Wedding Adventures

On Tuesday, there was a wedding out at the church. A bit sad that the young women chose to forgo the temple, we went to show support (Shane was very clear that he was only submitting to church clothes and quiet because there was going to be "birthday cake")
My little band of gypsies had a couple surprises while there.
Firstly, I'm sure you've heard about Shane's sensitive ears. With the dancing slotted for after cake and gifts, I was planning on cutting out so as to avoid the loud music. Ha, silly me. I was distracted with our other surprise when the music started, and Shane was left in the "cultural hall" (the biggest classroom) with the bride's younger sister (THANK YOU again Sariah!) keeping an eye on him. He LOVED IT!! He was dancing with his Sunbeam friend (yeah Loren) and even gave a few of the young women there a turn. Loren couldn't teach him "slow" dancing, but that's being a boy. It took me a long time to drag him away when we finally did have to leave for bedtime. What a nut!
Our other surprise wasn't as fun. I mentioned that Shane was left in someone else's care- that's cause I was searching for Austin. He'd wandered out during cake and after a few minutes of not seeing him bobbing back and forth between knees, I started looking. Got a brother to check the men's room... looked under chairs and in dark, open classrooms. Then found the 2 back exits propped open- oh boy. 2 brothers started helping me search the grounds and nearby roads, while 2 sisters did another, more thorough search of the building. We were all trumped though. The groom's mother had stepped out of the party room to take a breath, blot some tears and heard some crying- very faint over the music. She rescued a frantic Austin from a very dark closet. She didn't even mind the boogers he smeared all over her uniform! (gratefully they came off) We called off the search and returned to the fun, but for the rest of the night, Austin did not want me out of his sight... unless his heroine, the grooms mother was there. He calmed down by the time we were getting ready to leave, and made a dash out the back door, but I was nearby and his escape was foiled.
Yeah, all in all, I'd say it was a night to chalk up to experience. Experience that I'd be grateful not to need again as far as Austin's is concerned.

Weather Alert for Sitka

An aquaintance pointed this out on facebook. It's hilarious to me.

http://www.weather.gov/alerts-beta/wwacapget.php?x=AK20090530235000AJKSpecialWeatherStatementAJK20090601000000AK

National Weather Services has issued an alert/statement that communities in Alaska's "panhandle" should prepare for record heat this week "upper 70s".

Sunscreen? check
Shorts? check
popsicle tray? check

Sounds like I'm set. BRING ON the HEAT WAVE.
"Having a heatwave... a tropical heat wave... Tempertures rising, it isn't surprising...." something something something. WOO HOO SUNSHINE!!!

Last Day of School

I had to work so Dad was in charge of getting Shane to school today. Shane loves days like this, and the ones where Dad takes the time to come pick him up with us.
As a treat, they got to watch a little bit of movie at the end of the day. Shane's here showing off his fish hat. These last few weeks of school have been great, no more crying that he doesn't want to go, he's so very excited to see his friends.

First Fish of the Season

Brett's been spending as much time as possible, and affordable, out on the boat. This is the season's first real catch! Not a bad sized king salmon.

Aspiring Artist

The Weapon

The results...

Lovely isn't it.
Austin wasn't too wild about the time out

But he doesn't mind the ColorWonder stuff that he gets to color with now.

Sunday

This last Sunday Shane did his first ever Primary (Sunday school) talk.

He dressed up nice and even consented to wear his leather jacket.

Amid all the excitement, Austin kept his head.

He'd found a small stash of Hershey Kisses and was perfectly content to sit on the stairs munching, and covering the floor with bits of foil.
Here is his talk in action. The text/ translation follows.

Jesus was baptized to show us how.

He went all the way under the water.

That would be scary to me.

The Holy Ghost will help me.

Jesus called the Holy Ghost a comforter.

Like my blanket, He can help me feel better.

Jesus and the Holy Ghost will help me be baptized.

He held up this picture when he talked about his blanket, which he also brought with him.

I liked how Brett caught the part where I lost the markers for the pictures. Smooth Mom!

Shane did an excellent job and can't wait until his next turn!

End of School BBQ

Shane was thrilled with all the fun going on. He showed me all his friends, teachers and playground favorites.

Austin took it all in rather calmly.

Though he loves them all, Shane's favorite teacher is Mr. Sheldon.

Easily mistaken for a human pinball, Shane ricocheted around the playground.

Being Superman.

Causing trouble, getting his friends and himself reminded that feet go first.

Ms. Margaret is the main teacher, always first to think of something new to help one of the kids.

Then it was time to go inside. He walked AS SLOW AS POSSIBLE.

(you can see to the right where one of his friends was having a tough time leaving the playground too, Mr Sheldon was on the job.)

Standing in line with Ms. Gretchen. She's lots of fun at the crafty table.

It was a great day, the rain held off until they headed inside, and though Austin woke up around that time, he wasn't keen on playing so we went home quickly.

Promised Post

So I finally broke down the other day and let the boys each pick a special flower from one of the plots down town. Oddly enough, they both picked tulips. Shane was facinated with it's totally closed petals, forcing them open to see what was inside. We had a long talk about being nice and careful to the flower, and slowly opened the petals to explore the innards of nature. Shane's response to the little miracles that surround us... "a bumblebee!" He adores the BumbleBee song, at school and at home and today, when we found his flower (opening voluntarily after a night in the cup of water) he HAD to show everyone his flower with a bumblebee belly button.

Flowers for Momma (C.W. McCall)

It's dandelion season. BOTH boys LOVE to pick the amazing golden bloom (especially since mom won't let them pick any of the planted flowers like daffodils) Today after school, on the 100 yard walk to the car, Shane picked a bunch for me and one for Brett. Brett likes to complain that the boys only like him when I'm not around. Then how come his bunch of flower (top) is bigger than mine?

Freebies

The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me! my choice. for you. this offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!

2. What I create will be just for you.

3. It’ll be done this year. {translation: you may be waiting a little while}

4. You have no clue what it’s going to be … it may be cards, a poem, a bookmark, something yummy or a complete surprise to you (and me!) … who knows?

5. I reserve the right to do something extremely strange.

6. You must offer your own freebie to qualify.

I copied this off of a friend's blog and it looks like fun, I can't wait to see who is interested! Let the race BEGIN!!!

Blog Candy Giveaway

I know I don't get to scrapbook much, but when I do, I love stamping to make cards!
A friend of mine found Victoria Case Stamps- they are the cutes images I've seen in a long time! She's doing a give-away this month that I'm really excited about! There's gonna be some stiff competition, wish me luck (unless you're going for it too!).
http://victoriacasestamps.blogspot.com/2009/05/blog-candy-giveaway.html

Off

So, our friends got off on the plane this morning.
We were lounging through the morning, at 7:30 am lounge is all I have energy for. At 8:20 the phone rings- which is usually scandalous around here with Daddy (and usually us) sleeping. It's the other wife/mom out at Hidden Falls (did you notice the 'the other' as in only 1- she's very excited for Christiana to get there). She had recieved a call from the little airlines trying to find out where Christiana was staying. Well, Jackie (the other mom) used to be neighbors/friends with my friend KC and though we never got together much, they knew Christiana was staying with us (husband grapevine). So she'd called KC to get my number to let us know that the plane was scheduled to leave Sitka at 9 ish. We needed to be there like NOW! Thank you Thank you Thank you Jackie!!!! Although I'd love my friend to stay, she's in need of a huge break and some time with her husband! So after the intial scramble, getting everyone and everything into the truck, and then unloading everyone and everything once we get to the airline, and then the kids demanding snacks from the vending machines... well, the little Beaver showed up at 9 ish, and they were loaded and ariborne by 9:20. Shane tried to walk out the door with them. Although he seemed to understand that they were going to see Tristan's Daddy in their new house, the first thing he said when we got home was "I want to go see Tristan's house too." poor monkey. Maybe now it won't be such a fight to get him to go to school- there won't be a Tristan temptation to ditch.

Moving Help

Why do we help our friends move away from us? If you think about it, it's a little bit silly. Do we want them to go? No. Does our helping make them feel like we can't wait to get rid of them? a bit maybe?
I'm sure any help is appreciated to ease the basic stress of moving, but...
Shane's best little bud and his family (good good friends) are moving away. We've spent a couple weeks helping pack, cleaning and watching boys. They've been staying with us while they wait for a space to open up on the little plane that will take them to thier new home on the other side of the island (Hidden Falls- a Fisheries community). For the little ones, it's great friend-overload, so maybe we'll have a little break before they start asking for each other.
Personally, it's weird enough not having her at work these days. I'm still in denial that she's leaving to a limited communication area. sigh.

Sunshine Brain

I must apologize. Last week was solid sunshine. It rained Sunday, but yesterday brought the sun back. We've been out and about and helping a friend move (watch for my philosophical discusson on that). All my pictures are on my cell phone, who's battery is near death. And I really want to get back out into the sunshine. Talk to you when the clouds come back!

Extremes of Emotion

We had a major break-through this week.

With all the sunshine and time outside, we've also spent alot of time in the tub.

SHANE actually started sitting down in the tub!

You've probably nnever heard the screaming from bathtime washing. And for obvious reasons, pictures of him standing (or tiptoeing) through 6+ inches if water, don't get posted.

And for anyone that knows SI, a step forward is a HUGE deal. So to sum it up...

We are excited over Shane's wet butt!

On the other hand...

Austin was working on some more teeth the other night. Fever, snotty nose, the whole nine-yards. And nursing ALL NIGHT LONG. It wouldn't have been so bad, but he was in pain and wasn't being careful what he did with the 4 teeth he already has. ow. Major OW!

So I cut him off.

If any of you have tried weaning cold turkey, t's not fun for anyone, on any level.

The pitiful tears and cuddling, and Austin hated it too.

No, I had the remnants of pain to keep me going while all Aussie had was a sippy cup and binky.

We did ok all day. But as dark came on and the clock ticked away toward it's zenith, my resolve melted like a sugar cube in hot tea. So I gave in a bit last night, to get everyone some sleep, and to ease some of my physical uncomfortableness.

We're back on the wagon this morning and again... I feel like the biggest villan ever!

I've never seen one, but I've heard tales of 5 year olds nursing.

Will my willpower be strong enough to keep my kid from being one?

Enchilaaa-daaas, I got, I got!

For those that didn't catch that, one of my favorite old actors is Jerry Lewis. My title today is a nod to his 'Scared Stiff' film with Dean Martin. It takes alot of talent to pull of a Carmen Miranda outfit!
Anyway, Way back, when I was down with the in-laws, I tried my hand at chicken enchiladas, which I usually avoid because of the creamy whatever soup that everyone swears by. To me creamy and enchilada don't mix. Well, Brett insists that the chicken was WAY better than my regular beef enchiladas (several of his hispanic coworkers say that they're excellent for a white girl. Ummm... thanks?)
He talked me into makeing more chicken enchiladas today, so I thought I'd share the recipe...
*WARNING* having grown up helping put together meals that could feed a football team, I am still struggling to translate my cooking into smaller sizes, especially with enchiladas. This is definately going to be a big batch, for a potluck, party, or the freezer (unassembled).
You'll need:
5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or the equivilent)- boiled until probably done
2 medium/small onions diced and sauted
3-4 small cans diced green chiles
green enchiladas sauce
flour tortillas
2 lbs pepper jack cheese- shredded
olives (optional)

Dice up your cooked chicken. Mix it up with your onion, chiles and olives (opt). Pour a little sauce in the bottom of a 13x9 inch pan (or two) to coat it. Fill your tortillas with a big spoonfull of mixture and some cheese-don't skimp!- roll them up. Try to place the seam down when you put them in the pan, keeps them from unrolling everywhere. Fill your pan(s), pour enchilada sauce over the tortilla rolls making sure to coat the edges and ends. Cover all that with more Pepper Jack cheese. We Like Cheese... Pop your creation into the oven, I believe it's 425 F for 25-35 minutes. Be careful of cheese overflowing as it melts! (a sheet of foil on the oven tray below works great for catching oozing cheese) Let it sit a few minutes before you dig in.
Hope they turn out good for you!
Now the problem, what to serve with it besides green jello and rice?