Rich's Birthday

Rich's birthday this year fell during the last week of his surgery rotation, so, we celebrated it on the weekend instead.  Every year, Rich requests our special chocolate strawberry ganache cake.

This year was no exception.  The cake turned out great, that is until I tipped it over and the top layer landed on the table.  Sigh.  At least it landed right side up and it still tasted good.  :\   Happy Birthday, Rich!
 

Fondue Night

Connor's Tongue

Yesterday, Aiden was upstairs with Rich and Connor, carrying Connor around.  Unfortunately, Aiden dropped the little guy on his face and Connor got a fat lip.  So, today, Connor was next to me at the kitchen table, climbing, and he fell on his face again and started bleeding again.  I assumed he had re-opened the cut on his lip, and held and comforted him for a minute after wiping his face off.  At lunch time, he started bleeding again and crying while he was eating.  It was then that I noticed his tongue.  He had a big gaping hole right in the middle.  He'd actually bitten his tongue when he fell earlier, and caused some pretty good damage.  The doctor said the mouth heals fast, so they don't do stitches.  The treatment plan is ibuprofen and pop-sicles.  Poor little guy!

Shopping

While I was in Idaho (see previous weekend in Idaho post), Rich managed to find some time to do some damage to our pocketbook.  He went shopping for suits for his Mayo rotation in July, interviews, and residency.  He walked out of the store with 3 new suits, a sports coat, 3 pairs of pants, 6 shirts and ties, a pair of dress shoes, and a belt.  I have to say, he did pretty good for himself.

Even better is that he's all about fair, so he made me go shopping one night when my parents were having the two oldest over for a sleep over.  We went to the Gateway, and I really had a hard time finding much.  I bought some t-shirts (from Banana Republic--best t-shirts EVER) and some capris.  Sadly, I have reached the conclusion that I have no style.

But, while I was making a quick purchase at another store, Rich arranged for me to have stylist show me some stuff at the Buckle.  Seriously, it was so fun!  I only left with a couple shirts and a pair of shoes (although I REALLY want the jeans; it's just that $100 for a pair of jeans is SO hard to justify), but I NEED a personal shopper. 

Zoo

We bought an annual zoo pass for the next year.  It's sometimes hard for me to justify such an expense because will I really use it enough to pay for itself?  I'm certain that if I didn't buy a pass, I'd probably only go once.  But, since so many of my friends and neighbors up here have them, I'd like to have the option of going when we're invited.

The other benefits include exercise for Aiden (he really doesn't get enough), and not feeling like you have to spend the entire day there to get your money's worth. 

For our first trip, we went the afternoon of the last day of school.  We saw the baby elephant, the gorilla, tigers, and all of the animatronic dinosaurs they have on display.  Connor absolutely LOVED the merry-go-round.  He had a grin on his face from ear to ear.  So cute! 

Bessy the Messy Penguin and the Last Day of School

Aiden and his class at school wrote and performed an opera called Bessie the Messy Penguin.  Aiden's teacher actually sat down with the kids and created the opera with them.  Grandma and Grandpa Baker were able to come with us to watch his play.  For a group of kindergarteners, it was really impressive.  Aiden had his own little solo.   Here it is (he sings "why don't we cheer up and do something to help her not be so messy"):

Aiden's last day of school was June 8th.  Wow!  I went to school with him and watched his end of year video that his teacher put together.  It included all of the highlights from the year. I felt so nostalgic and teary-eyed.  It felt like crossing off another year that I get to have this very special little boy at home.

The Peanut Butter Cup

Two weekends ago, the kids and I headed to Idaho for my nephew's baby blessing.  Rich was on his surgery rotation and couldn't make it.  In hindsight, I think perhaps I shouldn't have made the trek by myself, but I wanted to see everyone and be supportive.  We went up on Saturday, and were there with mostly with the in-laws from the other side of the family, so I didn't really know anyone and felt a little uncomfortable.

The kids had fun, but the worst part of it was that at 1:30am, my little one year old decided to cry, I mean, SCREAM, until 3:30am; nothing like a screaming baby to keep a house full of strangers up all night.  Sigh.  I think he was just uncomfortable in a strange place.

I didn't dare open the bedroom door to try getting him a bottle because he'd cry louder when I sat him down, and I couldn't take a screamer with me to the kitchen, so I tried feeding him a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup (he loves them and I had one in the stash of snacks for the car trip).  That stopped him for a little while, but it didn't take long for the screaming to start up again.  In the end, he calmed down long enough for me to get him a bottle and then he fell back into slumber with me cuddling him on the bed.

Things definitely got better Sunday morning when the rest of the Hymas clan arrived.  I love my in-laws!

What's For Dinner?

Last night's dinner was a huge hit with every member of the family, so I thought I'd share the love with all of you!  Most of it came from recipes from Our Best Bites, my FAVORITE food blog and cookbook.

For the beverage, we had Brazilian Lemonade. 

 

For the main course, we had Teriyaki Bacon Wrapped Chicken skewers, with homemade Teriyaki Sauce.




 

We had my own Pina Colada rice (inspired by a couple of different recipes from OBB--sorry no pictures)

2 cups white rice
1 14 oz can of coconut milk
1/2 c. crushed pineapple with juice
1 c. water
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
(OBB recommends adding a splash of white vinegar to help with the stickiness)

Then I just threw it all in the rice cooker and let it cook for about 20 minutes, and stand for 5-10 more to absorb any remaining liquid.   Variations I want to try: adding a dash of cayenne pepper or some soy sauce or teriyaki sauce to give it a little more kick.  I think I may also just use a whole can of crushed pineapple and omit the water (?)

And we had just a boring can of green beans for our vegetable, but I'm sure Grandma's Green Beans would be a hit (from Lorinda Hymas' kitchen)!

6 slices bacon chopped

2 onions sliced

1 lb fresh green beans

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tbsp sugar 

Sauté bacon and onions in large saucepan until bacon is crisp (I always leave out the onions).  Add beans, season, cover with water, and simmer covered until beans are tender.

Bon Appetite!