

Did dishes, cleaned up, made my bed and painted Elsa's toes until it was time to leave... 

New Job

So today was the first time I watched Kovu and Elsa. At first things were pretty easy, they played happily, but not together. It is what they're used to. The first hour and a half went smoothly, then it hit Kovu that his parents weren't there, that he was in a strange house with a strange person looking after him. He cried a lot and I tried my best to figure out what he needed, diaper change, milk, stories. I tried it all.

Samuel gave me some fantastic advice. Instead of telling him to stop crying/stop doing whatever, he told me to praise good behavior, so when he stopped crying for a minute I would tell him he was a good boy... It worked and we rocked for about five minutes before he fell asleep. Elsa seemed a little confused by his behavior, but was good. Anyway, Kovu made watching  Elsa seem like a piece of cake.

Samuel, Elsa and I went on some errands in the afternoon. We went to a jerky shop and got some kangaroo jerky for a gift. Two tactical shops. I love those shops. then to pick out perfume for Lisa (never do this), then to visit Lisa at work and last of all picking up the dry cleaning. It was good to get out of the house and has been interesting spending more time with Samuel.

Anyway, Kovu comes over again tomorrow from 9-2, so a lot longer.... hopefully it goes well. Prayers would be appreciated. On the up side, only a day and a half until I go home!

The Countdown

It is 3 days, 8 hours and 15 minutes until I get back into my favorite state. I have a countdown on my Ipod that I quite frequently check.

It is a little bittersweet, however. I know that I will miss the my little munchkin, the solitude, the fast internet and not waiting for the bathroom... But seeing my family, the sarcasm and craziness, the cooking and seeing friends make it all worth while. I know the break is going to fly by - it is already pretty much booked. I made a cute little gift for traveling mostly for Elsa, but with something Samuel and Lisa in it. It turned out quite nicely!

Yesterday was different. Samuel and Lisa woke me up at 6 am. Samuel was off for his eye surgery. I slept on the couch until the garage door literally jolted me awake. The surgery was done before Elsa even woke up! She slept until 9:30 am, so it was a slow morning for me.

I felt like a quintessential nanny now. I dropped off Samuel's dry cleaning. Perhaps it is just me watching too many movies with nannies. Anyway, it was fun, Elsa and I got out of the house. She was extremely well behaved and stood next to me while I dropped off the suits and then held my hand as we went to Cato Fashion for a gift. I guess I kinda wore her out, because when I laid her down for her nap, she fell asleep right away.

Later in the afternoon, once the sun had gone down, I got Elsa bundled up in her tan coat, Samuel's black beanie, her fuzzy boots and her pink North Face gloves. We headed out to admire the holiday lights the neighbors have. It is chilly here, but mostly windchill. It was so windy earlier that I could hardly get the door open to Cato Fashion. Anyway, she loved looking at the lights and her pronunciation of "holiday lights" is adorable, yet you know exactly what she's saying!

Making Dirty Dishes

I was inspired yesterday by the memory of a restaurant out here in Clarksville Tennessee. Mikado Japanese Steakhouse. If you haven't been to a Japanese steakhouse, I highly recommend it, a good culinary experience, although not great for socializing.

After watching several videos of random people filming their hibachi chef, I kinda got a feel for what the chefs were doing, looked at a couple recipes and made a shopping list.

I decided on chicken over shrimp of beef because it is my favorite. I did zucchini, broccoli, mushrooms, onion, garlic and carrots for vegetables. I marinated the chicken in an Asian sauce and made up the rice noodles (first time for everything!). I sauteed the vegetables in order of how long they cooked for. I started with onions, followed by garlic, carrots, zucchini, mushrooms and then broccoli. Tossed it with a little soy sauce and seasoned in layers as I added things.

With butter and homemade Yum Yum sauce, I fried up the pasta, veggies and chicken, added a few splashes of soy sauce and at the table, we added our own siracha sauce. It was delicious!

For dessert, I made cheesecake cookies. The recipe needs a little adjustment, but it had huge potential. I needed to make bigger indents in each cookie so there is a better ratio of filling to crust. Besides that, the fresh raspberries and whipped cream really finished these off.

Feelin' Like the Holidays!

Well, one of the two problems I was having last week kinda got sorted out. I am committed to watching Kovu (Swahili for Scar), a little 18-month-old boy. It was interesting watching he and Elsa together. Hopefully things will go smoothly.

Lisa and I went shopping yesterday. We got pedicures. It was awesome. Our other errands involved finding jewelry to go with the formal dress Lisa made for a ball they have this week. We found a really pretty, sparkly necklace and earrings. Matches the dress super well and looks classy. And then Sam's club... So Sam's Club has this amazing popcorn that they only sell during the Christmas season. It is kettle corn drizzled with Ghirardelli white and dark chocolate. If you ever find it, do yourself a favor and don't try it. You will get addicted.

The last time we went into Sam's Club, we couldn't find any and today was started out that way. We were in line, possibly the slowest line, when I saw a lady in one of those electric scooter/cart thingies and I saw the distinctive red bag with the purple top. So basically, Lisa and I are a little crazy over this popcorn. We left the line and went in search of it. After a good search of every possibly area it could be in, we returned to the checkout empty handed. As we were walking away with our other groceries, Lisa spotted it. A partial pallet facing the cashier and hidden from view from the shopping side of the store. Lisa went back to buy it, even braving the busy, two-weeks-away-from-Christmas lines. When we got home and had some, it tasted even better than we remembered.

We got a package today from home. No need to be curious about what was inside. We knew. I spent 10+ hours watching, hanging out and answering questions on Skype. I should have popped myself some popcorn. It was rather entertaining. Mom makes candy in a similar way to taking care of us when we have a medical problem. She panics. It's adorable. She hates making hard candies and gets rather hyper. Seeing the busyness of the house was fun as well, it looks pretty funny from the outside with people constantly coming and going, the fridge being opened more times than anyone would care to admit and a lot of sarcasm.

Anyway, the holiday package came today.  Opening the tin of goodies instantly made it the holidays for me. I could smell the Ting-O-Lings' combination of butterscotch and semi-sweet chocolate. No matter what time of year it is, butterscotch reminds me of the holidays. I had a caramel first and boy was it delicious! Silky smooth, just the right size, buttery.There was a new family picture for me.

I have to say, I think it turned out quite nicely. Even though I wore heels, Ian is much taller than I am. Jane definitely wins the award for looking the best. Will there ever be a year where we're not stressed when doing a family picture? This was the day before I left for Tennessee. Can you imagine how boring this picture would have been without me? What I meant to say is... Can you believe how little our family would look if I wasn't there?

Home is less than five days. Busy days though. Samuel get eye surgery done tomorrow, so Elsa and I have him home all week and a car. I'm thinking we will venture out to the Greenway for walks since it is so warm and nice. Now that I've said that, I realize that the 15+ mph winds are probably bringing rain. Tomorrow I shall write a post about the dinner and dessert I made today....

Weekend Shopping

When you're used to being in a household of eight people, you rarely get time alone. With four sisters at home, you can't even get ready in the bathroom by yourself. Most likely there would be at least two girls using the mirror next to you.

Last Saturday I took Samuel's car and left for the afternoon, mostly to get out of the house. Not just to given them time as a family, but after the busy Thanksgiving weekend, I felt quite housebound. I know it's bad when my socializing outside of the house is walking to the grocery store with Elsa. Besides, I needed to do some gift shopping.

I went to an antique shop and thrift store first. The antique place was gigantic and while it had some junky items, it had some really cool things.

Last Christmas, we sent my brother, Samuel, his favorite childhood Christmas cup since he wasn't able to be home for the holidays (he was deployed). Since then, I've been trying to find a family replacement for the beloved snowman glass. It was one of those things. you see them everywhere and the moment you need one, you cannot find one to save your life. I was lucky enough to look in one box at this antique place and find not one, but two of the snowmen glasses! They had no price on them, so when I went to pay, the lady said she couldn't sell them.

I'm an introvert.... But with only a few weeks until the holidays, I asked if there was any way she could possibly find out from the booth owner. A call and a few minutes of waiting and the cashier said it was $3 for the entire box of Christmas glasses. 3,000 miles away from home! The last thing I needed as a box of old holiday cups. I paid $3 for the two glasses and it was a great deal.

I also got a replacement wallet for Rose, since her's just fell apart. She has a vintage type cigarette holder. I know it sounds weird, but it actually works really well for all her cards, cash and such.

Cato Fashion was another stop on my list. I wish they had stores in Washington, because I liked a lot of their clothes and the sale items were relatively inexpensive. Anyway, when I was in Michigan for Thanksgiving, we went to a Cato Fashion store there and I saw some of their fashion belts and loved them. Well, the one I wanted to get was in the wrong size and the employees were so nice to call and check with another local store, so I was able to get the one I wanted.

Anyways, shopping alone just isn't the same, but I did have a wonderful day out. I do miss having Ev or Anna talk me out of buying everything. ;-)

Decisions

How to start off this post? Hmmm... Being an adult sucks. Like seriously sucks. Making mature decisions is really challenging. Work, schedules and life goals are hard. Who thought it was a good idea to decide what to do for a career at such an age?

Today another job opportunity came up. Or rather, a continued job opportunity. The job? Nannying for not just my adorable, cute and relatively well behaved niece, but also for a child a couple months older than her. It would be a commitment for several more months, at least to the end of May. Sounds great in many ways, I know I'm good with kids, especially working with more than one and it would be good money. The problem with that is somewhat easy to place. I would be living 3,000 miles away from home in a place where I have made no friends (there is little opportunity to), away from my friends and family. I would miss what could be Anna's last half a year at home before she goes away to college.

In combination with trying to figure that out, I also have to plan for my further education. I know I want to go to college, but for what? Would it be better to get a more generic degree in say, business? Or should I follow my probably unrealistic dreams of becoming a caterer, culinary instructor/leader?

I know what you're thinking. Have I prayed about it? The answer is yes. I have. I've also cried. There is a verse I wrote out sitting next to my bed and I keep reading it. It may not seem fitting, but for me and my relationship with God, it is right.

So for now, I'm waiting and praying. And talking to my family. Here's to challenges and facing them with those who love you most!

Oh, by the way, I was looking up some child care stuff online and was trying to figure out how many years of experience I have... Wow. 

December 2015

Today was December 1st. I could not be happier. December is going to be a wonderful month, routine for a couple weeks and then vacation. Best of all, family.

I celebrated today by making paper snowflakes for my room. Two of these snowflakes ended up in an envelope with my family's address. To add to the collection at home that sits in a snowy fury above the couch. A few more are waiting to be mailed out. But snowflakes were not enough, I combined it with The Andrews Sisters Holidays on Pandora, a cup of tea and Spiced Amber candle. Elsa was taking a nap and I had already worked out, so it truly felt like a break.

Some of the paper I used had this cool swirly design on it and seemed shimmery, so the snowflakes that had this paper looked quite cool. 

What I love about snowflakes is that each one is different, no matter how hard you try. Triangular designs are my favorite. These ones turned out quite nicely although I have had my fair share of hideous paper flakes. 

 Today, Elsa and I sat on Skype watching Anna, Ev and Mom make peanut brittle and caramels. It made me a little upset to not be there, doing it myself. I miss the smell, the stress and the satisfaction. I missed the experience with siblings, singing to Christmas songs and booing when Michael Buble came on or pranking the siblings by playing Country Christmas on Pandora (which sucks). Anyway, part of being away....

Isn't it amazing that I could watch this entire process from 3,000 miles away? Watching how home works from outside is really weird, but interesting. 16 days and 21 hours until I get home. I am beyond excited! 

Balkemania

The Balkema family is special to me. I have spent almost a week with them in New York for Samuel and Lisa's graduation from college, then 10 days in Michigan at their wonderful old brick home preparing for Samuel and Lisa's wedding. The next summer we spent with them as part of our summer road trip. I've seen them twice more since, for another wedding and then this last weekend for Thanksgiving. I didn't think I could love a family as much as I do them in the short time we've actually spent together.

We played so many games of Carcassonne together. I lost miserably so many times, but it was always fun. Susan, Ellie and I went shopping. We got chocolate, Hobby Lobby sales and some clothes. We know how to shop I think. :-)

Decorating a Christmas tree was more fun then I thought, It was a first for me, since my family has never done a tree. It was cool to experience that with such a great family. It was interesting to see their family dynamics and what similarities our families shared. I also figured out where Ev got some weird phrases or dance moves from... Ahem, Bonnie. Seems they spent a whole month together.

The drive back was gorgeous, even though the GPS took us the most absurd route back. Elsa slept for a good deal of it and Lisa read aloud a fun murder mystery called The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. I slept through parts of it, so I'm rereading it now.

Although it wasn't the same as Thanksgiving at home, it was a wonderful weekend. Besides my family, I really missed turkey sandwiches, perogies and dough gogs. I guess next year isn't too far off.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving in Michigan was good, but different from home. If I had to spend it with any family besides my own, then it would be with the Balkema family. Each one of them is special, they are an awesome combination of crazy, loving, fun and awesome. We ate, played games, ate again, walked, took pictures, hung out, ate some more. It was a wonderful day.

When the table can't fit everyone... Before the food because I loved how the table looked once set. 

By the way, I have the cutest niece ever

Skype and Traveling

Skype has been my best friend since I left home and traveled 3000 miles away. I've Skyped home pretty near every day. Some days we can't think of things to say, so we talk to Elsa. Or just make animal noises. Today, we got to talk to my grandma, Elsa's Great Grandma Z. It was fun to show her off and got Grandma some movement from the picture we post.

We left at 1:30 to Michigan to visit Lisa's family for Thanksgiving. It was a smooth trip up, we made fantastic time and Elsa was a doll, making animal noises, singing her version of the alphabet, eating... 

The moonrise was wonderful and that also helped pass time. That and Samuel let me use his phone as hotspot, so for a few minutes I was able to catch up and forget how long I had been seated in the same position. 

We got to the Balkema's and were welcomed so warmly. They are so special and great fun to hang out with, it feels natural, like second family. They live in a beautiful old brick house and I got the room they call 'the summet room' 

Besides that, checking Facebook this evening reminded me how wonderful the life God has given me is. I live with wonderful people and get to spend time watching and training my niece. 

 Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and I will catch you up with my Michigan adventures soon!

Routine before a Break

Lisa wakes me up when she leaves. I go upstairs right after to sleep on the couch and make sure Elsa doesn't roll off the bed. Today, she woke and hour early, but instead of just getting up and throwing my entire schedule off by an hour, she snuggled with me on the couch and fell asleep. I couldn't ask for a more precious snuggle, although I fell asleep too. I think I'm still trying to catch up after the busy weekend.

I'm good at procrastinating. Like really good. The pile of dishes leftover from chocolate fondue over the weekend, the brownie pan, the crockpot and the baking pan from the chicken pot pie sat on the counter and my idea was to soak the nasty ones. It worked, but took me a good amount of time to get back to them. Even now, there are still dishes waiting to be washed.

During Elsa's nap, I worked out, showered and cleaned up some things in my room. I know I have to pack tonight, so I just wanted a little head start. After Samuel and Lisa get off work tomorrow, we make the eight hour drive to Kalamazoo to spend Thanksgiving with Lisa's family. I'm excited. They are awesome. Just imagine a family that has as many kids as my family does as well as the same number of girls vs. boys. It's a party and we all get along. 

I had to wake Elsa up from her nap, so now, I just have to tidy the house and pick up Elsa's toys with her. She get's distracted easily, so I end up doing the majority of the work. We'll put on music, either children's lullabies or Christmas music on Pandora. 

Today, I also hung out on Skype with Mom and the kids while she prepared a brine for the turkey. It was fun and Elsa loves visiting. Missing my friends and family even more this week, but it is only twenty-four days until I get back to Washington for the holidays! 

Adventures in Nashville

Saturday, with limited sun and a lot of rain, we went trap shooting at Montgomery Shooting Complex. It was fun. I've gotten better from the last and won both competitions we did. Just as we finished, it began raining, so it was perfect timing. We got white chocolate raspberry mochas on the way home. It was a good day.

Sunday, Rose, Anna and I left for Nashville early and explored Andrew Jackson's Hermitage. We spent a long time there touring the house and ground in the cold. We all agreed the cotton patch was the coolest part. We had never seen cotton growing before, so it was cool to see how it looks and be able to pick some.

You can't see much, but this is cotton.

After that, we went to the Nashville Farmer's Market, which was quiet since it was Sunday, but we got some amazing Greek food for lunch. We went next to Marathon Village, an old car factory. It had great potential although there weren't a whole bunch of boutique type shops. It is, however, where Olan Roger's Soda Parlor is. I've wanted to go there since it opened a year ago, so I was so excited to go. I knew just what shirt I wanted.

The shirt I got. 

I got a Freaking Foster. It was delicious!

If you haven't watched any of Olan Roger's videos, this is my favorite, although it's a little crass.

To finish up, we went to Fort Negley park and walked around what was left, hit Trader Joes for mints (Elsa loves the regular peppermints and we all love the green tea mints) and then Walmart before home. It was a blast of a day and felt like a true break from the routine I was in.

The rest of the weekend was spent playing cards, eating probably way too much and playing with the most adorable niece in the world. She circled around for kisses, hugs and stories or just to hang out. What a doll.

So, the weekend's over and Monday will be long, but I have an awesome new shirt to help the day out!