Special Hamburgers

A friend recently convinced me to try a food co-op, Bountiful Baskets . That means I had to leave my house dressed somewhat decently and be at a park before 8:15am on a Saturday. Whew. I did make it and I wasn't even late! :) As I was lugging my 100lbs of fruits and veggies (OK, maybe more like 20lbs) back to my car, I took a quick inventory - some bananas, squash (yea!), cantaloupe, grapes, eggplant . . . EGGPLANT?!?! Okay, the only reason why I knew what it was was because I have read the baby book about colors and eggplant is on the purple page - and that was because they couldn't think of any more purple items to put on the purple page. What am I going to do with an eggplant?

I decided that it was better to use it right away, then if we didn't like it, we would know. So, I pulled out a trusted cookbook, and found their sole eggplant recipe and decided to give it a shot. I placed the eggplant patties - or "special hamburgers" to our unsuspecting kids to diguise that it might be some funky, wierd vegetable - with some trepidation on the table and we dug in - isn't it beautiful alongside the plums and lettuce that were also in the basket?

So, how did it fair? I ate 1 pattie - it was pretty good and that's saying something for someone who doesn't like anything to distrube her palate. My husband ate 2, Emma ate 1 1/2 and Austin, well Austin ate like I starve him. For lunch he ate 2 1/2 and dinner he had 2 more - that is 5 1/2 patties in a day! So, where can I buy more eggplant?

Austin's Big Step

Since Austin has been little he has hated water on his face. In the bath he would freak out if any microscopic drop of water got on his face. And then there was the time last year when we all went to a splash pad. Emma is running through the water with no fear. Then, Austin backs up to the water and got 3 drops of water on his back and ran away from the water because he was " all wet." Well, times have changed.

He now is a swimmer. He has been taking swim lessons and has an awesome swim teacher who somehow encourages Austin out of his comfort zone while still keeping it fun. A big thank you to Braden and Gold Medal Swim School for the transformation! The video I posted is just a small portion of what he did today for the first time. He also decided it was OK to swim from the middle of the pool back to the step by himself (it was some amazing doggie paddling!!) and with dad's help, swim down to the bottom of the pool to get the rings.

Check out today's swim:

Creating photo opportunities

If you have young kids, here is a way to get some great shots of them. Sometimes my preschoolers are just too fast for me. So, I'll sit them down with something fun and special - painting, coloring, or a new toy. Just something that will keep their attention and then snap fast.

After Emma got back from the hospital last week, she got some fun presents. Hayley and Kirsten (and Katie) colored some get well pictures for her, and Tyler and Ethan (and Andrea) made her some cards and got her "eggs" that turned into dinosaurs (Thanks!) - perfect for a quick photo shoot.

I set the kids up facing the windows, no direct sunlight, just a soft light from the open windows. Then, I opened up my apperature to f/1.6 and started shooting. It was great fun to get their fun expressions. They were so interested in the dinosaurs. They were cool.

Give it a try with your kids! Good luck and let me know how it goes.

My Sweet Emma

Okay, I admit it - I am a procrastinator and many lapses in my posts were due to my lack of sitting at the computer and typing. This time, however, procrastination was not the reason. I was acting more on shock and unbelief. Something huge, something crazy, something that changed my whole perspective on life. Emma became a statistic. Let me start from the beginning.

Last Thursday had a swimming play date at our house. Too many kids, too much fun and not enough watching, and your life changes in a moment. After playing in the pool for about an hour, a thought came into my head - "Where is Emma?" After a quick scan, I still couldn't see her. Then I saw her ridiculously bright swimsuit - a couple of feet under the water. From that moment on, life stopped.

There are things that I remember - pulling my limp child out of the water, her blue lips, pounding her back to get the water out, and holding her like I could never let her go. Luckily, there were friends there that could tell me to pound her back, get the other kids out of the pool, call 911, and help me get some things together for the hospital. - things that are all fuzzy. And then there is the question of how I got from point A to point B - that I have no idea how that happened. It's weird how when the stress is high, your vision is so selective. Simple things like swimming to your child, or walking along the pool are lost, not important enough to remember. Only thoughts of how to make awful better, and doing what your child needs in only what is important.

Emma was a champ. She held still while the firefighters and paramedics gave her oxygen and worked to get her vitals. She even went in the ambulance without going crazy.

Once we got to the hospital, they took chest x-rays, and took a blood sample. The diagnosis was a near drowning. As they were taking the sample, Emma turned to me and said, "They are poking me, Mommy. They broke me." Needless to say, she held still.

An hour later, Emma went from cuddling in my arms, to wanting to go home. Yes, the ER on a Thursday afternoon is not the most exciting place to be.

Luckily, I have a mom purse - a few fruit leathers and a few cards and the toddler is entertained!

Before long, Dad came to keep us company.

3 hours later, we left the hospital with our beautiful girl. She was fine. It could have turned out so different, but she only had a few owies.

We are so blessed that Emma is okay. I can't believe how much the Lord blessed us. We have our sweet Emma. So many cliches fit this situation. Your life changes in a moment, put your family first, be there for your friends, etc. All of them apply. It feels like each moment of life is sooo important - who knows when it might be your last one? Do those little things really matter? Anything that keeps you away from your family - physically, spiritually, or emotionally is not worth it. And, it just amazed me that when it was rough, there were friends and family there for me - thank you! I won't be able to tell you how much I appreciated everything you did for me and my family. And to my family - I love and am so blessed to spend this life with you.

A smile, a scowl and a few tears

I thought it was about time to get some photos of Austin and Emma and I decided to try something different. So, we went downtown and took a few urban style photos. Just a few suggestions for all those thinking about taking pictures of your own kids.

1. Make sure they get enough sleep and not fall asleep on the way to the photo shoot.

2. Food in the bellies keep the kids happier.

3. Contain your kids to one spot at a time.

4. Above all, smiles are always better than tears. :)

Needless to say, everything went wrong. Grumpy looks, a couple of break aways, a few tears, and fast asleep before we got to Florence Blvd. It was still fun. I loved all the textures and colors down there. Besides, the kids are cute - even with the scowls. :)

Here's the slideshow: