Weekend at Home with the Kids

The kids and I spent some quality time together when Ryan traveled to New York City this past weekend to play a concert with one of the projects he is involved in, the Douglas Detrick's Anywhen Ensemble. He was excited for this trip, as their new cd was being released...and he'd get to spend some time in the big city with his brother and other friends. 

Back in Corvallis, Sylvie was hard at work selling Girl Scout cookies.  Thanks to family and friends, and her hard work hitting the streets and knocking on doors, she was able to sell 161 boxes...which qualified her for a Samoa charm bracelet incentive.  Needless to say, she was ecstatic to meet that mark.   

Friday night we had pizza and movie night, and the kids went to bed wanting pancakes for breakfast.  I had anticipated that, so I had picked up some buttermilk to make Great-grandma Holen's recipe.  The kids were overjoyed.  We shared stories of my Grandma Schroeder making the same recipe for me when I was a kid, and how if cousin Hanna was there, I would have had to make a double batch!  

I finished up a t-shirt dress I had made for one of Sylvie's friends birthdays, which was easy and fun - using an old t-shirt and attaching a skirt with ties.  Sylvie tried it on for me, and was happy to give it as a gift...as long as I make one for her too.  

Since I was in full-on homemaker mode, I also whipped up a batch of Chestnut Flour chocolate chunk muffins.  Since going gluten-free three years ago, I've been exploring different baking options.  Using nut flours instead of alternative grains is something I've been liking more and more.  

Also, I decided it was finally time to do something with all the felted wool sweaters I had been saving up, so I cut them up into some squares and sewed up a blanket...which both Kyran and the cat put to immediate use.  

These lucky kiddos also had a post-Christams package from their Grandma Biesack - super fun gifts!  Sylvie got a Pippi Longstocking book, movie, and dolls.  We read two chapters immediately.  Kyran got some new markers and an art pad, and already has put together quite the collection of drawings.  Also, an Etch a Sketch!  

After the kids went to bed, Leah and I continued with our "Girls" marathon.  I hadn't seen the show, and we decided to try to make it through both seasons while it was just us girls (which, I'm sad to admit, also meant that there were several technological difficulties with the whole production!).  We ate plenty of popcorn and made it well into Season 2. 

On Sunday, it was time to get the house ready for Ryan's return.  The kids helped with cleaning and baking a welcome home cake.  Once it was ready, they were on the edge of their seats watching out the window for their dad.  

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Celebrating the New Year

We got to ring in the new year as a family this year, as Ryan had a concert in Portland with Mo Phillips, who has put together a rockin' band for kids.  Another kid's band, Red Yarn opened for them.  The show was at the Village Ballroom, and was sold out!

The kids got dressed up in their party duds, and had an absolute blast seeing their Dad on stage.  Sylvie is quite the dancer!  

The kids got t-shirts, and now proudly show off their status as "Mo-bots."

Happy New Year, everyone!

Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas in Corvallis.  On Christmas Eve, we had a feast of various snacks and had fun getting into the Christmas spirit. 

We took a drive to look at lights and to look for Santa and Rudolph in the sky.  We came back to get our cookie plate ready for Santa.  

We woke up to two VERY excited children.  

And opened presents until 3 pm!  

We missed our family and friends like crazy!  Thank you everyone for the gifts, cards, and well wishes that were sent to Oregon.  

The Days Leading Up to Christmas

We had so much fun getting ready for Christmas this year!  We crafted all of our gifts (ornaments, buntings, grape jam) and got our cards out on time.  We also enjoyed holiday activities.  Our annual tradition is going to Storybook Land in Albany to see Santa.  Storybook Land is a whole set of Christmas themed displays that gets set up every year by a non-profit, that ends with a visit to Santa.  

This year, Sylvie asked for a desk with an art box inside, and Kyran asked for an airplane.  Prior to his decision to ask for an airplane (which he wanted to fly by remote control), his other ideas included a spinning thing to put his sister in, a real butterfly, a bird print, and a pogo stick.  Sylvie was pretty set on the desk.  

As a first grader, Sylvie now participates in the assemblies at Corvallis Waldorf School (preschool and kindergarten observe).  It was such a joy to see her class perform a Jack Frost poem and sing the Christmas is Coming, the Goose is Getting Fat.  She loved preparing and being on stage!  It was hard to get a picture, but you might be able to pick out a little girl in a red stocking cap right in the middle.  

The weekend before Christmas, we decided to go see the lights display at the aquarium in Newport, and to get some dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, Cafe Mundo.  The kids had a blast at the aquarium, which had lit up its outdoor areas.  Kyran just loves watching the fish.  He did not want to leave!  We had a great dinner at Cafe Mundo, and there was a fun band playing, so Sylvie and I got in a little dancing, too.  

The rest of the weekend was filled with finishing up our shopping, getting our cookies baked, and presents wrapped!  And, of course, putting the gumdrops on the gumdrop tree.  

Snow Days in Corvallis

Thursday night (yes, last Thursday!) brought snow to Corvallis.  The kids woke up to two surprises - eight inches of snow, as well as a visit from St. Nick.  St. Nick brought gingerbread house kits, gold coins and kiwis.   The snow brought a snow day from school, and the kids were immediately off to play.  

The snow was absolutely beautiful, and the kids had so much fun tromping around, playing with friends, and sledding.  Of course, they also got a bit cold, so some hot chocolate was in order.

The snow also resulted in the cancellation of the Corvallis Waldorf School's annual Winter Lights Festival, which was disappointing, but we filled our day with Christmas preparations.  We got out all of our decorations and hung the wreath.  This year, we broke from our tree farm tradition to visit our friends in Dallas who invited us for dinner and to cut down a tree on their property, as they have many noble firs growing around.  

Though the roads were a bit dicey, we enjoyed our trip very much.  The kids got to play with their friends, and the parents got to enjoy a backyard bonfire in the snow in the country!  It almost felt like Wisconsin, and was quite a treat.  

Sunday was full of more holiday prep, and we got the tree up.  The kids love having a tree in their house - in fact, we have two trees as our friends let the kids cut a small one for their room.  Kyran wanted to hold hands and dance around the tree, and kept saying how lovely it was.  

Monday brought another snow day, as the temperature had stayed freezing and the snow and ice hadn't melted.  Tuesday, Wednesday, and even today (Thursday - a week after the snowfall) brought even more snow days!  The kids are going a bit stir crazy, but they are filling their time with holiday activities, like building gingerbread houses and watching Christmas moive classics.  

Christmas is certainly on it's way!  We are missing all our friends and family very much during this time, but have been blessed with some midwestern weather to bring us a taste of home.  

  

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was wonderful this year - I took the whole week off of work with the kids (who were off of school), and it was sunny the whole time!  It was very relaxing to have some home time with the kids.  We are so fortunate to be great friends with our neighbors, who host us each year for the Thanksgiving meal.  Our neighbors to the north join as well.  It is so amazingly ideal to share backyards with such wonderful folks with kids the same age - they have the freedom to roam and play, and the adults can trade off watching them.  A little mini-community.  This year, the meal was held at 1 pm, and we brought sweet potatoes, green salad, and maple walnut pie.  I also made the gravy (which worked, thankfully, since I'm no expert!).  The food was delicious, and the sun was shining in the back windows.  I think it kept us more awake and alert than previous years.  After eating, the kids headed off to the nearby playground, while the adults cleaned up and then played a new game, Quelf, which was a blast!  I'd highly recommend it for an adult group setting.  Very fun and interactive.  Our neighbors also hosted a Thanksgiving dance party from 6-8, so we stayed for that to work off some calories!  I think it was entertaining for the kids to see their parents dancing, and Sylvie told me it was her favorite part of the day.  After we put the kids to bed, Ryan, Leah, and I watched a Thanksgiving movie (Pieces of April - could not find Home for the Holidays, which is another T-day fave).  

Friday was another exciting day, as Ryan, Leah, and I were heading out to Portland to catch a Cat Power show and have dinner at a Cuban place with a Wisconsonite friend who was in town.  The kids had their first sleepover, which took place very close to home (at the neighbors, of course!), and were excited to pack their sleeping bags and pajamas.  The show was a heart-wrenching pleasure.  I love Cat Power.  The kids had a blast at their sleepover, and didn't come home until close to noon!  

Saturday was yet another big day, as Sylvie was in her first parade!  Each year after Thanksgiving, Corvallis has a "Winter Lights Parade" downtown, which culminates in the lighting of the tree at the Courthouse once the final float (with Santa on it!) makes its way down the street.  This year's theme was Hawaiian.  Sylvie marched with her Girl Scout troop, and wore the grass skirt and shell necklace I brought back from my trip to Honolulu this past spring.  We missed having her spectate with us, but it was great fun to see her smiling face and wave to her during the parade.  

And then on Sunday we got ready for getting back to school and work...

Fourth Birthday Party

We had a sweet little fourth birthday party for Kyran the evening of Sunday the 17th, with just a few close friends and neighbors.  We decorated the house with fall leaves and the lanterns from Martinmas.  Kyran wore a crown of bright red leaves I collected from the north side of town, which he said looked like a "fire crown."  

After our guests arrived, we decorated forest gnomes as our craft, painting wood pegs and adding felt capes, wool hair, and acorn caps.  We then played "spin the bottle" - the child who the bottle landed on got to present his or her gift to Kyran. 

 The next game was "pat the pan" - a blindfolded child is given a wooden spoon then must crawl around the floor trying to bang into a pan that is placed upside down with a gift underneath.  This was enjoyed by all, and was very entertaining for the parents to watch.  The gifts were baby forest gnomes inside leaf pouches.  

We then moved on to cupcake decorating, and the kids were free to use any frosting, leaf cookies, or candy acorns they wanted to make their creations.  We gathered all the cupcakes together to form Kyran's birthday cake.  

We ate a little supper together -Kyran's choice of tacos, then sang "Happy Birthday" and had cake.  We closed the evening with the story of "The Great White Egg" that tells how a little boy named Kyran joined his family one joyous day.  The last line of the story is: "Every year after that, on a day in November, a feast is prepared and candles are lighted to remind us of the starlight on the mountain and the gift of the great white moon bird, and the day that Kyran first stepped down to the earth."  While reading this, I lit votive candles and let Kyran present one to each of his guests.