Nuggets :: Firsts & Last

So many firsts this week, as we jumped into the holiday spirit and tackled crafting projects, social engagements and pausing long enough to enjoy the beauty of where we live and be reminded of our place in this world.

nuggets.

A first for all of us - building a gingerbread house.  Notice I wrote building and not baking.  Oh, no.  I knew I didn't want to tackle making it all from scratch and when the boy begged and pleaded for a kit from Trader Joe's and offered to pay for half of it, well, how could I say no?

It turns out, neither Steve or myself had ever made or decorated a gingerbread house.  Two days later, I let G and his friends devour it.  My cool mom street cred went up exponentially  that day.  Definitely adding this to our yearly holiday list of traditions.

Grady made the first basket of the game last weekend against Our Lady of Guadalupe.  It was also the first game basket he's ever made and he was so proud of himself.  He really hustles up and down the court and is slowly learning the game.  His team didn't leave with a win, but G had a small personal victory and that was a big win for us.

Highway One from Tomales to Valley Ford

Our December skies have been putting on such a show for us & the rains have not come to visit us...yet.

Highway One near Erickson Ranch

Clear, crisp, frosty mornings give way to cloud-soaked skies by the afternoon.  I think the clouds look like floating marshmallow fluff and enjoy the simple pleasure of finding random imagery in their cumulus formations with Grady on the way to and from school.

Hills in the A.M. vs. Hills in the P.M.

 The 14 mile round trip is always breathtaking, especially during the winter months.

Eucalyptus lined highway & tree silhouettes

The evening skies have been show-stoppers.  I liken their late afternoon colors to freshly spun cotton candy and find that my camera just does not do them justice.  You have to witness it firsthand, pausing long enough to say goodbye to the day and giving them a quiet standing ovation.

Grady watched his first "scary" movie with his dad last Friday night.  Something Wicked This Way Comes.  The title alone scares the heck out of me and conjured up images of a storm swept landscape, carnies and sneaky little boys.  Grady just snuggled up next to his father and told me when it was all over that the movie was about overcoming your fears.  It was also a father and son tale.  Watching G growing and morphing into such a nice young man is the best thing about my day(s).  I truly enjoy watching the father and son moments these two have been sharing lately.  They have been building things together in the workshop, playing darts, games of chess, Battleship & getting lost in the book Toby Alone (a suspenseful, social commentary) at the end of each evening.  Did I pick the right man to marry and have a kid with?  Oh, yes, indeed.

And another first this week.

Steve has been monitoring the water quality of our local Salmon Creek watershed for over four years.  He does this quietly and without much fanfare, as he does most things.  But I'm going to share with you the awesome event that he and Grady took part in this past Monday.  They helped with the reintroduction and release of 175 Coho salmon back into the fresh waters of Salmon Creek, as part of the Third Annual Coho Salmon Release along with the Army Corp of Engineers and various other local entities.  You can see a short movie Steve put together here (because he's fancy like that) and read a bit more about it here.  Grady skipped school with our blessing and helped return these 30+ pound fish to our coastal waterways.  Nature never ceases to amaze me and I'm again reminded how much I love this wild and wonderful Sonoma Coast.

Grady looks freakishly HUGE on Santa's lap this year!

Last.  This weekend we had a round of parties to attend (four in all) and we ended our party train at the Jenner Community Xmas party.  The kids fairy godmother, Cheryl, goes all out for the kiddos and this year was no exception.  The girls sang solos that brought down the house with applause, Santa brought bags of books with clementines, silly putty and crazy straws.  Little delights for such sweet little ones.

About a month ago, Grady called me out about being the Tooth Fairy.  He point blank said he thought I was the tooth fairy and that I was lying.  Ouch.  And as I firmly and adamantly denied it, I kind of felt like a big, fat, liar pants.  I got real sad thinking about him losing this childhood world of make believe and it brought into question why we (okay, I - as Steve would just assume to tell him the truth) do the things we do when it comes to holidays, fairies, bunnies and the man in the big red suit.  I came to the simple conclusion that it's about creating magic and it's not forever.  We can make it whatever we want and as soon as he finds out that all of these things are not real, well, then we can move on to newer traditions and make the magic happen for others.  I find solace in that revelation and it's propelling me through this holiday season with purpose, so that I can make this last xmas, where he still kind of believes in Santa, a special one for him.

I know the jig is up, soon.  And I'm holding on for dear life.

Happy solstice eve, everyone!

Make :: Canine Cookies

We have a lot of canine friends.  Lots.  Every year my dog-loving boy designs new packaging and I bake up this quick and easy recipe for our four-legged friends to enjoy during this holiday season.

Canine Cookies:

2 c. wheat flour

1/4 c. cornmeal

1/2 c. parmesan cheese

1 egg

1 c. water

Mix all. Knead a bit. Roll out and cut w/ small cookie cutter. 

Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 min (flip halfway through). 

When done, turn oven off and leave pan(s) in to dry out. 

Our sweet dog Molly Gray passed away earlier this year, but she is still a muse for Grady's artwork.  I love how much he still loves her.

Nuggets :: Short & Sweet

I wrote a really lengthy post for today...and then lost all of it.  Every.  Last.  Word.  I don't have it in me to try and recreate it.  Therefore, I'm going to post a few photo captions, share a quick recipe and call it a day.  

nuggets.

Do yourself a favor and make this yummy, over-the-top cheesy bread.

Marty's Kick-Ass Cheesy Bread Recipe

2 Tablespoons grated onion

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 Tablespoon prepared Grey Poupon mustard

1/2 pound butter

1/2 teaspoon Beau Monde spice

1 large round loaf sour dough bread or 2 small

1 pound+ Swiss cheese, sliced

Melt together butter, onion, mustard, lemon juice, Beau Monde.  Set aside.  

Slice sour dough bread down to but not through bottom crust to 

form 1-1-1/2 inch chunks.  

Put a Swiss cheese slice in every cut.  

Pour butter mixture over and in between cuts.  

Place loaf in baking pan.  

Bake 50 minutes at 350 degrees or until cheese is melted and the top is slightly browned.

Oh, and you're welcome.  Seriously.  You're gonna fall in love with it.  It's a gooey, cheesy, flavorful bite of heaven.

Personalized birthday hats by Grady

Decadent feast for our friends' birthdays

Focus on teaching Grady about giving.  He gets it.

Random stalking of xmas lights in Petaluma

Missed most of the lunar eclipse.  This photo morphed into a "heart" moon.
I've never made a gingerbread house.  Either has Steve.  Either has Grady.

Pig Santa was G's favorite holiday decoration while cruising the streets of Petaluma

Dad, you sank my battleship.  C'mon now.

Day at the Cinnabar Theatre to see the Young Rep's Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory

Best Buddies

Ready for my close-up?

View from historic suite at Cavallo Point

Handmade love from father & son

Crisp, cold nights & winter blooms

Boy vs. Father = Victory for G

Molting presents

The week was full of games, good food, friends, festive parties, interesting books, thoughtful presents and lovely opportunities to celebrate this season.  Oh, and lessons learned.

Lesson #1 - hit save more often while writing this blog.  Ugh.

Have a great rest of your week.

nuggets :: out of chaos...

hump day nuggets :: little bits of the season in photos and words about the last week

You know the phrase out of chaos, comes order?  Well, it's an old Latin phrase and it keeps ringing in my ears as I reflect on our life and all of the hubbub from last week.  Our family has been going and going for months and on Saturday night we hit the proverbial wall.  Grady went to bed without dinner and cried himself to sleep (ouch), we chatted about our parenting do's and don'ts and where we're off course.  Turns out, we needed to have complete chaos in order to bring our family, well, order.  And order most definitely came.   Funny how that happens when you stop, pay attention and then hit the reset button on your life.

nuggets.

The mornings around here have been spectacular.  We had our first frost Monday night, but before that we had these incredible, glowing sunrises and the mornings were warm and balmy.

The light is just amazing first thing in the morning and shadows & silhouettes are screaming to be photographed.

I rushed out in my boots & housedress to try and capture some of the honeyed light splashed up against the siding of our home.  The boy wanted to add his own super cool element to the photoshoot (i.e. his version of a peace sign).

The hens have gone on strike and are no longer producing eggs.  It's such a sad time for this egg-loving family, but with the shorter days winding down - egg production should be up after Winter Solstice.  This is their way of saying Hey lady, we need a break.  We've been working our tails off for 10 months.  I hear you girls, I hear you.  Enjoy your sabbatical.

Just like our mornings, the golden afternoon sunlight spilling into our kitchen and bathroom makes me pause, enjoy the shadows for the few minutes I can and then the sun dips down over the hillside to the west of us and we're left with a soft, abbreviated rainbow of purples, pinks & blues that coat the valley skies.  It is such a beautiful way to end a day.

We finally finished putting out a few holiday decorations and getting in the general holiday spirit around here.  I read this post and it reminded me to focus on Grady and writing his book of memories this holiday season.  It also galvanized my head full of ideas and sharpened my focus on creating or reinforcing some of our holiday traditions for him and for us.  I'm ready now.

This is Grady's first year playing CYO (Catholic Youth Organization) basketball through his elementary school (don't ask me what COA means on their jerseys, 'cuz I got no idea!).  Saturday was their first game and the kids had to be there and ready to go at 8:30 a.m. in Petaluma (about 20 minutes from our home).  They all looked real cute in their uniforms and were dealt a crushing defeat when the buzzer rang with the final score tallied at 26-4.  Grady was quite the sprinter and hustled up and down the court, but nuances and strategy of the game are yet to be learned.  The kids had fun and that's all that really matters, right?

The crafting has started in earnest here in our household and the boy is leading the charge with his uber cool custom cuffs.  We picked up a few additional colors of tape, as boring duct tape grey was quickly falling out of fashion around here.  He designed four cuffs for his friends and embellished a few with Pokemon cards.  And I still don't understand Pokemon and probably never will.

I found dozens and dozens of photos of Grady in Photo Booth on my computer.  I have no idea when he took most of them, but it sure gave me a belly laugh when I scrolled through the images.  I'm guessing these are his alter-egos?

Grady's favorite day of the week is Wednesday.  When I asked him why, he said he wakes up with a happy feeling because he knows he's going to have music class today.  I love that.  He's been playing hot cross buns on the recorder and learning a lot from his music teacher this year. He's so proud that he has his very own musical instrument and can actually play it.

From our chaos over the weekend, came a new and improved chore chart for Grady.  A kind of road map of expectations for the day.  I forget how well my boy responds to a list and so far it's helped with the morning reluctance to get moving and jump-started the afternoon routine once he's home from school.  Steve and Grady designed the spreadsheet and quickly hung it next to his bunk bed.  It's working like a charm.

Grady has been leaving me select Pokemon cards on my bedside table.  He's carefully culled his collection and obviously selected the ones with sweet or pretty images.  And while I don't get Pokemon, I completely get this gesture.  Oh, and by the way, it's so much better than the snakes and cockroaches he was leaving me a few months ago.

Wild Lupine, Unknown, Box Honeysuckle

I picked up an additional 30+ plants from our local nursery's free pile last week.  I shared some with friends, saved some for teacher presents and planted the rest just before the first frost was upon us this week.

Before & After

Native Red Bee Balm was planted along the fence line and covered with straw to protect it from our early morning frost warnings this week.  I'm hoping it spreads like wildfire come spring (and it most likely will because it's from the mint family).  The scarlet blooms are said to attract hummingbirds and the beautiful "screen" will be a nicer element than the "weed screen" we currently display year-round as you approach our house.

I finally got the garlic in this week.  I used the same garlic that I harvested earlier this summer and we still have about five heads left.  I'm going to try and plant an entire bed of this in one of the vacant beds near the hen house because it's so danged easy to grow.  A friend once told me that if you can grow on your counter, you can grow it in your garden, Tammi.  Sage advice.

Well, if this isn't the nicest sight to see when I drive up the lane towards home.  The boy has put his Moomin books back into heavy rotation and Calvin & Hobbes and Diary of a Wimpy Kid have dropped off the radar screen as of right now.  He and his father put up lights and decorated the tree over the weekend, but I love that this tree remains one of his favorite reading spots.  Report cards came home and he exceeded his grade level in reading.  Well, I can certainly understand how that happened.

Happy hump day, friends.

Make :: Crayon Cupcakes

We have amassed hundreds of crayons over the years and they all cohabit in a large tear drop shaped jar with a snug lid.  Some were gifted, some were purchased and some are almost eight years old and quite brittle.  G rarely colors with crayons anymore, as he's more interested in fancy pencils, sharpies, graphite utensils, paint and duct tape (more on that later).

When I stumbled upon a short tutorial on Pinterest (my newest addiction...go on, try it, you'll probably like it, too), I knew I would definitely have to give it a go and do a little Sunday project with the boy.  He decided these would be given to his classmates right before the xmas break.

It was super easy and fun.  Although I did learn a thing or two in the process.  We ended up making three dozen and had to trash the first batch because I was too impatient and tried to take them out of the pan too early.  Lesson learned.

1.  Remove paper from crayons.
2.  Break or cut into 1/2" pieces.
3.  Place liners in a muffin tin (or use a silicone muffin tin - which I would definitely use next time, as some wax leaked down the side and ended up in the bottom of the pan).
4.  Place your chopped crayons in the liners and fill up to the top.
5.  Bake at 235 degrees for approximately 20 minutes (or until melted).
6.  Cool for 20 minutes (do not remove liners w/ wax until completely cool or liner will most likely rip - or at least mine did!).

I would definitely refrain from using dark colors next time (purple, brown, black and the like), as they dominated the finished product.

Once the new crayon cupcakes are formed and solid, you can remove the liner paper.  I'm going to leave the papers on and slip into a cellophane sleeve or envelope for gifting.  It's kind of fun to unwrap the liner on the crayon cupcake and see the pattern on the bottom.

It's sort of like a tie-dyed crayon.

It was a really simple, virtually free and such a wonderfully colorful project.  Plus, we liked the end result.  I hope his classmates will, too.

UPDATE:  Found this little tutorial after I published this post.  I would definitely try to make solid colored or two-toned crayons next time.  Nicer finished product and the fact that she added glitter?  Genius.