ABC DEF GHI

Well the last post was the middle of April, we had just gotten Gloria and it was snowing the beginning of each week.  Six weeks have passed and a lot has happened. Where do I start? The bees, the chicks, track, school projects, piano recital, the list goes on...

A - April
April showers bring May flowers for most folks, for us it brings mud.

B - Bees
Every farmer who is allergic to bees (Steve) or scared of bees (Jake) should have some anyways. Steve's manager and another guy at work have bees and when guys get talking... we ended up with 2 hives.  We've just started and it takes a long time to get any honey, but I can't wait for all the fruit we get.  We had some fruit trees from last year and planted at least a dozen more.  How many do you need for an "orchard"?

C - Chicks
Spring time on the farm (and at the farm stores) means babies.  I had to stop at the farm store one Saturday afternoon and had the kids with me.  You can see where this is going... We have 5 new baby chicks.  Why 5 you ask.  Well, I told each of the kids they could pick 1.  MaKenna and Kyler each picked the same kind which meant they were siblings. Jake picked a different kind.  His chick would have been lonely if he didn't get another one - that gave us 4, but also left just 1 at the store.  We can't have a lonely chick, so we had to get it too.

D - Dad
Steve's Birthday was the beginning of May.  The kids made him Choc Chip muffins for breakfast and used his Dukes of Hazzard tray to bring it to him in bed.

E - Eaton

May 5th we got up early and went to Eaton, a small town east of us.  The were going to implode the old Sugar Factory.  I thought it might be pretty cool to go watch it.  It didn't exactly turn out like we (or the City for that matter) was expecting, but none the less, it was fun. (The water tower, smoke stack, and some of the center of the building tumbled).  The town webpage has a good video that you can watch.  It took them all day and several tries to get it down.

Before

After

F - Four H & Fair

For 4-H this year, MaKenna is in cake decorating.  She has to make 3 cakes before the fair.  She has to keep records of how much she spent, what kind she made, what she learned, etc.  This was the 1st one she did.  O, and it has to be decorated with candy, or other edible items.  The boys couldn't be left out, so they also decorated a cake.

MaKenna's Cake - Girl Power

The Boy's Cake

G - Graduations

This time of year mean graduations - high school, middle school, kindergarten, etc.  We had 1 high school graduation invite and 1 middle school invite.  These are the gifts I put together (I love pinterest!)

Perfect for after an all night study session

How to survive high school

H - Had enough yet?

I - I have...

Easter

The Easter Bunny is not nearly as clever, sneaky, or creative as the Leprechauns.  Instead of a hunt (of any kind) the gifts were simply left on the table for the kids to find when they woke up.

The Easter Bunny must have been watching a wrestling tournament instead of preparing. It seems as though he needed some help from the Duck.

Easter Sunday was a beautiful and sunny spring day.

The Green Little Man...

You might not have known that Leprechauns are a protected species under European law?  Or that Portland, Oregon has the worlds smallest park - dedicated in 1948 as the only colony for leprechauns west of Ireland.
 
I'm sure you did know however ,that according to legend, each leprechaun has a pot of gold hidden somewhere, and he must give his treasure to the person who catches him.  The kids tried so hard to catch a leprechaun this year.  They had traps all over the house.

So how did the traps do?  Unfortunately, not so well this year.  We have evidence the little guy was here though...  The water bottle holding up the gold in the 1st trap was green and the gold was gone.  The 2nd trap had been opened and the gold replaced by green glitter.  The 3rd trap had the money gone and green all around.  The pesky little guy also took the gold candy from the cake and ate through the Nerd Ropes. Maybe next year...

 

Leprechauns like to play tricks and have fun.  While he was taking the kid's gold, he hid their presents all around the house so they would have to search for them.

Clues were up high in the hall, under the table, in closets, and even outside.  The kids took turns reading and doing exactly what the clue said- even walking backwards up the stairs.

As they went through the house looking for clues, they found more evidence that the leprechaun(s) had been there.  He must have taken a bath in the sink - and forgot to let the water out.  He used a paper towel to dry off and was thoughtful enough to hang it up (unlike the kids that throw towels on the floor).  The toilet was green too! 

St. Patrick's Day is observed on March 17th because that is the feast day of St. Patrick - the patron saint of Ireland.  It is believed that he died on March 17, 461.  St. Patrick's Day is a worldwide celebration of Irish culture and history.  It is a national holiday of course in Ireland.

We had corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, and carrots for supper along with Irish soda bread.  The kids aren't fond of cooked cabbage (I would have to agree), but they ate dinner without too much complaining.  They "have to eat it every year" according to MaKenna.

Hope your St Patrick's Day was full of fun!

 

Valentine's Day

I think I set myself up for failure this year.  Last year I did a scavenger hunt for Valentine's day.  MaKenna kept asking me what I was planning and knew that it had to be awesome because it was last year... Unfortunately  I just couldn't get it together.  I had hoped to celebrate Mardi Gras on Tuesday - but that didn't happen either. (poor kids) I did get them valentines treats though.

Why 4?  We had Sasha staying with us Wednesday night because Dave and Dee were leaving early Thursday morning for a much needed Mexico getaway. (They are raising 3 teenage girls - if that isn't enough, they have already raised 5 kids of their own.)  Dave and Dee are our neighbors and super great people and our "goto" family in Colorado.

I got up extra early to make breakfast - Choc covered strawberries, banana muffins, and choc chip muffins. 

I tried to keep the Class Valentines simple this year.  MaKenna and Kyler did the same thing and it went pretty quick.  We used what we had - I bought a lot of Valentine pencils last year (after VDay).

We printed out 4 different sayings on card stock. Punched holes on both ends and slipped it on to the pencil.  Kyler did it all by himself and was quite proud.  MaKenna conned her brothers into doing  most of hers and was quite proud as well.

What do they say?
1. You've got the WRITE stuff!
2. Valentine - You're all WRITE!
3. You are the WRITE friend for me!
4. You are just WRITE for me!

I made it through the holiday rush, back to back wrestling duals (Wed and Thurs), shopping for the big weekend trip, packing and loading for the big weekend trip, and sending everyone off.  I'm exhausted (and lonely).  Today and tomorrow I will clean carpets, bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen, EVERYTHING! (I'm secretly hoping to get a trip to ARC in today too.)

Year of the Snake

I'm not crazy about snakes - honestly I don't see a need for them.  Can't cats take care of the rodents just fine?  However, I do LOVE holidays.  February is full of them.  This year they all seemed to fall close together without weekends in between - I wasn't ready or prepared for all of them.  It started off with Groundhog Day, followed by Chinese New Year, Mardi Gras, Valentine's Day... 4 day weekend and then Presidents Day. 

Did I mention that I LOVE holidays and any reason to celebrate.  I really enjoy the opportunity for the kids to learn about other cultures and traditions.  This year we celebrated Chinese New Year.  I have been to China twice and Taiwan once and work with the region daily so I have become more aware of their holidays, festivals and traditions. 

Chinese New Year in China is like Christmas for us with family, friends, traditions, presents, parties, food, etc. This is the Year of the Snake.  

Jake coloring his snake decoration

Lanterns, Snakes hanging, and zodiac signs

There is a Chinese  legend about a wild beast Nien (also is the word for "year") that appeared at the end of each year, attacking and killing villagers. Loud noises and bright lights were used to scare the beast away, and thus Chinese New Year celebrations were born.

We opted for no fireworks and loud noises, but we did make paper lanterns.

Kyler making his paper lantern

Jake, MaKenna, Kyler

Red envelopesCalled "hong bao" in Mandarin, red envelopes filled with money and given to children.  The color red denotes good luck/fortune and happiness/abundance in the Chinese Culture and is often worn or used for decoration in other celebrations.

Kids loved this part - probably their favorite

If you want to find your Chinese Zodiac sign... here ya go.  This is of course just for fun.  There are several different webpages and they all seem to say something slightly different.  I'm not sure if I agree with the generalizations made below for each of us. Some are OK, others are dead wrong!

Coloring Zodiac Signs

Jake (2001) Snakes like to always be in control, are charming and captivating, yet calculating and often conservative. They are often enduring characters who can keep going in adversity. They have the alertness of the snake and often exhibit uncanny perception. They are brilliant at laying in wait and may patiently observe for months or years, then strike at the right moment. 
MaKenna (2003) Sheep are considered patient and like to exercise moderation and caution in all aspects of their lives. They can bear great pressure and remain stable. Can be very hard workers accomplishing much and can easily take on more than their load. Often they will remain in the background of an endeavor not needing to hog the limelight. Good team workers. Their steadfastness makes them very reliable. 
Kyler (2006) Dog is the honest, friendly and sincere sign of the zodiac. People born under the Dog always seem to be ready for action and this quality brings respect from others around them. They can be brave and courageous and rarely withdraw from a commitment or betray a confidence. They are very loyal and reliable. They are devoted to the welfare of others and are often wonderful listeners.
Steve (1974) Tigers are determined, enthusiastic and positive with a sense of superiority. They explore the potential in unlikely situations. They like to see everything settled, rarely abandon projects and will become self centered and obstinate if they fail to achieve. Tigers tend to place themselves in leadership or radical roles.
Elizabeth (1975) Sheep are usually generous, friendly and tranquil by nature. Rabbits like everything to be low key and even tempered and are anxious if forced to take risks. They enjoy paying attention to detail to create an ambiance in their lives. Rabbits most often prefer the easy road.


Food
The Chinese New Year's Eve meal is the most important dinner of the year. Typically, families gather at a designated relatives house for dinner - like we do for Christmas.  We had a nice family dinner.  We had fried rice, egg rolls, sweet and sour chicken - all made by scratch - nothing pre-bought (except the egg roll wrappers).  Here are only a few pics because this post is getting super long...

     

Wow - if you read all of this you're dedicated. My Valentine's post will be much shorter - I promise.