An Evening by the Fountains

All about Sharks

On Friday, Chet took Sharks to school with him. Since we are hoping to homeschool when the time comes, this is probably as close as we'll get to a first-day-of-school pic. I thought it was hysterical how alike my two lads of the same name look.

On Saturday, Sharks kept asking to sing Amazing Grace, and I was able to catch it on video. I told him to sing loudly; that would be why he is practically SHOUTING the words. I am going to pretend that it was simply enthusiasm. And yes, he is a bit (ha) off key - make a joyful noise, right?

This morning, during our quiet time, we read the story of Jesus being tempted by Satan in the desert, and how he was tempted by the same liar who tempted Adam and Eve in the garden. (We have been using the Jesus Storybook Bible.) Sharks said, "Oh, mommy, I know Adam and Eve, they ate the apple and it was very sad." Very, very sad indeed.

A few minutes later, we were reviewing what we had read, and I asked him to tell me who Jesus was. He told me that Jesus was God's promise. I am glad and amazed that such a little guy is grasping these gospel truths, at least on some level.

It reminded me of a song that was on some tape we listened to when I was little, called "Teach me while my heart is tender." That pretty much sums up this short time of toddlerhood. We have been given these tender hearts to teach and train, and I am again amazed at the blessing and responsibility we have as parents.

Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte

No matter what I make, somehow I always have leftover pumpkin. Clearly there's some kind of capitalistic scheme going on here and the pumpkin people are in cahoots with the recipe people so that we are forced to buy more pumpkin than any recipe ever calls for.

Throwing the extra pumpkin away is simply not an option in our household (remember that my husband will eat things like this rather than throw them away.)

So when my sister-in-law passed on this recipe, I was thrilled. And it tastes a gazillion times better than the coffeemate version.


Pumpkin Spice Latte
(two servings)

1 cup half-and-half
3 tablespoons canned pumpkin
1/2 cup strong brewed hot coffee
3 tablespoons sugar
pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and nutmeg to taste

1. Combine half-and-half and canned pumpkin in a saucepan, place over medium heat and stir constantly. Heat until boiling but not burnt.

2. Remove the mixture and pour into a blender. Whip in high speed for 20 seconds.

3. Pour the mixture in a large cup, add coffee, stir in sugar, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Enjoy!

I use whole milk & just dump the sugar & pumpkin pie spice in the milk before I add my coffee. Last time I made it I actually didn't even blend it and it still tasted great (but in the future I plan on blending - it got progressively more pumpkin-ish as I got closer to the bottom of my mug.)

And I thought baby wigs were silly.

I was at a global foods store today with a friend when I stumbled upon this.

Yes. You read that right. Baby cologne. Oh, the heights of ridiculousness.

Come on. Babies smell good all by themselves.

My name is Deedo, and I am a collector

Our little Deedo loves to move things around. From kitchen to living room, bathroom to bedroom, he manages to find little objects that interest him that he collects in drawers all over our house.

It started with the trashcan. I am happy to say that he finally progressed from throwing everything away (matchbox cars, crayons, his blankiewithahead) to collecting his stuff in drawers.

Upstairs, he uses one of my desk drawers. Downstairs, a drawer that normally holds baby lotion and wipes has been commandeered by the Deeds for more junk. I mean more treasures. But his favorite place is the coffee table drawer.

See?

(That would be four cans of play-doh, a baseball, an uninflated balloon, a measuring spoon, a pair of socks, a little fireman, and two fridge magnets.)

Now that I think about it, it is a perfect collection for a 15-month old. So many of the joys of toddlerhood collected in one place.

For Nate & Ashley

(Enjoy with a side of Mootzarella.)

How I will make millions

The boys have had runny noses this week. Nothing major, except for the booger sleeves that have become Sharks' latest fashion statement.

You know how it is: nose runs, sleeve wipes. Kleenex? Not even on the radar.

And multiple shirt changes all day long are not very enjoyable. For either of us.

I started scheming ways to teach Sharks the importance of wiping his nose elsewhere. Like on a tissue or hanky. But that seemed impossible, because there are moments when I don't even realize he's been sleeve-wiping all morning until it is much too late.

Enter my amazing invention #1 - like babylegs, but with the express purpose of protecting sleeves. Wipe away, little buddy, your sleeves will stay snot-free all day long! Mommy can simply change out your Sleeve Savers.

Then I realized that Sleeve Savers are not the answer because they do not address the real problem. The real problem being the nose-on-sleeve wiping.

Enter amazing invention #2 - same idea, except that the Sleeve Saver would be made of the scratchy side of velcro. Put it this way. The sleeve would lose its status as #1 BEST and EASIEST (not to mention GROSSEST) place to Wipe Nose. I bet it would only take one wipe for the little dudes to come running for a kleenex.

Chet said it is certain to become a big seller, right up there with baby wigs.

P.S. I just googled "Sleeve Saver" because it was such a good idea I figured someone had already beat me to it, and this is what I found. WOW. I have no words.