Tuesday Ramblings, journal style.

Just a quick note about yesterday: We went to Grandma's to support her at her Community Services for the Blind (hereafter CSB) home evaluation, which went well, and we also stopped at the park for a bit, where we saw a red winged blackbird, and a pair of Peregrine Falcons. That was cool.

I also self-medicated at the fabric store. I succumbed to a sweet set of 5-inch coordinated pastel fabric squares that I think will make an adorable baby quilt for some little baby girl I know in Alabama, if I can just get my butt in gear and sew them together. Did you know that buying fabric makes having hives bearable? I am sure it cures a bunch of other ills as well, lol.

We also rented a bunch of movies this weekend. So far, we have watched Narnia (twice!), Legend of Zorro (the more I see of him, the more I like Antonia Banderas, and Catherine Zeta Jones didn’t do too bad a job, except for the sword-fighting scenes. The story was good, and the drinking, smoking horse was hilarious!), and the original Odd Couple. I thought I was going to laugh myself to death when Oscar (Walter Mathau sp?) was crying to Felix at the end. He was slobby, but was so sweet to everyone he knew- very endearing, especially if you have seen my Oscar-like tendencies when it comes to keeping house, lol. I am much more an Oscar than a Felix, though I do have my moments. We still have Batman Begins to watch.

For Tuesday: Well, we are home for the day, and what a day it was. I only had a few minor panic attacks while behind the wheel today- every time someone came speeding up behind me, or tailgated me. I am wondering how long that will last. I have never liked driving much, but now, it is all I can do to get behind the wheel, and today, I was behind the wheel a great deal!! Luckily, the rental car is easy to drive one-handed. My right arm feels better every day, but I am sure I pulled a muscle in it, as I can't hold anything, stretch it out, or raise it much.

First we headed over to our old neighborhood and hit Dr. Marty's office, where he pronounced the Girl to be totally healthy. Yay! I still insisted that he write a referral for her to have X-rays, just so we have a baseline in case anything goes wrong in the future. Then he checked over the Boy, who has been having spasms in his back, and joint pain. His ankle appears to be sprained (when did THAT happen?!), and his knees and elbows are swollen. Hmmmm. This has been going on for a few months, and Papa and I are getting concerned (but don't tell the Boy, ok?). He recommended blood draws to check Boy's thyroid, and to check for arthritis related issues. Basically the same tests I had run last month.

We headed for the lab, but they were closed till 1:15, so we went to our old Fish and Chips hangout, hugged the old-timers, and OFWITWW (Our favorite waitress in the whole world), got some fish, and saw some goslings out for a stroll with their parents. Some were tiny babies, and some were almost full grown, and some were in the middle. They were all cute and fluffy, and made the kids giggle.

Then back to the lab, where I held the Boy's hand while his blood was drawn. Luckily, he had the nice Philipino lady who can draw blood from my spaghetti veins the first try. She was sweet, and gave him a lolly, which at one point, when I looked in the rear-view mirror while driving, I saw he had stuck to his forehead. Is it just me, or do almost 14 yr old boys resemble almost 4 yr old boys?

Then back into the car, where on the drive to the x-ray lab I explained to the Girl what was going to happen there. She aced it, did great. No vomiting or anything! (Remember how gut reactive she is, and you will know how brave she was!)

Then to the impound lot, to get the last of our belongings out of Whitey. The impound lot was a scary-looking place, with a real skanky feel to it. Eeww. The man who escorted me out to Whitey (may he rest in peace) and back was kind and polite, though. After that, I stopped by Starbuck's and got myself one of those big, cold green tea drinks, which I never let myself have because of the dairy content, and savored the way it felt on my sore throat (I woke up yesterday with a sore throat, I hope it isn't a cold, but feels like it).

One more stop to pick up some meat for supper (baked orange chicken legs and thighs, brown rice, squash, and salad), and then home! The phone rang as I opened the door, and it was Dy. Just hearing her voice cheered me. It was good to visit with her, and hear all the fun they are having with their visiting relatives. It also makes me want to go visit her soon! I am seriously thinking about November in Alabama.

Tomorrow, I have my first appt with my new primary care Dr. I will be getting X-rays, too, and am going to ask for a referral to a chiropractor and a massage therapist. Haven't had chiro or a massage in over 5 yrs and need it badly. I may also try to fit in a trip to my optometrist (sp?) to replace my glasses, which were mangled badly in the accident. I haven't had new ones in almost 10 years, I may pick some funky frames this time around. Tortoise-shell cat-eyes, maybe?

Schoolwork? Nope, just reading in the car. Sigh. So much for this being a catch-up week. I can't wait till July, when we have much less on our daily docket, and can hopefully get some work done!!

We just finished supper, and the Boy is practicing horn, the Girl finishing the dishes, then she will do piano, and the Papa Dude is upstairs practicing his guitar. I am going to brave the depths of the basement to get my cutter and mat, then we will all congregate on our bed upstairs to either read or watch the last movie.

Okay, I know this is probably boring, and reads like a journal entry, but that is all I am capable of today. Very emotionally taxing, all the way around.

TTFN, LB

Tuesday morning and all is well.

Thanks to all of you for your kind thoughts and well wishes. We are well, but for some reason, blogging isn't coming easily to me. I will try to write later. We have a slew of Dr.s appt.s this week, getting the Girl and I x-rays, and I need new glasses. We also need to go to the impound lot and get a couple of things out of Whitey, before he goes off to minivan heaven. That should be stressful.
I will try to write later, and see Dave, it isn't just you who sometimes can't write.
LB

Alive to tell about it

Well, there is nothing like a near death experience to make you grateful for your life, just the way it is.

The Girl and I were involved in a hit and run accident today. We were rear-ended, and pushed into a guard rail, and then into a tree. Thank goodness the tree was there, and yes, I thanked the tree for saving us.

The police and fire department (It was our local dept.- the ones we take cookies to every Christmas eve- that part was cool.) came, and took good care of us. The Girl is curled up in one of their warm wool blankets right now. When I return it, I will bring them more cookies, I think. They hugged us, checked Girly from head to toe, they even carried her to the car. They were just as kind and considerate as could be. And as the Girl and I told the Boys, they were all very handsome. Why that helped, I don't know, but both she and I were drawn in by intense smiling blue eyes that took our minds off our situation and made us feel better.

Poor Whitey the mini-van didn't fare nearly as well. He is totaled. He did his job, and thanks to Whitey, the fact that the Girl was in the back seat, and not the front, and that we were both in seat belts, we are alive. All the officers there told me repeatedly that if we were in any other vehicle, we probably wouldn't be here. If they told us that once, they told us ten times. Believe me, I heard it!

I will now have to deal with insurance, and rental cars, etc. while the police look for a truck with a big huge dent in the front of it. Sigh. How could he just have driven off like that? It boggles the mind.

That's about all I can write for now. The Girl is sleeping, bless her little heart, and I am going to go lay next to her some more. It comforts me.
LB

Update: It is now 8:30, and we are well. Baby Girl and I are tucked up in blankets on the couch, watching Find! while we wait for Mystery to come on. We have both taken anit-inflamatories, I have been in touch with the insurance company, and tomorrow we will be able to get a rental car. I also called my Mama and let her know what happened, and she said if I license it, get it tuned up, and do the emissions stuff on it, that we can use her car after the rental car is gone. Since she has gone completely blind, her car has just been sitting in her carport. That is very good news.

Boy is being really nice to me- I think he may have had a bit of an awakening today when he saw the car and realized we had been in it! He was such a helpful young man, getting our stuff out of the car without being asked, holding his sister, and even trying to cook dinner for us tonight. He and Papa just walked down to the 7-11 store to fetch us some treats.

Okay, that is all, going to snuggle with my big baby Girl and continue to be grateful for life, for EMT's with blue eyes, for airbags, and for a family that loves me. All is well.
LB

What kind of homeschooler are you, anyway?!

Here is a fun quiz: What Kind of Homeschooler are you? I will tell you my results in the comment area. Frankly, it surprised me. Let me know if you take it and what your results were.
LB

Homeschooling tidbit.

We now interrupt this blog with a bit of homeschooling information:
I was traipsing around Blogland, and found this simple overview of how to implement a Charlotte Mason education over at Mungo's place.
TTFN,
LB

You know you are getting older when they call you ma'am.

Okay, okay, when did it happen? When, I ask you? When did I become a "Ma'am" instead of a "Miss". I don't feel like a Ma'am, but I look like one. I am not a very vain person, never have been, but am just enough that this bothers me, if I let it. I mean, I say, "Yes, ma'am" to my mom, my elders. Now I am an elder?? Sigh.

Hey, Dave and Dy, I learned how to take pictures with my video camera yesterday. Maybe today I will have some time to figure out how to load them onto my laptop.

I didn't get any gardening done yesterday morning, because I was on the phone for an hour and a half with my sister in law. She is the painter lady, and will come over Sunday, to help me figure out the best ways to prep these plaster walls before I paint. I will have to take pictures of the bright (not) decorating idea someone had for the kitchen. They put these fake tiles (I think they are linoleum) all over two walls. I pried one off this weekend, and all the paint peeled off right down to the plaster. So I need Painter Lady to tell me how to fix that- how to best prep the plaster for painting.

As my kids read my blog, I will now get a little cryptic. Last night, I spent an hour and a half in Dread Meyer shopping for a certain upcoming holiday involving eggs and rabbits. Up until this year, my mom has always done the shopping for this particular holiday, so it was new for me, and I think I really overspent. And yes, I do have to be hush hush about it, because even my almost fourteen-year old still believes in such things. Amazing, hmm?

Today, we have a field trip to the UW to watch a group of Irish Dancers, and then to head to a museum. We will be riding with a group of kids/moms that we don't know. Should be interesting. I am hoping I can get into the garden this afternoon, as it is supposed to rain all weekend.

Okay, I am off to wake one kid, get the other one out of the shower, get ready to read (still reading the Black American Folk Tales), and then make breakfast. Have a great day, all.
LB

Random Wednesday evening thoughts

Hey there, friends.
Sorry I haven't posted much in the last two days, I was kinda fighting a bit of depression and apathy. I seem to have come out of it a bit today, and am feeling pretty good at the moment. I refuse to even write about yesterday, I was irritable, the Boy was a typical teenager, and it was not a smooth or good day. So here is today, which went a bit better, in no particular order.

It has been really hard for me to wake up these last two mornings. I have spent most of the day feeling exhausted. Papa is complaining of the same thing, so I think we may be fighting some flu bug. The Boy is doing horn practice right now, the Papa Dude is practicing his guitar, trying to work up his blisters (he so loves it, Dave!), and the Girl is doing the dinner dishes. After that, I will try to finish the last two chapters of Drifthouse, and we will all turn in early.

It took us over two hours to do our food bank deliveries today, and we only had eight to do. We had some troubles getting into one of the apartment buildings, but we managed. It is good for the kids to see me do some real life problem-solving (i.e. going next door to the barber shop and asking any of the men in there if they had keys. 3 of the 4 men in the shop did, so we lucked out.). The folks at the food bank sent us home with some lovely salmon steaks that I am sure we will enjoy later this week. The folks who work there are so warm and wonderful. I have a date with them next Thursday, to cook lunch for all the workers. Guess what they want me to cook? Go on, guess. Yep. Indian food, especially eggplant, lol.

After that, I spent most of the afternoon reading and doing laundry. Now there is a ton of it ready to be folded. Anyhow, I haven't been spending time with the Count of Monte Cristo like I probably should be, but rather have been enjoying some mind candy in the form of a couple of Elm Creek Quilts books. I am in the middle of The Sugar Camp Quilt right now. Sometimes candy is good for the soul. I let the kids be (or not) be their own integrity, and they spent the whole afternoon in their rooms, doing (or not) their schoolwork.

I did make it outside late this afternoon, after putting a meatloaf and some baked potatoes in the oven. In the time it took for them to cook, I worked up half of what will be the root garden. If I spend even more time out tomorrow, I could probably have the whole thing turned and planted. I think tomorrow I will have the kids come outside and help me garden. That kind of work is just as important as schoolwork, right? I have so much gardening to do, and this month-long period of apathy hasn't helped me get any of it done. Time to just function and be what I want to be, regardless of how I feel. That is if I want to see anything growing in my gardens this summer, or get any quilting done!

In the short time I was outside, I was serenaded by a robin, who sat in the top of the newly budding birch tree. I also saw several chickadees, and one of them even visited the bird feeder that Papa and the kids hung in the apple tree this weekend. Cool!

Oh, that reminds me that I need to post a new "Bird of the month" photo. I will try to do that tomorrow. I was thinking of heading up to my mom's tomorrow, I know she would love to see me, and the kids are aching to play with their cousins, but I would really like to stay home and garden. We shall see.

Well, that's about it for today. There are questions I was supposed to answer, and Diane wanted me to talk about my fave Indian recipes, but I am poopin' out here, so will sign off, and crawl into flannel jammies and get ready to read. My fave ol' ratty quilt is waiting for me in the big rocking chair, Papa will light the oil lamp for me, the kids will have brushed and flossed, and I will get to practice my reading voices- a french pirate, a sophisticated parrot, a mermaid, and an octopus-like mermaid queen-witch. If that peeks your interest, check out the book Drifthouse. I am tellin' ya', it is a fun story.

May you get lots of rest tonight, and I wil see you tomorrow.
TTFN,
LB

Cute and giggly

I am not awake yet, so will post later, but for now, check this link out. How can ya' not be smiling after this? Found this one over at Forward Motion. Thanks for the giggle, Becca.
LB

Tide Pools and digital cameras

Well, here it is, Monday morning. I am feeling very tired today, didn't rest well last night, but I do feel like we got tons of work done this weekend. Papa and the Boy got the garden wall mostly done, and some steps built, bird feeders up in the trees, and hauled 3 loads of manure.

My mom, the Girl, and I washed all the walls/appliance fronts/cupboards in the kitchen, mopped the kitchen floor, dusted and vaccuumed the living room, scraped/washed the paint dribbles off 3/4 of the living room floor (they must have not masked when they painted, there was a rim of white paint and splatters along all four edges of the room), kept the laundry going all weekend.

The only bad part of my mom's visit was the last five minutes of it, when she was carrying the vaccuum out to the car ( I tried to get her to let me carry it, honestly I did) and tripped, twisting her ankle. It is okay today, a bit swollen, but not painful, but it scared Papa and I, and it really hurt when she did it.

This morning, after putting a meal in the crock pot, my goal will be to figure out how to use my new (to me) digital camera. I have had it a month now, and haven't really touched it, due to March being the month of apathy and all. So many things that I want to post pics of, it will be hard to know where to start! I guess I will also have to learn how to post them, in addition to taking them and putting them on the computer, too.

This afternoon, we have nature study- there is a low tide today, and we are beginning our study of water- oceans, tide pools, ponds, rivers, etc. It is threatening to rain, I hope it just holds off for a bit. This is a lesson I have taught before, and am looking forward to teaching it again today. Maybe I will be able to take pics! I am usually very busy when teaching, but I will try.

Best be off, need to get moving, although to be honest, I'd like to crawl back into bed for another hour. Time change be damned! It always takes me so long to adjust!

TTFN,
LB

Saturday night

I snuck upstairs to write a bit. All is well here. Gramma and I have been sharing a bottle of wine, and we are feeling no pain. She is spending the night, so we can keep going tomorrow. She has been scraping paint off the living room floor (hardwood) all day, in addition to folding laundry, and doing dishes. I have washed half the kitchen walls. The Girl has been helping us all day, and is now playing piano for Gramma- who is probably a bigger fan than I am.

The Papa Dude and the Boy are outside building the new garden bed. They got 2 trailerloads of horse doo and will go back for more tomorrow. THis stuff is so rich and nicely composted- it will be great for the garden.

All is well here in my little world, and it feels nice.
TTFN,
LB

Uh Oh, I am in big trouble

If you promise your mother that your husband will show up at her door at 9:30 am to pick her up so she can come down and do a thorough cleaning job on your living room and kitchen (cuz she is so bored at her house that it is sparkling clean and needs to start on someone else's), you better be ready for her to be very angry when you call her at what you think is 10:30 to say that your husband is having trouble with the trailer and the horse doo, and will be there as soon as he can, and she tells you it is almost NOON and you are ALWAYS LATE (not true- I am one of those people for whom 10 minutes early is on time), and she is VERY BORED waiting and now we are never going to get the house cleaned, and you better not EVER do this to her again.

Sigh. I hate it when my mama gets mad at me. 41 yrs old, and I still hate it. Sigh.
LB

Updated an hour later to say that I think Gramma thought we were supposed to turn our clocks forward last night (though I am not telling her she was wrong, now way, un uh) instead of tonight, so that explains that. She is now happily attacking invisible (to her blind eyes) spider webs with gusto, and is happy as a clam. Whew!!!!

April Fool's Day

As usual on a Saturday morning, the Boy was still in bed while the other three of us were already dressed, up, and functioning (well, as functioning as I am, sitting in my recliner blogging). I told Papa that the Boy had said he wanted to play tricks on us today as it is April Fool's Day. About 9 am, he went into the Boy's room, and rousted him out of bed, telling him to get going cuz the house was on fire. Here is the boy, eyes closed, but running into the living room, hading to the front door, where the Girl and I stood, and we all got to holler "April Fool's". It was fun, but both the Girl and I told Papa we thought he should have just told the Boy he was late for school. He promised not to yell Fire unless there was one.

For the record, we are not a big practical joking family, but every once in a while we do engage in this behaviour, especially when one of the kids asks for it,lol.
TTFN,
LB

Lookout dirt! Here comes Gramma!

I so wish I had the dangum digital camera figured out! If I did, I would post pics of my living room: 6 baskets of clean but not folded laundry on the floor and the couch, piles of books stacked 10 high on the coffee table (truthfully known as the book table), cobwebs on the ugly cigarette smoke-stained walls, and layers of dirt on the untreated,paint-stained wood floor. Then we would move to the kitchen, where the dishes aren't done, the dining room table is filled with random stuff, the counter is piled a foot high with bills, cookbooks, and nameless junk, and again, those yucky, dirty walls. These are the before pictures. This is what happens when you are sick for a month, and then apathetic for the following month, sigh.

Papa and the Girl just left to head over to the B's house to load some manure into the trailer in the rain (Yes it was sunny all week, and I didn't ever get out into the garden, and now it it the weekend, and supposed to rain the whole time.), and then he will swoop by and pick up Gramma and her vaccuum, and her bucket of cleaning supplies. She and I are gonna dig in and attack this place. I am hoping that once the walls are clean, it will inspire me to get out the can of Kilz Papa bought me a month ago, and start on the walls. Then I want Papa's painter/sister to come help me pick colors, and get us some paint.

Now how am I supposed to get all this done when I have no motivation or gumption, I don't know, but I need to turn my garden, help Papa build the new section, and also prime and then paint all of the rooms on the first floor. We won't even mention that I want to get my workspacce in the basement cleared and organized, that I have 3 huge quilting projects in my head, that the house has to be managed, and that I am responsible for schooling 2 middle school kids. I need to rise to this challenge, but I feel small just thinking about it. I guess if Dy can remodel a house with 3 boys and a new baby, I can do this, right? Just keep plugging away.

Okay, I best go fix myself and the Boy some breaky, and then get crackin'. I want to at least have cleared the living room floor before my mom shows up rarin' to go!

I can see clearly now

It has been an emotionally tough week for me, and I am glad it is Friday night. These are the kinds of weeks when I find music calms and soothes me. Here is the one that gives me comfort today. This is originally by Johnny Nash, but who is it that sings the version on the radio? Is it Carole King? I tried Googling her in connection with this song, and I couldn't find it. I wanted to post a link so you could listen to it. If someone knows, please let me in on it.
LB

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone
I can see all obstacles in my way
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)
Sun shiny day

I think I can make it now, the pain is gone
All of the bad feelings have disappeared
Here is the rainbow I've been prayin' for
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)
Sun shiny day

Look all around, there's nothin' but blue skies
Look straight ahead, nothin' but blue skies

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone
I can see all obstacles in my way
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)
Sun shiny day

FYI about comments

Just a little tidbit here. In the comments section of Dave's blog, which was frankly both hysterical and thought-provoking today, I was bemoaning the fact that he gets tons of comments and I don't, when someone brought to my attention that only people who are registered with Blogspot can comment. So for now, I changed the settings so anyone can comment. Now that I have done this for a few months, I am willing to give this a try. I am a bit leary, but we will try it and see. And for the record, I used to post anonymously all the time before I had a Blogger account, but I ALWAYS signed my name. I think that is only fair.
So Dee, Diane, and the kids' Godmother- all y'all can comment now, and I really hope that you do!
TTFN,
LB

The Blue Bowl

Here is a wonderful poem I found at Sparrow's blog. I need to live this one a bit more than I currently am.

The Blue Bowl
All day I did the little things,
The little things that do not show;
I brought the kindling for the fire
I set the candles in a row,
I filled a bowl with marigolds,
The shallow bowl you love the best-
And made the house a pleasant place
Where weariness might take its rest.
The hours sped on, my eager feet
Could not keep pace with my desire.
So much to do, so little time!
I could not let my body tire;
Yet, when the coming of the night
Blotted the garden from my sight,
And on the narrow, graveled walks
Between the guarding flower stalks
I heard your step: I was not through
You came into the quiet room
That glowed enchanted with the bloom
Of yellow flame. I saw your face,
Illumined by the firelit space,
Slowly grow still and comforted-
“It’s good to be at home,” you said.
- Blanche Bane Kuder

Thursday pm

Well, I made it through the day without turning into the wicked witch of the northwest. Meaning all of us got through the day without any emotional hormonal outbursts, which is a big thing when you have a 13.5 yr old Boy, an 11 yr old Girl, and a 41 yr old woman with a funky thyroid living in the same house, believe me! A heartfelt thank you to Dy for your phone call today- when it comes to talking someone down, you do a damn good job.

At the moment I have 4 tweenagers in my living room, watching Princess Bride , giggling and folding my laundry. Good deal for me! Hey, is it just me, or did Peter Falk just do an amazing job as the Grampa/storyteller in this movie? Of course, I think all the actors did just fabulously in this one. Just one of the best movies of all times. It stuck to the story line in the book, was humorous, and adventurous.

Did you know there actually is a place called Guilder, and that there really are "Cliffs of Insanity", and a giant, etc.? They have a museum and everything.

Okay, that's all for now, mostly just letting Dy know the kids were still alive, lol. Now to make myself stay awake till the B girls' parents get here about 11 pm.

TTFN,
LB

Healthy and yummy Indian food versus not so healthy but yummy pie

Donna is asking this morning for our fave healthy dinner to cook, and a not so healthy fave. I will start with not so healthy. Every year for my birthday (except this year, cuz I was sick and trying to eat better) Papa makes me a luscious lemon merangue (sp?) pie. For his birthday, I make him the thick rich one of a kind Atlas Cheesecake. The Girl likes an apple pie, and the Boy, chocolate cake. The neat thing is, these are the birthday person's special treats, and they don't have to share if they don't want to, though they usually do.

I am not sure I can narrow my healthy fun meals down to just one, but I will try. How 'bout Rogan Josh (a wonderfully spiced beef stew), Eggplant in a saffron cream sauce, Stuffed spiced okra, saffron rice, with homemade tomato onion raita, cucumber raita, lime pickle, and a mango lassi to go with the meal. A nice light lemon sherbet to cleanse the palate. Yum.

I have two Indian cookbooks. This one by Madhur Jaffrey, is my fave. I have made many of the dishes from many of the regions of India. If I want something very traditional, I reach for Jaffrey. All of her cookbooks are wonderful, but this one is nice for a sampling of regional fare, and the pictures are lovely.

The other book I have, which happens to have a really good Rogan Josh recipe, is called The Complete Book of Indian Cooking edited by Veronica Sperling and Christine McFadden. It is Indian recipes with more of an English flair- very basic recipes, good to springboard off of. Again, if I could only have one Indian cookbook, I'd choose Jaffrey, but the two work well together.

That's it for now, I am off to the tub for my morning listening soak, and then on to our day. Plans for today involve one last trip to In the Beginning, where the prices are now 75% off, or the whole bolt for $2.50 a yard; a short visit with Grandma, play rehearsal, and picking up the girls from the B family. We are watching them tonight, and the kids are very excited to get to play together. Schoolwork? Well, we will try to at least get latin, math, reading, and grammar in there today, and I think much of it will be car-schooling today.

TTFN,
LB

The unseen listener

Have I told you how amazing it is to have musicians in the house? It is just amazing. I love this house, because you can hear the piano in every single room. Even in the bathroom with your head under water. So very cool.

The Girl practices her piano every morning after the Boy goes to his morning classes. I am usually in the tub during this time. She plays and plays, and I just get to listen. Happiness.

I don't want you to think I am favoring the Girl's instrument over the Boy's. I love the french horn, too, don't get me wrong, but practices are still frought with battles and frustrations, that it is hard to really just sit back and enjoy it, though I do my best. I love to listen to the Boy during his lessons with his teacher. She can motivate him so much more easily than I can, and they sound so good playing together. And I also love to hear Papa practicing on his guitar every night, but he is still a real beginner, and it is different, although still exciting, when he plays something I can recognize,lol.

Here is what I have been being treated to lately when the Girl has been practicing:
Bach: Inventio I & II, Musette
Bach: Bold Spirit
Beethoven: Fur Elise, Op.12, no. 2, Romance
Chopin: Prelude no. 4
Haydn: Konzert F-dur

She is also playing some Schumann, Grieg, Schubert, and a medley of Beattles songs (you would love to hear these, Dave)

Music is good, life is good. Listening to Genius being born while soaking in a hot bath is unbelievably good.
LB

Is homemade dairy free ice cream still ice cream?

I am getting requests for my dairy free ice cream recipes from the WTM boards, so I will post it here. This recipe was originally from How Cooking Works. Papa and I modified it years ago, so the kids could have ice cream for their birthdays. You are only limited on variations by your imagination.

The basic vanilla coconut milk ice cream
4 cups coconut milk
3/4 cup granulated sugar (Papa likes superfine)
pinch of salt
1 TBSP vanilla extract
1/2 vanilla bean, slit lengthwise, and scraped*

Stir the coconut milk and sugar together until the sugar is dissolved. Add the salt and vanilla and freeze in an electric or hand operated ice cream freezer.
Yields about 1.5t quarts

*throw all of your scraped beans into a jar, and fill it with sugar. Vanilla sugar is wonderful to bake/cook with.

Okay, now for some variations.

For more of a coconut flavor, lessen the vanilla or leave out the bean, and add some coconut. Yum!

For orange sherbet, instead of vanilla, add 1 TBSP of orangel oil, and some orange zest. If you make a batch of this, and a batch of vanilla, you have the makings for a Creamsickle! THe kids love this combo.

You could also use lemon oil and zest, throw in berries, etc.

We always do this in our old fashioned hand crank ice cream maker, and it is just wonderful to be able to have the real taste of ice cream, without the dairy.

LB