Timing

I'm telling you, things just keep getting crazier around here.  Maybe it's just that I'm getting crazier.
Yep, that must be it.

I shared in my last post about how we were dying Easter eggs at a ridiculous time of the evening (and on a dateless date night, might I add), but we've been keeping odd hours all week.

Saturday morning, in the bleak midwinter-like spring, we attended a track meet.

 Yes, that is snow.

FYI:  Lex is not a fan of the compression shorts that ride up while running.  Next year we will have to look for a better fit.

Saturday night, we were scientifically investigating the realm of liquid dish soap effectiveness.
ANYTHING to get that Science Fair project done.  

We finished the project phase around this time:

That's PM.  No make-up date night.  Just 5 brands of dish soap and some greasy drinking glasses.  We fell into bed exhausted, only to rise bright and early for church on Sunday.

After all the busy-ness of Easter Sunday (if you haven't read about, you simply must), and the guests had all gone home, we started in on the write-up and display phase of the Science Fair project due Monday morning.  We finished around 12:30.  That's AM.  I didn't take a picture, so you will just have to take my word for it.

The early morning seminary alarm(s) - (we have 4 that go off within a matter of 30 minutes or so, starting around 5:10 AM) - started a-buzzing, and a-beeping, and a-nnoying.

We made it to the Science Fair after school, with a really put-together looking project.  The good news?  Actual useful information.  Dawn original cuts grease the best.   Dawn Hand-Renewal came in second.

Don't buy Palmolive OR Kroger if you are interested in cutting grease.  When Bill was kindly washing dishes (yesterday?  this morning?  I can't remember), he said, "Wow.  I learned a lot about how detergent works."  See?  Useful.

Those styrofoam balls (meant to look like dishsoap bubbles), were my ingenious way of using up the leftover 5 styrofoam balls from a 6-pack I had to purchase because Shilo needed ONE for a math project.  No, you can't just purchase a single styrofoam ball.  You have to buy 6.  For somewhere in the ballpark of $4.  The remaining 5 seemed purposeless and like a colossal waste of money (and aren't they bad for the environment?) until we tied them ever-so-effectively into the Science Fair display.  Mar was thrilled with the 3-D option.  Bill did not like that we made an actual dollar bill into a sticker, forever stuck to the display.  But it made such a nice statement, don't you think?

The past few evenings Bill has stayed up late working with Lex on her math.  Really late.  We've been reading our Preach My Gospel books (a Stake assignment) around 10:30 every night, usually hitting the hay around 11.  That's PM.  While the tutor sessions were going on, I was locker-tagging it, involving tedious printing (each name needed to be adjusted on the tag to fit right), cutting, laminating, cutting again, writing on locker numbers, magnetizing, then sorting.  76 of them. I was at the school at 6:15 (AM) on a non-seminary day (juniors were taking the ACT...  here's hoping Lex did okay), to get them hung.  Thankfully, Shi helped.  Awesome.

Last night was late because... well... Bill was helping Lex again, and Shi, Mar and I were catching up on Survivor, Top Chef Masters, and American Idol.  Terrible matriarchal parenting, I know.

But today I made up for it.  I took Mar to work with me, so she could witness first-hand the fun I have every day.  I really do talk a lot to my family about the kindies, so Mar was anxious to see who some of the infamous kids were.  It was a pretty mild day, as far as crazy antics go, so she may have gotten a glamorized view of the work of a part-time SSN EA.  I actually think some of the kids behaved well because there was someone new and different hanging around.  And she was nice and helpful.  And a kid, not an old lady.

Mrs. Marchese, the kindergarten teacher, is also Mar's Activity Day leader.  Mar liked it so much, she said she would like to come every day.  Personally, I would love it.  If wishes were fishes...

Cheer tryouts are this week, and Lex has made the definitive decision not to participate.  On one hand, Bill and I are a little sad that we will no longer have the need to be so involved in the overall high school sports arena.  Although it's been busy and challenging, it has also been a lot of fun.  And a great excuse for being super involved in Britt's and Lex's extra-curricular lives.  We have met a lot of great parents, and have been happy (usually) to be supportive as volunteers in many ways.  (The funny thing is that Bill has been mourning the death of cheer more than I.)  

On the other hand, we have plenty of things to fill the imagined high-school-spirit void (and the not-so-imagined financial one).   The withdrawal will be short-lived, I am certain of it.

In Memoriam:

The timing of this upcoming weekend couldn't have been better.  Lex has a track meet in Fort Collins (slightly more than 1 1/2 hours away) tomorrow, and Shi has a swim meet in Fort Collins on Saturday.  We are so LUCKY.  We booked a {cheap} hotel, and plan to make it a family event... minus Mar (camping with the Billats), Britt, and Tay.  So maybe not so much of a family event, as a Parent/Teenager event.  Doesn't that sound like fun?  Good times will be had by all.  Or at least GoodTimes will be had by all.  

Either way, it will be awesome.

Easter - SparkNotes Version

In my day, we called them Cliff's Notes, but I'm trying to keep up with the times.

Finally... a post!  (I know, it's only been a few days, but I'm patting myself on the back for my display of posting-restraint in the continual quest to prioritize effectively.)  I will try to fully utilize my limited time to it's fullest, so don't expect entertainment, organization, or even correct spelling.  Those things take time.

Let's start at the very beginning.  A very good place to start.

The egg lights were hung almost a full week before Easter.   Just don't call me late for dinner.

Tulips (my next-to-favorite flower) were purchased as a reminder of Spring, which has been MIA around these parts lately.

The eggs were boiled, and refrigerated for a more convenient time to dye.

That time came around 9:30 pm on a Friday evening.  Lex kindly put her friends on hold for a whole 10 minutes, so she could be included in this highly anticipated family tradition.  (Small amounts of coercion and parental persuasion may have been involved.  And a pizza bribe.)

Lex dyed her eggs, then headed back to the friends.  Such a teenager-ish thing to do.

I personally LOVE this technique for coloring eggs.  It's quick and easy, with relatively little mess.  Except for on your hands, which is why we now always wear gloves.  Smart, huh?  Here's the formula in a nutshell, courtesy of Family Fun mag, April 2006:

Tie-dye Easter Eggs

1)  Place several hard-boiled eggs in a colander in the kitchen sink and splash them with white vinegar.

2)  Drip food coloring on the eggs.  (Just a drop or two of your first color.  Lighter colors first.  Two colors works best, but you can use up to three -- any more may make your colors turn muddy.  We use the McCormick neon colors in those little squeeze bottles.)

3)  Gently (ever so gently, so as not to crack your eggs) agitate (I call it "swirl") the colander for a few seconds to help the color spread.  Let the first color set on the eggs for 30 seconds.

4)  Repeat steps 2 and 3, allowing each color to set for 30 seconds.

5)  After the last color has set, give the eggs a light rinse (in a very small stream of slow-running water... not a full-blast from the faucet) and let them drain for a minute or two.  Air-dry on paper towels.

You can't color eggs without a pair of bunny ears or two.  And two willing subjects to wear them.

(Note the Easter goodies on the counter... courtesy of Grandma Syddall, who NEVER forgets that my kids LOVE a package in the mail.  Thanks, Grandma!)

To clean up all that food dye, Clorox is your best friend.  Just don't splash it on your pants.

On Saturday morning, my friend Steph kindly took Mar to an egg hunt at the park.  I really appreciate friends who offer to pick up my slack.

Sunday morning, we attended church.  Mar and I headed out early for a final choir practice.  I LOVE that she is singing in the choir with me.  Britta used to sing with me, and Shilo has on occasion, but there's been a long, dry spell of lonely practices until Mar joined (along with a few of her closest friends).

The talks were thought-provoking and moving.  The Relief Society lesson was excellent.  It was the perfect way to start a beautiful (although somewhat gray and overcast) Easter morning.  

Note:  Bill and I snuck out during Sunday School to play bunny.  Don't tell anyone.  We have done it for years - but only on the years that church starts early.  Is there a twinge of guilt?  For me, yes.  Could we have the bunny come on Saturday?  If we had it together enough.  But it's what we've done.  And we get a little sugar fix pick-me-up before heading discreetly back to attend the rest of the meetings.  Withheld judgement would be appreciated :-)

After church on Sunday, it was like corralling angry chickens to get a picture of the girls all dressed up.  Not really, but Lex was dying to get into her sweats, because she is so darn uncomfortable in a skirt.  (Her explanation, not mine.)  Then the Easter basket hunt could begin.

Trusty Dad had the video camera rolling.  SOMEDAY we are going to want to sit for hours on end, enjoying the Easter basket hunt from years gone by.  Just like we will relish watching the opening of every Christmas gift from the past 50 years.

Mauri was the only family member that got a new Easter dress this year... handpicked and selected by herself.  She LOVES the ruched bodice, the flounce skirt (polka dots a bonus), sequined floral embellishment, and the attached jacket (modesty is important).  AND it will match her self-purchased bright pink 3" bejeweled heels that she wears for dress-up.  (No, you can't wear them to church).

Mauri found her basket first.  The Easter Bunny thought he had done a bang-up job at finding somewhat difficult hiding places.  I think it took Mar all of 2 minutes.  Next year I'm hiring out.

Shi and Lex whined a bit, since they were still looking after a whole 10 minutes.  

After a few blatant hints (anything to stop the whine), they found them fairly quickly.

Lex went straight for a Peep.  Personally, I only like them when they harden up a bit.  

Note to Bill:  Peeps are NOT my favorite candy.  Please do not stock up at a post-Easter clearance, and give me a boatload for Mother's Day.  Or my birthday (although they WOULD be nice and hard by then). 

For Easter dinner, we had the Yoshikawas, Baumgartners, Billats and Angells over.  You should have heard the Syddall discussion about seating arrangements.  (Yes, I believe in seating arrangements.)  It was finally decided to have ALL the children sit in the dining room, and all the parents in the kitchen.  My girls were put on a required cell phone ban, and Rebecca passed it along to her girls that it would be a text-free social event.  Genius.

It worked splendidly (at least from the parents' point of view -- after all the company had left, we were discussing how the "arrangement" worked.  Shilo mentioned a few moments of awkward silence, followed by lengthy discussion from the older crowd about ACT's, college, and the like.  Then she said, "It sounded like you guys were all having a good time in the kitchen... talking, laughing, enjoying yourselves..."  It just takes practice, I told her, which was the purpose of the arrangement in the first place.)

In conclusion (before I head off to the Science Fair -- more on that another day), I will share our favorite Kids Say the Darndest Things Easter moment, a la Taylor, circa 1999(ish):

"I know you and Dad are Santa,

and I don't believe in the Tooth Fairy,

BUT I KNOW THERE'S AN EASTER BUNNY...

because he comes while we're at church!"

Little Red Hen

I really don't have time to post.  Really.  I have a boatload of stuff to get done, but I'm determined to blog fast, then work really hard to catch up.

{Smiley face}

I woke up this morning with my usual ambitions:  to be the best mom/wife, who gets the most done, in a kind and efficient manner.  Since today was Thursday, and Lex and Shi have a break between Seminary and school on Thursdays (I'm telling you, school schedules these days are skewed), I decided to make muffins for them (for the second week in a row, might I add).  Since I used the rest of the opened church-cannery applesauce (from an ancient batch... you know, kinda brown on top... that Bill is determined NOT to throw out, but to use... I think we have a dozen or more bottles left...) in my muffins last week (yum-o, btw), I decided to make banana muffins today.  Not only am I going to be an awesome mom/wife, I'm going to do it with variety and flare.  And, as luck would have it, I had these beauties in the freezer:

I know, they look totally disgusting, but my girls were at Seminary (and Mar still soundly sleeping)...
they would never know.  

{Smiley face}

After a short defrosting period in the microwave, I slipped those slimy innards out of their brown nasty peels, and mashed away.

Because my ambitions of the morning were to be the BEST mom/wife ever, I decided to swap out some of that super-processed white flour with some whole-grain, fiber-filled, nutritious wheat flour.  That I would grind myself.  Just like the Little Red Hen.

I whipped out the grinder.

This little baby?  Worth it's weight in gold.  Thanks, Mom, for the recommendation.  Within moments, I had a supply of freshly-ground wheat flour.

(I know... I'm a mess.)

Then the Little Red Hen (that's me), transformed that flour and those frozen bananas into something truly scrumptious.

Not the most beautiful, and slightly overbaked (you would think I would learn to adjust times and temps when using those dark baking pans... it was a little too much effort for this morning), but yummy AND somewhat nutritious.  

I think my Rooster and Chicks were happy and satisfied.

Here's the super simple recipe:

Best Ever Banana Muffins (I didn't name them, but I like it)

3 lg. bananas

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 cups flour (I use half white, half whole wheat)

1/3 cup melted butter

Mash bananas.  Add sugar and slightly beaten egg.  Add the melted butter.  Add the dry ingredients.  Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.  Adjust your temp (350) and time (15-20 mins) if using dark pans.  {Smiley face}  Makes 1 dozen (I doubled the batch this morning...FYI, in case you are one of those uber-observant people who might conclude, from the above pictures, that you should get 2 dozen from the recipe.)

Back to my boatload.  Which includes taking out the garbage containing those nasty slimy banana peels that are stinking up the house.  The smell of overripe brown bananas takes me back to queasy stomachs on long road trips from the years of my youth.  Random thought, I know.