My Baby is 2

We celebrated Luke's birthday yesterday--the caboose on our endless summer of Birthday celebrations (I've baked a lot of birthday cakes lately--a good & bad thing). People say to me, "I can't believe he's 2 already," but I can definitely believe it. It's getting harder to remember a time when Luke and Ethan weren't the package deal that they are today. I remember newborn moments with Ethan, I've mentally blocked out the bedrest nightmare, and suddenly my memory returns to the two of them always together. I feel like two years with my Irish twins has stretched me and taught me more than any other time. I do not feel like I've always risen to the challenge with the best attitude or parenting strategies, but after two years I think I'm starting to catch on little by little. Like I'm slowly moving forward on this journey instead of feeling like I'm sliding backward into a mountain of dirty diapers and overturned toy boxes. And, thanks largely to Luke's zany personality, I laugh more. Both boys give me at least on thing to truly belly-laugh about every single day--and that is a great gift. Here's some favorite pic's from Luke's early days:

The Husband Post

This seems to be the current tag of the moment, and since my camera is being repaired (AGAIN!), I had no way to document our weekend drama which involved: a giant collapsed Bougainvillea plant, three hours of Will's time with weed clippers and a chainsaw getting this plant to fit out the patio door, numerous thorn-induced cuts, and a fully intact molted snake skin found underneath the disposed of tree (yes, I nearly passed out). Considering Will let me hide inside the house during most of this ordeal, I figured he deserved a post dedicated to him. I'm sure he would prefer a picture of him in action with the chainsaw . . .

What is his name? William Charles Bollard II
How long have you been together? 7 years in December
How long did you date? 11 months
How old is he? 29
Who eats more? Probably me. I'm sure I tried to look demure on the first couple of dates by ordering a salad or something, but the secret was out quickly after that.
Who said I love you first? Will, on Valentine's Day of 2000
Who is taller? Will
Who sings better? Will. I am so bad that we once argued while we were dating because I wouldn't sing for him--he saw this as a lack of trust, I saw it as a moment of complete humiliation! Once he heard me sing, he quickly understood my hesitation.
Who is smarter? We did get the same SAT score in high school! But Will was in the top 8% of his law school class, so that probably tips the scales in his favor a little . . . but I like to think that I have a better memory than he does, so maybe I'll start gaining on him as the years go by
Whose temper is worse? Mine
Who does the laundry? Me
Who does the dishes? Me
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Me
Who pays the bills? Me (are we noticing a trend here?)
Who mows the lawn? Are you kidding--we live in Irvine, we are not lucky enough to have a postage-stamp-sized yard to mow!
Who cooks dinner? Me
Who drives when you are together? Will. I hate to drive!
Who is more stubborn? Me, unless the decision has anything to do with Lake Powell
Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Depends on the issue, we're probably about equal here
Whose parents do you see the most? We see both sets a lot (often at the same time!), but Will's parents do live just 8 minutes from our house
Who kissed who first? Will kissed me
Who asked who out? Will asked me out
Who proposed? Will
Who is more sensitive? Probably me
Who has more friends? We have about the same amount I think
Who wears the pants in the family? Ethan & Luke--one in each leg of the pants

Party On . . .

I'm afraid we've throughly confused our children. Since their birthdays are just four weeks apart we decided to kill two birds with one stone and do one big party last Saturday. However, it didn't seem right just to let Ethan's actual day pass with no event, so he had a family dinner on that day, which we will probably do again on a smaller scale next Wednesday on Luke's actual day. The result: Ethan thinks his birthday is everyday, he thinks he and Luke have the same birthday, he thinks all gifts are his even if they have Luke's name written on the tag, and he thinks he is having another party next week. Oh, and he loves getting candy from a "pin-la-da." Luke still has no idea what is going on. He just know he likes to eat leftover cake and play with new toys. We will find some solution to this confusion by next year, but in the meantime, we're having a great time celebrating! Here's the photo highlights:

The Dr. Is In

Thanks GH!

I have subscribed to Good Housekeeping magazine for six years now. I realize this ages me about 25 years, but I am not ashamed to admit it. I started reading it at my Grandma Rose's house, where I spent the majority of my Sunday afternoons growing up, because she refused to throw anything away and always had the last three years worth of issues stacked in her bathroom. My favorite feature was called, "My Problem and How I Solved It," which they stopped including about 10 years ago, much to my closet-reading dismay. Now I like to read their "Good Reads: Blogger" section, which highlights one creative blogger per month and their most creative/hilarious/heartwarming entry. But, the true draw for me is the recipes. I would say 75% of the non-family recipes I make come from GH. Here's two tasty ones I've tried recently. Enjoy!

Hoisin-Honey-Glazed Pork Tenderloin with Grilled Pineapple

Ingredients

1⁄4 cup hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon grated fresh peeled ginger
1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
1 whole pork tenderloin (1 1⁄4 pounds)
1⁄2 medium pineapple, untrimmed
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Directions

1. Prepare outdoor grill for covered direct grilling over medium heat. In small bowl, combine hoisin, honey, ginger, and oil.

2. Place pork on hot grill rack. Cover grill and cook pork 18 to 20 minutes, turning occasionally.

3. With serrated knife, cut pineapple half into 4 wedges. Rub cut sides of pineapple with brown sugar.

4. Grill pineapple 10 minutes or until browned on both sides, turning over once. While pineapple is grilling, brush pork with hoisin-honey glaze and turn frequently until temperature on instant-read thermometer reaches 155 degrees F. Transfer pork to cutting board; let stand 10 minutes. Transfer pineapple to platter.

5. Thinly slice pork and serve with pineapple wedges.

Creamy Chicken & Potatoes

Ingredients

2 cups peeled baby carrots (half 16-ounce bag)
1 pound red potatoes, each cut into quarters
1 small onion, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed with press
1 cut-up chicken (3 1⁄2 to 4 pounds), skin removed from all pieces except wings (I used 1 3/4 lbs. bone-in chicken breasts because I have a small crock-pot and it turned out great)
1 cup chicken broth
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1⁄2 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and pepper
1 package(10 ounces) frozen peas, thawed
1⁄2 cup heavy or whipping cream

Directions

1. In 5- to 6-quart slow cooker, combine carrots, potatoes, onion, and garlic. Place chicken pieces on top of vegetables. In 2-cup liquid measuring cup, with fork, mix chicken broth, cornstarch, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper; pour mixture over chicken and vegetables. Cover slow cooker with lid and cook as manufacturer directs, on low 8 hours or on high 6 hours.

2. With tongs or slotted spoon, transfer chicken pieces to warm deep platter. With slotted spoon, transfer vegetables to platter with chicken pieces. Cover platter to keep warm. Stir peas and cream into cooking liquid; heat through. Spoon sauce over chicken and vegetables on platter.

Be Prepared

Today I was busy making dinner and Ethan needed a distraction. He's been asking to "go to school" all day, so I told him to pretend he was going and pack up the new backpack he got for his birthday. Here is what I found two hours later carefully zipped up inside:

• his Sandals (not sure what he thought he'd wear on his feet at school)
• an entire box of Nutri-Grain cereal bars
• our Fischer Price Dr. set, complete with blood pressure cuff (in case school was stressful), and plastic band-aid
• 1 pair of camouflage underwear (accidents happen!)
• sunglasses
• 1 walkie talkie (maybe he was going to leave the other one with Luke back home?)
• a plastic Shrek happy meal toy which exclaims, "I'm an Oager!" (I'm sure a teacher would love having that in the classroom)
• his ABC blocks (how academic minded he is)
• 1 red car (we don't go anywhere without at least one car)
  

When I asked him what he thought he was going to do at school he thought for a moment and exclaimed, "PENCILS!" Too bad those didn't actually make it into the backpack.

We cannot wait for preschool to start next week!

Beaching It

September is the best time of the year to go to the beach: a comfortable 78 degrees, all the tourists have gone home, and FRONT ROW parking at La Jolla Shores. Not to mention, it's an entire day of free entertainment for two busy boys. They rolled in the sand, discovered the "joys" of playing with the sea weed, ate a lunch packed in the new lunchbox, built sandcastles with Grandma Rose and played on the park equipment. What they did not do was go in the ocean--a complete source of frustration to me, as I like nothing better than endless swimming and boogie boarding. Luke is game if you hold him at your hip the entire time, but goes hysterical if you try to put him down in the tiny waves lapping the shore. Ethan starts hyperventilating within 10 feet of the tide. But, I will continue to persevere and encourage more ocean swimming--maybe they'll get brave by next year. Regardless, it was a completely relaxing, gorgeous day.

Thanks for hanging with us Mom!

Say What?

Abstract concepts take a little longer to sink in:

Me: Ethan it's time for dinner
Ethan: I'm not hungry yet.
Me: Well, come eat soon, okay?
Ethan: How bout next week Mom.

Me: Ethan, do you have to go potty (he is dancing around the kitchen)?
Ethan: I'll go next week Mom!

Ethan to Luke (while holding up a pair of my underwear): Look Luke, it's Mommy's privacy.

Ethan to me (as I shut the door to the bathroom): Mommy, is your privacy in there?

Will: You can have two cookies Ethan.
Ethan: But I want 4, 3, 2, 1 cookies Daddy!

Meanwhile, Luke (who normally speaks pretty well) has taken to repeating the phrase "a-guppy" over and over again. We have no idea what this means, unless he desperately wants a pet fish. He has seen Finding Nemo more than a few times . . .

Back To School

Ethan has a strange fascination with school supplies. He looked at the big displays last month in Target with wide eyes and multiple Ohhs and Ahhs. Granted, he's only three and several years away from even going to school, but it's like he somehow knows that change is in the air. The big tip off came yesterday when he attended a Back to School Party for the kids in our church group. He and Luke happily decorated school bus shaped sugar cookies and clutched the new pencils in their treat bags (as if they would actually be using them sometime soon!). He even asked me if I was going to school this year, to which I responded that I had already finished 16 years of school so that I could stay home to play with him. I can't say I blame their excitement though--it may be an inherited love. I was always the nerd who secretly looked forward to starting school, and a backpack full of new (hopefully, all purple) school supplies was part of the whole experience. I had a specific type of planner I liked to get, and, much to my ever-patient mother's dismay, we'd have to go from store to store until we found one that carried that brand. It had a monthly calendar page with a side column that was the perfect size for my "countdown of the month," where I would carefully place tally marks leading up to the next holiday. Neurotic, I know, but I still sometimes find myself wondering just how many days there are until Halloween out of habit. So, while I'm glad I still have the flexibility of two toddlers not in school, I look forward to the day when I can indulge Ethan a bit and let him go wild with the mechanical pencils, binders, and notebooks in Target.

Happy September Everyone!