All in a Weekend

It is better to be busy. At least, I keep telling myself that. Things have gotten pretty busy around our house lately. But fun too. This weekend is a perfect example. First of all, this is the busiest time of the year for Anthony so I consider myself a single-mother for at least the month of October. He works from 7-8 in the morning until about midnight, at least 6 days a week. So everything I do I have to do by myself - with 4 boys in tow. Fun.

On Saturday morning E and C had their last soccer game of the season. Yay and bummer. They really loved soccer and are both getting to be pretty good. But it is getting pretty cold out there on the soccer field so Mama is glad it's over! Their cool coach gave them awesome medals - thanks Tom!!When that was over it was costumes on and off to Boo at the Zoo. Anthony's bosses were super kind enough to give us a 2 year family membership to the zoo!! Yay!! Definitely one of the families favorite places so what a great gift. We are going to make the best of it, starting with Boo at the Zoo. It lightly rained most of the time we were there, which was fun, but the boys didn't care and had a great time. I should mention how awesome they were, too. Totally stayed by me and I didn't fear of losing one of the even once! Wow.

As you can see, this year we have 2 commandos, one purple dragon, and one cute pumpkin. All of the boys have worn the pumpkin costume so it's special. We got home after dark that day (couldn't miss Captain America and Iron Man's talk about recycling!!) and everyone fell into bed. On Sunday morning we were invited to a baptism for a friend's baby. Yeah! Very nice baptism (from what I could tell between hauling the boys outside - it's hard to keep 4 boys sitting still by myself!) and then really, really yummy cake afterwards. We stopped at home long enough to throw a potluck dish together and we were off to the airfield for a kids day at the airport. A very nice couple from church invited the kids out for a ride on their plane and they were super excited. I didn't realize, as I had missed church for the baptism, that the airport excursion had been expanded to anyone from the church and soon many of our members began to show up. Needless to say, there wasn't enough time for everyone to have a ride. :( It was very sad. C was the most excited when the planes started up and flew by. He waited and waited for his turn but I kept saying, just wait, it's almost your turn.

W was invited by one of the other kids to go on the first ride - along with an adult member, her adult son, and his girlfriend. Wait, wasn't this for kids? Then another couple and their grandchild - who didn't go to our church? Then a family, who were kind enough to take E. Then another family from church. Then - wait - is that a group of the older adults from church. Huh. Ok, next time C! Oh, that's the last ride? I felt so bad. The couple that was offering the rides had promised the plane to someone else later that day and so we had run out of time. They felt really bad and have offered to take our family up sometime, but it wasn't their fault. However some of those adults could have made sure the kids had gone first? Maybe? Sigh. He handled it like a trooper - but I still feel bad. I need to learn to be more aggressive! Or something.

As close as J got to an airplane. :)

W after his ride. I couldn't get a good one of E because he took off running after some bug as soon as he could get out! But we have pictures JUST like that from when we were little. :)

It was a fun weekend. But tiring. And as this is Halloween week, every day is pretty much like this. Who said parenting was boring??

Apples, Apples and more Apples!

Any of you who are also followers of my sister's fabulous blog will already know that the boys and I visited Grandpa and Minka last weekend and had a great time! It is always fun to be home and especially when we find fun things to do. Actually, to be honest, it can be a little exhausting for mama to try to keep the boys contained in one area of my parents large house and yard, while keeping them settled down and nothing broken. But still, it's their favorite thing to do. Between my mother and my sister, we were fed yummy food, too - always the best part!

So my sister and I got the bright idea that we'd take the boys out to pick apples. Of course, it was probably the coldest day so far, but they don't care! So we bucked up and hauled them out to an apple orchard that allowed you to pick your own apples. They had the best time! We tried mightily to get them to pick apples that would be good for baking or eating, but basically they just picked any apple that was at their level and looked interesting. 26 pounds of apples! YES. They loaded up their bags until they couldn't carry them any more. And then Mama had to carry them. Of course. Which didn't stop them from picking.

We also were able to get some great pictures of them. There truly are few things more beautiful than an apple orchard in the fall.

At the end of the day, we made classic apple pie and a 'Becky Original' apple pie, both in my parents convection microwave - an interesting experience. But still fun. And yummy! I also made apple crisp and STILL have apples left... Fall is such a fun time of the year!

Oh, and the boys spent Saturday helping Grandpa move my sister's family into their new house. They worked so hard and Grandpa said they carried lots of heavy things and didn't quit once. He was so proud of them (me too!!).

Ready to go apple picking!

The boys' cousin with his apple.

My sister and baby checking out the apples.

School is HARD

Now that I have a 2nd grader, I am beginning to realize how difficult school has become. Honestly! I realized when W started kindergarten that he was supposed to know things that I thought we LEARNED in kindergarten. He struggled because he didn't already know all of his letters, sounds and numbers. I guess since most kids these days attend daycare and preschool, they've already spent time learning their letters and numbers. He did neither and was behind. We worked hard and caught him up and now I believe he's where he's supposed to be for a 2nd grader. He seems to be doing much better than last year, behavior-wise, and is completing all of his work. I don't even have to fight with him to do his homework.
But having real grades has been a shock after 1st grade's S, S+, etc system. I don't know what to do when he comes home with worksheets marked with C-'s, or even D's. If I thought he was goofing off or not trying to do his work, I would be mad but I don't know how to react when he's actually doing his work. He's a smart boy, I think, and doesn't seem to have trouble understanding his math or spelling homework. Here is an example of some of the questions he's expected to answer, on his own.
I celebrate my birthday by having a party. The word celebrate means _________.
A. to go shopping.
B. to spend money on something I love (Wyatt's answer)
C. to make a gift for a friend.
D. to do something fun for a special reason (correct answer)
I can understand why he said B. Over the last years, we haven't had big parties for the kids but they have gotten to go to the store with their father on their birthday and pick out something with their money from A's grandfather.
The other one he got wrong was 'What detail does NOT support the main idea?' I think this a confusing question, especially for a 7 year old. Because he got the 2 wrong, he got a C-. He got a D on another paper for identifying the subject of 2 sentences as Jason called instead of just Jason and The fire instead of The fire truck.
Another question - What does the word flames mean in this sentence? Firefighters help save people from smoke and flames of a fire.
A. hot air
B. the dark clouds that flow from fire
C. hot, bright gases given off by a fire (correct answer)
D. sticks that burn (W's answer)
During a fire, when people are safe, they are _______.
A. not in danger (correct answer)
B. in the way
C. near something that may harm them (W's answer)
D. ready to eat
Because he got those two wrong, he got a D+. He is doing well in most of his subjects but has a C in language, and I don't even know how to help him. Do these questions seem kind of difficult and misleading for a 7 year old? His teacher is wonderful and I realize that she is required to teach the material that is given to her. But it is very frustrating as a parent. And we are not the only ones. Another friend has expressed the same concern, after having a daughter that was ahead last year. Is continuing to push our children like this, going to cause generations of underachievers? Because we require them to understand things that they are simply to young for? And therefore they continue to fail?
Last year we struggled and struggled with Wyatt's reading. He couldn't seem to catch on and therefore catch up, and his teacher continually expressed her concern. I discussed this often with my sister, a reading specialist, and she assured me that he was fine and would catch on. Exactly as she predicted, by the end of the year he had caught up. However, he spent the entire year feeling frustrated and 'dumb' because he couldn't read very well.
Anyway, any suggestions for how to help him? How concerned should a parent be in 2nd grade? Is it ok as long as he gets by and works hard? Even with C's?

I LOVE my husband

Really I do. For many reasons. But one of those reason is because he taught me how to make the most wonderful apple pie. And anyone who knows me knows I'm a sucker for any type of dessert item. Especially a good, warm apple pie. But I hated making them at home because I felt like the apples were always still very tart and crunchy, and I like my apples to be soft and sweet and mushy. :) SO, one day he said - well you have to cook them down first. Before you put them in the pie. Like he was mentioning it passing. Like it's a given.
WELL, I've looked in all of MY cookbooks and none of them mention cooking the apples ahead of time. But I followed his directions and it DOES make the best pie! He said to put around a 1/2 stick of butter in a frying pan, along with sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon and then add your apple slices and cook it all down until the apples are soft and sloopy. Put it all in your crust and bake it until the crust gets brown. Yummy!!
So in the spirit of the nice fall-like weather we've been having lately, I decided it was a apple-pie sort of day. I hauled all of the boys down to an apple farm right by our house and let them loose on the poor lady. She was FABULOUS and took it all in stride. We got some Jonathan apples, which she said are the old-fashioned apple pie apple, after much cajoling got all of the boys back in the car and returned home to make our pie. This method is seriously the best! The pie is so good! Fall is definitely one of my favorite times of the year!
Next - we're going to visit the orchard and pick our own apples! :)

The glamorous life

When I started this blog, I intended to write long blog posts, pontificating on the life with a chef. Somehow it seems that I've gotten far away from that. Part of the reason is that it is not easy to write about our every day travails without getting Anthony in trouble at work. :) The trials and tribulations of a chef seem to be never ending and I guess that keeps life interesting. From food critics, to messed up paychecks, to no show staff, to incompetence in the office, to being told he would be 'fired by Gordon Ramsey!' by a guest, no less. Honestly, the list is never ending. And could make for some very entertaining blogging. But, sigh, I have tried to be responsible and so have drifted away from my objective.
However, this last week has been a busy one for one wife of the chef and thus I feel that I have the right to write about my experiences. Actually, after sitting with a table full of 'bloggers' perhaps I have a responsibility to?? Or is that going too far?
Last Friday I was 'summoned' to eat dinner at the restaurant with the owners and their children. We scrambled for a babysitter (which is a WHOLE other post) and I put on my new little white dress and headed out to eat. The occasion was the visiting of 3 former 'guest chefs' who were going to make dinner for the restaurant. There were 2 entree options and 6 courses in all. Not bad for the price and most people there seemed to be friends of the chefs and therefore there for a good time. And a good time was had. By the guest chefs - not necessarily by MY chef. The idea of turning his kitchen and restaurant over to a group of old chefs, none of whom having apparently cooked professionally in many, many years, was about enough to send him into cardiac arrest. He restrained himself as best he could and calmed himself by being the expediter, which turned out to be a good thing, as the wine was flowing. In the kitchen. And I don't mean into the pans. ;) But, though it took about 3 hours to eat, it was fun to be waited on and not have even one little boy to entertain. I had a 'wife of the chef' martini (yes, it's mine :) )and we had a great bottle of Bordeaux. Great.
So then I was asked to return last night for dinner with a group of 'bloggers'. I have to say I was a little apprehensive about this dinner. But some wonderful friends of ours offered to watch all 4! boys, overnight even!!, so I didn't make up some excuse about projectile vomiting or chicken pox, and went to dinner. Apparently, since I have a small, not even mentionable, wine blog about the wines we taste from the inn, it was suggested that I could sit with these people and have something to talk about?? First of all, I must say that I was somewhat disappointed when nary a one from our table was interested in wine aside from one of the owners and me. Can you be a food/restaurant blogger and not like wine?? Really? It just seems so much of the experience. And the pairings of great food with great wine is such a big thing these days. I was really surprised. The couple I sat by was nice and sweet and though I think he has one of the biggest blogs in the city near us, they didn't seem pretentious or snobby at all. The other couple wasn't very impressive at first glance, (I'm trying to be nice here) but I got the impression as dinner went on that they really had their fingers on the pulse of dining in our area. So I sat nicely while they took pictures of each course, drank fruity mixed drinks and otherwise kept fairly poker faces. My food was good. Delicious actually. I should have gotten out my camera and taken pictures! But I honestly couldn't tell you how the reviews will fare.
As I had NO BOYS! for all night, I stayed at the restaurant and drank wine and watched Anthony finish his prep for the next day and clean up. It sounds boring but it was kind of fun. Some of the bloggers stopped in about midnight to ask him some questions and that was interesting.
But wait, its not over! Today a large wine event was planned in our city and Anthony had gotten a table and was serving at it. So once again, a fabulous friend said she'd watch the boys for a bit, and I dressed up and ran up there. It was far less impressive than I'd hoped but anything that has to do with wine and tasting is still fun. It was disappointing that all of the wines had to be wines you could purchase at a particular local grocery store - who was sponsoring the event. Anthony tries to not carry any wines that you can find in the grocery store so I guess it was fun to try ones we don't usually drink... It was an expensive affair, which is when it certainly pays to be married to a chef! It was about 90 degrees outside and I worried about Anthony, who was wearing his chef pants, shoes, T and full jacket. He stood out there for about 10 hours. He's still not home! Still, it was fun and is definitely becoming one of my favorite extracurricular activities. :)
So that is a week in the life... Maybe I'll do a day in the life next...

Boys

Wow. Things have been rough lately. Summer time just seems hard. I feel like I want to be one of those mothers who are SO glad when school is out, who LOVE all of the time they get to spend with their children and look forward to it all summer long. I TRY to feel that way. Honestly. But it is hard...
I've decided that maybe I just need to learn my limitations. And not say yes to things that I know might not go well. A large, unfenced outdoor area with surrounding woods is just not a good place to take 4 little boys, 2 of whom live for exporing, catchin bugs, digging in the dirt and other things that make it hard to not lose them in wooded areas. If we're on our way to a party or playdate and things are not going well - they will not get into the car, they are fighting, someone is crying - I should trust my gut and maybe just stay home. It isn't going to get better. Being stubborn and optimistic about it doesn't seem to help.
A friend (actually 2) told me today that I just look frazzled and stressed lately. I hated hearing that. I don't want to be a 'stressed out' mom. I don't want people to feel like they don't want to have me or my children over because it will be 'stressful' or sometimes insane. But I'm not really sure what to do about it either. Is there a magic formula for keeping little boys from fighting?? Or convincing them there are fun things to do in one small confined area? To make them turn on their listening ears when their mother is talking to them?? Do other mothers of 7, 5 1/2, 4 and 1 year old boys have these same problems??
Sigh. I'm tired of being embarrased and frustrated in front of my friends and family. Or even strangers. Maybe I should just keep them home until they get older?? Will that help?
Raising children is really a tough thing. If any one of the children had been a girl, I believe the dynamic would be different. Especially between W and E. A particular kind of evil seems to ensue when you put an 'energetic' 7 year old with an 'energetic' 51/2 year old. Jumping off of the dresser onto the bed, running off into the woods to keep from having to get in the car, whipping the cart around in wide circles in the grocery store - causing their mother to fear for the safety of their baby brother, as well as others, sneaking every kind of bug and amphibian they can catch into the car and/or house, wrestling each other down to the ground in the middle of the store, yard, other people's living room, etc.
So anyway, I guess I'm glad that school will start again soon. I'm ashamed to say it. But it's a fact. I'll miss them. And I'm sad that E is old enough for kindergarten. But it's about time...
On a side note - whichever sister gave the boys the Che Guevara T, it's very popular and quite a conversation piece in some circles. :) I just received another compliment on it today.
I've just been provided a gun (made of train-track pieces) so that I can 'protect myself' so that's all for now. I guess I forgot to mention how fun they are! :D

Summer Happenings

Here are a few things that have happened at our house over the last month or so.

Emmanuel's fish, after 6 months of life?? passed away on May 23rd. No one seemed TOO upset (least of all his parents) so it was handled pretty well. Anthony took the boys out to bury the fish and have a small funeral.

Wyatt had his end of school program.

Christian had his second skin allergy test. He took the test like a champ, only flinching as she applied each of the 6 plates. However that evening his eye swelled up so he could hardly see out of it and was still swollen the next day!

The largest red spot is peanuts. He also reacted to dust, tree pollen, ragweed, cats and only slightly to eggs. Sigh. Poor boy.
As I posted before, our anniversary was this month, but Anthony had to work all day. When he got home at about 11:30pm that night, he brought in this large box. Note the amount of plastic wrap on it! He LOVES plastic wrap. Must go through ROLLS at the restaurant.
At first I didn't pay any attention to it. I thought it was something for work. So he had to urge me to go over and check it out. This is what was inside!

Isn't that sweet!! So yummy too!! He knew EXACTLY what to get me. :)And finally, It's FATHER'S DAY!!! This is what the boys made for Anthony.
Jens 'helping'! Now we're off on a 14 hour trip to Minnesota. Fun! So there should be more posts to come. ;)