the Golden Compass

I did it! I bought the triple combination anti-Christ I mean trilogy of the “These Dark Materials” otherwise know as the new movie that is coming out, and the first one in the series, “The Golden Compass”!!!! Maybe the book has evil intentions, but it was beyond me when I read it a long time ago. I really liked it and had planned on reading it to my kids. A few weeks ago, late at night, Rich and I were watching trailers of the movies coming out and this one was the only one that excited us. Funny enough the next day I got an email telling me to avoid the film- that there was anti-Christ sentiments. I replied to everyone that received the email- I thing I sometimes do when I completely disagree or know that the subject is fiction, and told them that I had read the book- it was a good read and I did not get any subtle or otherwise anti-god message. I got a scathing response from someone on the list who told me that “no Christian parent should take her children to the movie or read the book!” In all fairness she had not read the book and said so (her husband had)... and I did get two supportive emails from my little sisters. I was talking to my mom on the phone and I told her I bought the trilogy. She laughed and said, “Good for you!” She also reminisced that when her kids were little, people would tell her to not let us read certain books etc., and she said, “Everyone knows that fairy tales aren’t real. What about fantasy and fiction? Please, kids are smart. One book won’t change their belief system.” That is how I grew up! And I am reading “The Golden Compass” starting with the first chapter tonight. Furthermore, I think that I live in the most conservative place in the U.S. and my library which has 13 copies of the book placed me at number 20 on the waiting list! But now I have all three! I think that I am growing horns...

Christmas Pix

Today the kids got out of school early for Thanksgiving. I had planned to do pictures today. Yesterday it was beautiful and 65, today it it freezing at 47 with a chance of snow! I had a feeling it would be this way- the warm before the storm! Nevertheless, photo time today and we had a good, successful shoot. As the kids get older it get so much easier to take pictures. Now, only Poppet is naughty. Here are are a few we won't be using:

funny kids

O.K., so I have good days and bad days and bla bla days. With my kids it can be all in one day depending on the kid. I try to be patient and nice and listen, bla bla, bla, but my kids can make or break me sometimes. One night Rich and I went to check on the girls after they fell asleep and we saw Fred McFee, our skeleton, wrapped in the doll cradle. It was so awesome. We laughed and had to take a photo. On any day when I hear Paris call Leif "Troy" of HSM I always smile. Leif gets a little embarrassed when he sees I've heard, but he continues the game. Last night at the dinner table Leif was trying to stop Atlas from doing something to him and he fell off his chair- laughing. And then a few minutes later as Leif is telling a very dramatic story with his hands, he somehow hits his plate and flings his fork and spaghetti sauce over my head at the other end of the table. The sauce lands on the curtains and the fork at my feet. I ducked and was safe, but it was so very funny! And thankfully the sauce came off my golden curtains!

A perfect day

What makes a perfect day? For me it really depends on what I want to accomplish. This past weekend I think that my family had a perfect day- I got up around 8 and cleaned the kitchen- not too bad because I went to bed the night before at 8:30! Rich got up a bit later and helped me. I made biscuits from scratch, fried up some turkey bacon, eggs, and we had a mellon from Green river that was perfect- even in November!!, and peppermint tea and juice. All of us sat down to breakfast by 9:30 and we talked and planned Thanksgiving. Next the kids cleaned up their stuff and Rich and I did the dishes (again) and cleaned the kitchen and whatever else that needed attention, we went to the park and walked and played catch and hit a baseball. It was so beautiful and the weather a bit chilly, and no one was there! On our way home we ran into some friends and they ended up coming over and having lunch- I made oatmeal cookies and then they left with out staying too long. We did dishes (again) and just hung out with the kids. Paris had a late nap and we had pancakes for dinner and then put the kids to bed and did dishes (again). Rich and I hung out a bit. We played games on orisinal.com (you should check it out- it is great for kids) and Paris awoke at 9 p.m. and we fed her 6 pancakes and she was still hungry! Then we went to bed- Paris too. It was just a nice day- we didn’t try to accomplish anything. We just wanted to have a nice day! We did.

dreaming

A few months ago I had a dream that one of my sisters and my sister-in-law were pregnant and over due and I was helping them- you know how dreams are. I told Richard later that day and then the next day we heard from one of his siblings that one of Richard’s sister was pregnant- the one that I dreamed about. It had been on my mind and when I found out that one of the girls in my dream was pregnant, I emailed my sister who I thought was pregnant too. It turned out that she was not expecting, but a few days later I got news that my littlest sister is pregnant with her first! Emilia, who spent a few weeks with her in the summer, knew! She knew for about 2 months and did not tell anyone! I thought that was very admirable of her to keep such a fun and exciting secret. Neither my sister or my sister-in-law know what they are having... But I did make cards to send to them, so Charla, Liz, here’s a preview! (Sorry Charla for spilling the beans, but you are half way through- I love you!)

Craftmania

I have committed myself to insanity- not really, but I did commit to do a Christmas botique! It gets bigger every year and I have not participated for a few years and I have never done much or very well, so why am I doing it again??? I don't know! Try until I succeed? Or just make life kookoo? I am going to sell my birthday garlands and merry Christmas ones and maybe the party/ birthday hats. Really anything paper that I can manipulate. I have tried to sew and I get too frusterated. So paper is my medium of choice. Sisters? Friends? what do you think?

Maggots

Atlas said, "You know, maggots are a healthy source of protein." Dinner? Remember the owl that Richard found on the way home from our road trip? He put it on our recycling bin- the only place high enough for Poppet to not get it and has left it there for a few weeks. Tomorrow is recycling. The owl needed to be moved. Rich's idea was to leave it somewhere and in a few weeks? months? only the bones and feathers would be left, only we live in the city....

It's official: HSM 3!

Yes, I was informed yesterday, not by my 4 yr old, but by my husband, that "they" are making a High School Musical 3! I haven't seen the second one, but I know all the songs. When our family does karaoke, who sings the Troy and Gabriella duets? Not Atlas and Emilia, but Richard and me! How embarrassing to admit this, but those are about the only songs that the both of us know well enough to sing together! And for the record, we don't yet own a karaoke machine or the music- it is our neighbor's! Here is a little skit that SNL put together of a possible story line for the third installment- it is really funny if you know the history of Vanessa's naked pictures- I found out through a six year old neighbor- a friend of one of mine, and we had a big discussion about it! So funny! Enjoy-

The recipe: Chicken Pot Pie

Salt and pepper 1 cup sliced carrots 1 cup peas 1 cup corn 2 tbs butter 1/2 rotisserie chicken 2 tbs chopped shallots or onions 1/4 cup flour 1 1/2 cups chicken broth 1/2 cup white wine 1/2 cup half and half 1 tbs chopped fresh parsley 1 egg yoke beaten with 1 tsp water one 9’’ pie dough round

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bring a saucepan 3/4 full of lightly salted water to boil. Using a pasta insert or sieve, immerse the carrots and peas in the water and boil for about 4 minutes, add the corn and boil one more minute. Drain and set aside. Melt butter in a large frying pan and add shallots/onions, stirring until softened- about 2 minutes. Sprinkle in flour and stir well. Stir in broth, wine, half and half, and parsley and bring to a simmer. Cover and reduce heat to low, and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in carrots, peas, corn and chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a 9’’ deep-dish pie dish. Brush some of the egg yoke mixture in a 1-inch border around the edge of the pie dough round. Place the round, egg side down, over filling and press the dough to the rim of the dish. Trim off any overhanging dough and brush the surface lightly with the remaining egg mixture. cut a few slits in the center of the top with the tip of a knife. Place on a baking sheet. Bake until the crust is golden brown, about 30 minutes, serve hot! Pie Dough- make this first! If you have a food processor put 1 1/2 cups flour 1/2 tsp salt in bowl and pulse a few times, add 6 tbs chilled butter and 2 tbs shortening. Pulse until a course meal forms. Add enough cold water (up to 1/3 cup) with the motor running, until a ball forms. Form into a disk and refrigerate for 30 ( while you make the filling) roll out into a round 1/8-inch thick. * I didn’t refrigerate the dough the first time and it was just great! Refrigeration makes it a bit more firm and easier to work with. * I got cheap $2.99 white wine from Trader Joe’s. Anything will do. The sauce smells divine when cooking! Enjoy!