Halloween Haunts

The boys were decisive when I asked what they wanted to be for Halloween this year, "I want to be a ghost and SCARE people," Kedrick responded and thankfully Brock echoed the same words. I was pleased as punch. We purchased a sheet for $2 at the thrift store and spent $1 on face paints. The boys practiced making scary ghosts sounds all month long. The big night did not dissapoint. One neighbor told Kedrick what a scary ghost he was and he told her not to be scared and explained he was just a "pretend ghost." Kedrick was quick on his feet this year and new exactly what he was doing. Brock trailed a little behind in a stupor of wonder staring down at his pumpkin in disbelief that people were just handing him all these treats. Lollipops, M&M's and KitKat's were the big hits. They topped off the night being chased around the house by a skeleton, trying to burn off their sugar high.

Woohoo, Brock is Two!

The train cake lives on! Brock insisted on calling the cake "pancake" and was just as thrilled as ever to see the confectionery locomotive in his honor. He was sure to tell everyone happy birthday back in response to his birthday greetings. He absolutely beamed while we sang Happy Birthday to him. His Aunt Lulu and Bret made a surprise guest appearance to present the boys with some Tonka Trucks in brand new condition that Bret had rescued from a dumpster. Brock (who would probably really like a doll) was very cute with the dump truck telling it, it needed a diaper change and putting it down for a nap.

Brock is a joy and we are so happy he is part of our family! Our little snugglebug (I think he would sleep with mom and dad forever if we would let him) lives life with intensity. When he is happy and excited he has sunbeams bursting out of his eyes and when he is upset he has the vocal capacity to let you know. He revels in getting under your skin and loves to taunt. He takes the opposite view of whatever the discussion is and holds his own until he wearies his opponent. At 18 months he argued all the way home with Kedrick that the moon was red. Kedrick, a stickler for accuracy, was about out of his mind trying to teach his wayward brother the true color of the moon. I made them settle down. Brock recommenced the argument by leaning over to Kedrick and in whispered tones saying, "its red." As we pulled into the driveway, he turned to Kedrick and said, "the moon is white" and smiled. It was merely an exercise in insanity. Okay, I've gone on long enough. Who can really describe the essence of Brock? Brock is a little ham and does his best to keep us from getting too serious about life. Once he has made up his mind (which is often), good luck trying to change it! He is one determined little fellow and we wouldn't have it any other way. We love you Brockie!

Labor Day: Pains and Perks

Labor Day is always a shocking revelation that summer is really coming to an end. We were so happy to have Kevin's parents come out to help us bid adieu to the lazy summer months.

Some things we'll miss:

• Friday afternoon beach trips with Daddy (he gets off at 1 on Fridays during the summer!!)
• Eating snow cones on the front porch waiting for daddy to come home.
• Endless hours of beach time.
• Boogie boarding!!
• BBQ's
• Water slides and pool days.
• Camping
• Having Madeline (Kedrick and Brock's cousin) be an adopted member of our family for a week.

Some things we won't mind taking a break from:

• Applying sunscreen!
• Trying to escape the heat at our house when we'd rather just stay home.
• Dripping in sweat trying to cook dinner in a house that doesn't need any more heat!
• Sandy diapers, enough said.

In reality, we live in San Diego and my kids are young so we still have several more beach hours to log before we officially check out for the winter!

Kid's Day

We created our own kid's day this year and spent doing just exactly what they love, riding trains! I know, some would argue that everday is Kid's Day but Kevin has wanted to start this tradition of setting a day aside to celebrate the wee ones for a few years and we finally did it! We took the Coaster up and down the coast and made a day of it touring downtown, SeaPort Village, a carousel ride, a harbor side picnic. Later we took in a meal at Fidel's Norte in Carlsbad with a quick trip to the beach. Leaving the car behind and walking everywhere really has a way of truly transporting you into vacation mode!

Crop Failure

The green bean plants were eaten down to a nub one night by some well meaning rabbits. The green peppers have all been snitched by animals too. The red pepper plant was attacked by white flies and was quite dead before I did something about it. The rosemary was uprooted by some kid, nobody ever owned up to that one. The cilantro was enjoyed until it died probably because it received no sunlight and had no space after the tomatoes took over. I had no idea how big they would grow and planted a little too close. The dill bit the dust early on, have no idea why. The first 15 or so zucchinis went the way of the earth due to end blossom rot (watering issues I discovered) but we have managed to recover from that. Then it was attacked with powdery mildew. Cut it back almost completely and it made an amazing comeback. I generally wait too long to pick them and they have mostly served as a catalyst for trying new zucchini bread recipes. They grow so fast. The tomatoes have been the victim of every blight out there; caterpillars, red spider mites, end blossom rot, cat-facing, and some other viral and fungal issues that I can't remember the names of. Luckily they were far enough along that we have managed to have a small but steady crop of tomatoes despite the deathly looking plants. That is, if we get to them before the rats. Yep, we have some vermin that keep tabs on the tomatoes and come and steal them the night before they are ready to be picked. I've wisened up now though and pick them 2 days early and let them ripen on the counter. I realized how little I know about growing and have sure learned a lot this summer. I'm excited to try again next summer. Here are two of my favorite recipes I've used my harvest for:

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins (from Penzey's Spices)

½ cup milk
¼ tsp white vinegar
½ cup room temperature butter
½ cup vegetable oil
½ cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 ½ cups flour
4 Tbs cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp salt
2 cups finely grated zucchini
1-4 oz bar semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
¼ cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 325. Line 2 muffin pans with papers. Mix together the milk and vinegar and set aside. In a large bowl, beat together the butter, oil and sugar until creamy. Add eggs, vanilla and milk/vinegar mix. Blend well. In a separate bowl mix together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add to the butter mixture and stir by hand to combine. Add zucchini and chocolate and stir well. Spoon into pan and sprinkle top with nuts. Bake for 20-25 minutes until toothpick comes out clean or muffins spring back to touch. Makes 24 muffins.

Zucchini with Tomatoes and Basil (thanks Ruru)

4 small zucchini (1/2 lb), cut into 1/2 inch thick slices

1 cup coarsely chopped tomatoes

2 Tb chopped fresh basil

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

2 tsp lemon juice

2 Tb shredded fresh parmesan cheese

1. Combine zucchini and 1/4 cup water. Cover and steam over medium heat 3-4 minutes until crisp tender.

2. Add tomatoes, basil, salt, pepper and lemon. Mix. Cook 1 minute longer. Sprinkle with cheese.

Sweet Roses...

So I was having one of those days when Kevin comes home and I am just staring off at a wall and then wander into my room and shut the door. He came in and told me he was taking the boys out to get ice-cream. I was thrilled to have a much needed time-out for myself. When they came home, Kedrick came bouncing in with these potted roses. He said they were for me because my other flowers were getting old! Kevin said it was all Kedrick's idea. He saw the flowers in the store and said, "let's get flowers for mommy," and then picked them out himself. I was so touched by my sweet little boy!

Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!

Well lions and bears anyway. No tigers on this adventure. We spent our family vacation this year in Sequoia National Park! We loved it and hope to go back someday. When we entered the campground we were greeted with bear notices everywhere and instructions on everything that had to be stowed away in bear lockers including our child seats. I was a bit stressed out the first day. Not to mention, the ranger told Kevin as he checked in, a mountain lion had been in the camp two weeks prior. She lowered her voice and continued to instruct him on what to do if attacked by a mountain lion and admonished us to keep our kids close. What a welcome!

Yes I took this picture! I know the bears can be dangerous but it's hard to believe. They look so gentle. We had 5 different bear sightings on our trip. The first night we went to sleep to the sounds of another group trying to scare off a bear with pots and pans, whistles and their car alarm. It made for a tense night. Word in the campground the next day was that a cub had gotten scared up a tree and the mother was circling the tree refusing to budge.

Notice the deer in the background right above Kedrick's head. Deer were plentiful. Morning and night they would scamper through our campground. I felt fine about this. I know of no deer attacks.

We enjoyed a quick jaunt on the Yosemite Sugar Pine Railroad. Kevin and I found the 5 mph speed lacking the thrill we had hoped for but the boys loved it.

The boys embracing the "hug a tree" program.

Well you can't really see most of Gen. Sherman. But you get the idea, it is a very big tree!

The boys LOVED playing in the river and throwing sand and rocks.

Kedrick's ready to fish!

After 3 days of no shower, I couldn't resist getting in this sparkling clear river. I could have stayed here all day. We had the whole river to ourselves, well and a few pesky bees that finally convinced me it was time to pack up.

Ahh shucks, it's nice when they get along. This was at Kevin's aunt's house in Clovis before we headed off to church.

And here they are not getting along. Brock had just poked Kedrick with a stick. I separated the boys to the sounds of Kedrick screaming, "hit him mom, hit him." He is all about justice.

A waterfall on our hike back up from seeing Crystal Cave.

We tripped upon this picturesque spot one day on the way home to our campground. The boys had a blast scrambling over rocks and throwing whatever they could get their hands on into the river. Kedrick fell in after ignoring some parental guidance. Kevin in an attempt to reinforce why we should listen to parents, asked Kedrick how he felt now that he was all wet. He smiled and said "good."

Brock showing off the first "owie" of the trip after trying to walk on a log immitating Kedrick (see below). Kedrick was thrilled as always to see the blood.

This fallen log separated our campground from the next. Kedrick has taken to practicing his balancing and was thrilled to find this log to show off his skills. One night while cleaning up camp, Kevin found himself on one side of this log whilst a black bear was on the other side not more than 20 yards away. A little too close for my liking! Too bad he wasn't carrying a camera at the time.

Another waterfall on a hike. This hike was full of poisin oak but miraculously we managed to avoid it!


We visited Crystal Cave where the temperature dropped to 50. A welcome temp after carrying both boys on the hike to get there. Brock was not exactly fond of the darkness demonstration during the cave tour. Kedrick loved using a flashlight to look all around at the cave formations.

Driving through 4 giant sequoias!

Kedrick in a hollowed fallen sequoia.


The boys had a great time helping daddy with the campfire. Smores, however, were a disaster. Kedrick was not into the sticky thing and thought we were ruining the chocolate. Brock was using all of his skills to try and scavange every last piece of chocolate bar when we were distracted. The next night Kedrick requested that his smore be made with a regular marshmellow and chocolate that was not melted.

A burned out portion of a sequoia. Amazingly, the tree thrives even with this cave at it's base.

On a whim, we stopped and hiked up Morro Rock. The views were stunning at the top but the drop-offs steep. We couldn't stay too long to enjoy the view for fear of losing a child off the side. They don't seem to have any fear of heights yet! At one point I looked down and noticed Kedrick's hand turning purple from my grip. I eased up. A lesson I'll probably need to keep learning.
This is a view of Morro Rock from the base of the trail. Great trail, with stairs and railing. A steep climb but really minimal effort for the pay-off at the top. I don't think I would have even been scared if we weren't toting up our youngins!


All in all, we came home very tired, very dirty and very happy to have spent the last 6 days playing together.