Kaden: Two Years Old. Coming Soon!

Guess what I've been doing this week... Preparing for this little guy's celebration! And having so much fun doing it.

CSA - Week 2

So... I've been eating my veggies. Which is to say, a lot. Almost every meal has vegetables in it. Besides salad, I feel like I'm eating the entire CSA box myself most days. I'm okay with this. 


Four big things happened this week:

1. I tried Fava Beans for the first time.

2. I tried Swiss Chard for the first time.

3. I tried Garlic Scapes for the first time.

4. I tried Dandelion Greens for the first time.

5. I found my first slug inside my lettuce. Even though I'm certain he was free-range, organic fed and not genetically modified, I did not eat him.

Here's what was in the box:





Beautiful, no? And look! Strawberries! All this cost me ~$20, which I think is a great price for all these organic veggies. Included was:


Fingerling potatoes
Carrots, Cucumbers, Lettuce
Baby onions
Chard
Fennel 
Dandelion Greens
Garlic Scapes
Cilantro
Fava Beans
Strawberries


Here's what I did with them all:


Fingerling Potatoes - I boiled them whole, unpeeled, in heavily salted water (1 lb. of kosher salt) until they were tender. The amount of salt seemed ridiculous to me, but once the potatoes were done, they were perfectly salted, with a tender skin that softly burst when I bit through it.

You can see the residue of evaporated salt on the pan rim.

I ate quite of few of them right from the pan, but then decided to roughly mash a few of them. I added some of the baby onion tops, a little butter and pepper. They were delicious, because of course they were.

Carrots, Lettuce, Cucumbers - We just ate them raw. These were my go to midday snacks, while they lasted! I think Anika ate most of the cucumbers herself.

Baby Onions - I tossed these with olive oil, salt, pepper, and balsamic vinegar and then roasted them at 400 degrees, for about 30 minutes. They could have stayed in for a bit longer, but were very good nonetheless. The balsamic vinegar thickened and caramelized on the onions. 

Chard - I was really excited to try this. It was so beautiful just to look at, bright magenta stalks that veined into the dark green leaves above. They sure looked delicious.

The recipe I made was this Chard, Onion and Gruyère Panade from Food.com.

I wish that I had liked this dish, especially because it took quite a bit of time to prepare and make. What I wanted it to taste like was french onion soup, all rich mouth feel with that bite of Swiss. But it just wasn't tasty. The husband agreed. Alas.

Dandelion Greens - I wilted them in a pan with some olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. The next time I make these, I'll be sure and completely remove the tough stalks. The greens turned out tender when flash cooked, but the stalks remained chewy and hard to eat.

Garlic Scapes - I made this Garlic Scape Pesto from Mike Kostyo's blog. I had almost everything on hand to make it, and it came together fast. Pesto has such a high taste payoff for little effort. I used pine nuts rather than pumpkin seeds.

Cheese tortellini with the pesto. I added some of the roasted baby onions too.

Cilantro - I made a pesto with this as well. A Cilantro Lime Pesto! We ate it with chicken in burritos. And by we, I mean me, because no one in my house likes cilantro, yet. So this is what happened to most of it:

This will be great later this year. I'm sure I'll be freezing many other sauces this summer!


Fava Beans - I was hesitant to try these. But I'll try anything once. They looked harmless enough...





I opened them up, and was surprised to find it filled with a fuzzy white fur. I thought maybe it was a bad pod, but they were all filled with the fuzz, the big beans cradled within it.

The luckiest of beans. It looks pretty cozy in there!

Fava beans, de-podded.

After taking the beans out of the pod, I then had to boil them for a few minutes, until the outer shell cracked off. Then I popped the inner bean out. It was a lot of work, for just a few beans. But they were really good. I ate them just as is, with a little salt, kind of like edamame.

Fennel - I sliced the bulb thinly and sauteed them with garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper. I am quickly realizing pretty much any vegetable tastes good with garlic, olive oil (or butter), salt and pepper. This is becoming my go to way to cook stuff.





As for the strawberries, we ate them, tops and all, one by one, while lounging on the couch that first night.

Here are a few photos from last week's box. This is the Quinoa and Kale Quiche I made last week. 

These are the Colorado Red Potatoes. I roasted them and they were flippin' awesome. Cooking them cut side down, mixed with the olive oil, salt, and pepper, made a golden brown crunchy crust. 

I chopped them up and made a scramble the next day. 

I'm really enjoying the CSA boxes. Let's see how long I can keep this up. :)

Rainbow Crayons!

I've been wanting to make some rainbow crayons for a while now. I'd been tossing all our crayon odds and ends into a battered diaper wipe box, saving them for something stupendously amazingly wonderful. Recently, I saw a fun crayon craft on The Pinterest, and it reminded me: Hey, time to make some rainbow crayons! It was really easy, and the payoff was huge - the perfect craft activity for young kids.

I gathered the troops, the tidbit box, and put them to work peeling the paper off the crayons. They liked very much the process of peeling and color sorting.

Colors all sorted and ready to be melted!

What you'll need:
Crayon remnants, depapered and color quarantined.
Clean aluminum can(s). A few instructions I read said to have one can for every color you were melting. I used two. One for red and orange. And then a clean one for yellow, to which I added, green, blue, and purple. This worked well. None of the colors muddled together.
A wooden skewer for stirring.
Some kind of vessel to pour your melted wax into. At Goodwill, I found some plastic ice cube trays with long, skinny spots. I used these trays, but you could also use a mini muffin pan, or even a small load pan of some kind, and just cut the wax into slices once it hardens. One of my friend's passed along a silicone ice cube tray that will work great for next time too.

Boil water in a pan, and then lower to a simmer. You only need a few inches of water, otherwise your can will careen into the water. Drop the wax into the can, and place the can in the boiling water. In just a few minutes, the wax will melt into a smooth, saturated liquid. Stir it up well with your wooden skewer.

I tried to get a clear photo of this, but the air was so blazing hot over the pan, I didn't linger.

Next, carefully pour your wax into your container.

The wax takes just a few minutes to dry between colors. But look what pops out? RAINBOWS!

Anika was delighted to see the efforts of all her work. She started coloring right away.

I did make Anika a chore chart this week too. I'd been trying to figure out how to handle chores. In a way, I am against giving an allowance, because there are certain activities that just simply need to be done to run a household. But I understand very well how motivating a potential reward can be. We decided on a chore chart in which Anika works toward more of an experience, rather than money - like going to the library, seeing a movie, or picking a day for a picnic. So far, this plan is working. See willing couch vacuumers below.

A few photos from our quiet week:

Anika drawing

Apple tree

Man climbing rope

Teddy bear/Lady bug

Play structure 

Anika playing teacher. She pulled everyone over to "group", as she does in preschool. Notwithstanding the beer, this is a fair to accurate representation.

Kaden riding in style. He just came over to back of the Big Wheels and hopped in! Anika lovingly obliged with ten circles around the driveway.

I am excited about what's coming: summer camp, swim lessons, nature playschool, my regular walks with Kaden - all starting Monday! We've been laying low this week, enjoying the lull before all these summer activities begin. Making CSA meals, taking walks, lingering around the house in pajamas, much too much internet and TV, hours withering away... I always get into a funk without some kind of schedule. So, welcome summer! I've been waiting for you.

Songs I'm Loving Right Now

Just sharing a few of the songs that I'm enjoying. Not all of these are recent, but they are new to me!

1. Bavarian #1 (Say You Will) - Miike Snow
Miike Snow is so unique to me. A little electronic, a little pop, a little marching band... All awesome.

Werewolf - Fiona Apple
Piano? Check. Female? Check. Emo confessional? Check. Of course, I'm down with this.

How Do You Like Me Now? - The Heavy
It's isn't possible to listen to this song, and not immediately become overwhelmed by your own rhythm and swagger. Funk guitar riffs, horns section, unabashedly bad ass lyrics... you see where I'm going.

Lost - KT Tunstall
Just a sweet song. I love her voice. The whole Tiger Suit album is lovely.

Three More Days - Ray LaMontague
To quote the most overused words in Shades of Grey: Oh, oh my. His raspy, soulful voice just gets me. Love this lush, inviting song. Bring it on home!

Trespassers William - My Hands Up
Soft, strumming guitar. Open, lulling voice. Slight ambient tones underneath. Sedative for my ears.

Call Me Maybe, almost made the list.
Almost.

Community Supported Agriculture - Week 1

Ryan and I had discussed for many years the idea of getting a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) box for the summer. In the last few years, we've grown fond of Gathering Together Farm, an organic farm just outside Philomath, on the road to the coast. We discovered it after a few of our friends invited us to one of the farm's wine dinners. At these dinners, local wines are paired with a multi-course, rustic-gourmet meal. If you're lucky, you are seated outside on the open air porch, surrounded by mismatched, rough hewn tables and chairs (and heaters if it's chilly!). Every bit of the evening was delectable and enchanting. I've been back to the restaurant a few times since, and its magic hasn't waned.

We decided this year we'd get a CSA box from Gathering Together. Each week from mid-June to Early November, we receive a box filled with fresh vegetables (and a few fruits). I am going to chronicle the contents we receive each week and what I do with them. So, let's get to it!

Our boxes are scheduled for a Tuesday pick up. However, I thought our day was Thursday. Thusly, I didn't actually get our box until Thursday, when I had to go to the farm to get it. Lucky for us, the stand sells delicious fresh cinnamon donuts, and I needed to buy some onions regardless. A trip out to the farm is never for naught. While the kids munched on their goodies, I transferred the produce from the farm's tote to my canvas bags, and we headed for home with big culinary ideas simmering.

Box #1:

Colorado Rose Potatoes

Carrots

Baby Walla Onions

Red Mustard Greens

Red Kale

Fresh Garlic

Lettuce (two huge heads)

Cucumbers

Thyme

Along with the produce, a newsletter is included to offer ideas as to how to eat your bounty, which is a fantastic and helpful addendum. Here's what I did with my goodies:

Potatoes - These are still in my fridge, waiting...

Carrots - Gone.  Honestly, they tasted so good raw, that that's just how we ate most of them. They were crunchy and sweet. 

Baby Walla Onions - Gone. Half were used in the Sauteéd Mustard Greens. The other half were caramelized along with the onions in the  Quinoa and Kale Crustless Quiche.

Red Mustard Greens - Gone. See Sauteéd Mustard Greens.

Red Kale - Gone. Added to Quinoa and Kale Crustless Quiche.

Fresh Garlic - Gone. Sauteéd and added to Quinoa and Kale Crustless Quiche.

Lettuce - Gone. A few leaves were hamburger fixings, but the rest were munched on as salad. I ate mine with the Carrot-Ginger Dressing. We ate a lot of salad this week. Which was fine. I had the last of it yesterday as a surprisingly spot-hitting late night snack.

Cucumbers - Gone immediately. Devoured by my daughter. Raw and salted.

Thyme - Dried and stored for future seasoning opportunities.

RECIPES:

Carrot-Ginger Dressing (from GOOP newsletter)

1 large carrot, peeled and roughly chopped

1 large shallot, peeled and roughly chopped (I used a small one)

2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh ginger (I peeled it too)

1 tablespoon sweet white miso

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon roasted sesame seed oil

1/4 cup grapeseed oil

2 tablespoons water

Pulse the carrot, shallot and ginger in a blender until finely chopped. Scrape down the sides, add the miso, vinegar and sesame seed oil and whiz together. While the blender is going, slowly drizzle in the grapeseed oil and the water.

Sautéed Mustard Greens

1/2 c. thinly sliced onions (1/2 bunch baby wallas)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 bunch mustard greens

2-3 Tbsp. chicken or vegetable broth 

salt/pepper to taste

Dash of sesame oil

In a large sauté pan, cook the onions in olive oil over medium heat until they start to caramelize, or about 5-10 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook a minute more. Add the mustard greens and broth and cook until the greens are just barely wilted. Toss with sesame and season to taste with salt and pepper. You can top this with toasted sesame seed, or try adding tamari.

I even got my four-year-old to eat some of this - and she liked it!

Quinoa and Kale Crustless Quiche from Food52
1/2 cup Quinoa
1 cup water
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
1 bunch Kale, stems removed and cut into ribbons
1 Vidalia Onion, thinly sliced (I used 3 large sweet yellows, because I flippin' love caramelized onions)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup white cheddar cheese (I used regular Tillamook cheddar)
3 ounces cream cheese, cubed (I used goat cheese)
4 eggs
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 and prepare a 9" pie dish (either butter the dish thoroughly or spray with baking spray). Rinse the quinoa. Combine the quinoa and water in a pan. Bring to a boil on medium-high heat and then reduce to a simmer. This will take about twenty minutes. Set aside.


Meanwhile, start to caramelize the onions. Heat the olive oil in a large saute on medium heat. When the oil is shimmering, add the onions. Slowly cook until the onions are soft and browned.
Remove the onions from the pan, and place them in a large mixing bowl. Add the kale into the hot onion pan. On medium heat, cook until the kale is wilted and bright green, about two minutes.
Allow the greens to cool. Squeeze out any extra liquid using a sieve or a clean dish towel.



Add the kale, quinoa, garlic, cream cheese and cheddar to the mixing bowl. Stir the ingredients so that they are evenly distributed.


In a small bowl, whisk the eggs so that they are well combined. Pour over the quinoa/kale mixture. Stir until the egg clings to the greens. Add salt and pepper.

Pour the mixture in the prepared pie dish. Bake for about 45 minutes, until the top is golden and the pie has started to pull away from the edge of the baking dish. This dish is delightful hot, but even better at room temperature.

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Overall, I was very pleased with the quality of the produce in the box, and the amount we received. It was just enough. Anymore and I couldn't keep up with meal assembly line. As it stands, we are eating fresh, local vegetables at almost every meal. Having the limitations of vegetable selection, and knowing we need to eat everything up makes it very easy to know what to eat for dinner. And having the recipe inspiration is so helpful. I'll try and add some photos next week of what I make. We pick up our second box today and I'm looking forward to finding out what were are eating tonight! 

Anika - FOUR

Anika,

You are officially four now. Last week marked your birthday and you were oh so very excited about it. You’ve been asking “Is it my birthday today?” for the last few weeks, after I told you your birthday was coming up. We had your party at Avery Park. You picked a fairy theme, and all the girls were dressed in ribbon tutus, green glitter wings, with glitter ribbon wands. I made some red felt gnome hats for the boys too. Needless to say, you were a little confused when I woke you up on your birthday morning (after your party) and told you it was your birthday. You exclaimed “I’m FIVE now!!” Whoa there… slow down munchkin!

You also had your birthday ceremony at school, in which your classmates and teachers acknowledged and celebrated each of your four years of life. The lights were shut off, all the students made a circle around you, and in the center was a large candle to symbolize the sun. Carrying the globe, you walked inside the circle as everyone counted the months of the year four times. After each year, another smaller candle was lit and placed around the sun candle at four points.

Your story was read outloud:

“This is the sun. The earth goes around the sun. It takes one whole year for the earth to go all the way around the sun. Four years ago today, Anika was born.

During the first year, she learned to laugh, sit, eat and walk, all by herself! - And then she was one.

During the second year she painted, colored, danced, ran around everywhere - and then she was two.

During the third year she met her brother, Kaden, did her first somersault, moved into a new house - and then she was three.

During the fourth year, she started school, rode a bicycle, wrote her name, met new friends - and then she was four.

Today, Anika is four years old.”

“Happy Birthday” was sung and everyone came up to you in turn to give a hug and well wish, including me, at which point I started to cry a little.

It was so sweet and meaningful, which is exactly as it should be.

The past year has brought so many changes. I’ll try to capture as many as I can in this entry. You have grown up so much.

First, you are sharing so well now. At three, it seemed all I heard from you was “mine.” My toys, my food, my time, my space. Sharing, borrowing, and trading, ideas so nebulous in the past, are now more clear to you. Not that you always share, or are always happy about it, but you understand when its necessary and why its necessary. You play well with your friends and family, and have lost much of your bossy edge. I’d say you are now moving into manipulating more to get what you want, rather than demanding it. I’m not sure if this is good or bad, but it shows some kind of growth I’m sure.

The speech classes you’ve been taking all year have been helpful. Your articulation, and more importantly your willingness to do so, continues to improve. You can say /s/, /f/, and /v/ quite succinctly, but have to be reminded to use them. If left to your own devices, you’d replace them with /w/ every time. Even now, when I’ll say “ssssssssister” after you misspeak, you’ll respond with “ssssssssssssswister”. In your mind, /w/ is the replacement sound. It just is. It’s taking us a long time to break these ingrained habits. Just as in everything, you are going to do it your way first, even if it’s the wrong way.

You are still very stubborn. I’ve had to learn to be firm with you, and consistent. I try to be mostly impassive about it, explaining that consequences just are what they are. If you yell at me, there isn’t going to be any TV after dinner. And that’s that. I try and use natural consequences whenever possible as well. If you can’t pick up your toys when asked, then you must not want them! I actually haven’t thrown anything out, but have threatened it a few times. In actuality, you are pretty good about behaving, but you sure do holler and make your displeasure about doing so universally known (just ask our neighbors!).

I’ve been trying to pinpoint your favorite toys. When you do play, you enjoy your Thomas trains, PlayMobil people/animals, Legos/blocks, dolls and your stuffed bunny, Pillow. You love crafts of all kinds, and are quite proficient with a pen. But honestly, your favorite and most frequently played with toy is your imagination. All of your physical toys are just props for the scene. In your worlds, the tree boughs are your lair. A rolled up blanket is a train. A chair is a castle wall or a cage. A stick is a sword, a magic wand, a laser gun, a gate, a line in a letter, a conductor’s wand, a unicorn horn. You are a dinosaur, a princess, a mommy, a baby, a lion or its tamer. What a wonderful, exciting place to be, firmly grounded in the imaginary. I do miss it.

Frolicking Fairies

If you could, you would live outside. Or at least play outside the entire day. I am not exaggerating. Your teachers corroborate this fact as well. You are such an active girl. You run everywhere. You jump everywhere. You ride everywhere. Even after a morning of playing outside at school, you come home, eat lunch, and want to go outside again. We built a play structure last month and you couldn’t have been more excited.

Determined to succeed at the monkey bars on one of our many visits to Wildcat Park

Besides sliding, swinging, climbing, and spying for pirates atop your crow’s nest, you also like playing/attempting basketball, soccer, baseball, hopscotch, and jump rope. Your bicycle is by far your most treasured outside accessory. I sometimes wish we lived in a neighborhood with flat, paved streets, so you could ride safely right now. I’m sure we’ll let you free range later, but with a sloping gravel road, and busy thoroughfare at its end, we’ll keep you and your bicycle close for now. We take frequent trips to Bald Hill, and you ride very well with confidence. Maybe we’ll try and take off your training wheels this summer. You start Lil’ Kickers next week too, and swimming classes start at the end of the month. Looks like you’ll be going to the summer program at Montessori too. This summer is going to be busy!

We had your school conference a few weeks ago,  in which we learned your routines and activities at school that you enjoy. Your teacher said you were “socially focused” and I couldn’t agree more. You want to be with people. You want company. You have two best friends at school. Every day you wait to sit with one of them at the tables or beside them in circle and you really don’t want to sit with anyone else. Earlier in the year, when you’d come home from school upset for some reason, I’d find out it was because someone didn’t want to sit with you, or someone took your spot. You love your friends, and are very interested in their actions, dislikes, and likes.

You are an excellent helper, and are willing to try almost anything.

I am very proud of your writing capabilities. You can write nearly all the letters of the alphabet, upper and lower. Not in cursive, as Maria Montessori would have liked, but we’ll work on that. You can write your first and last names by heart, as well as Mommy, Daddy, Kaden, To, From and are well on your way to many others. You seem insatiable in terms of letters. You want to know how letters sound and also you want me to read everything to you. You are attempting to sound out words, but with limited success. I think it’s just great that you want to try. You are well on your way to learning to read. You'll sit through quite lengthy books too, very much enthralled with the story. You are also enjoying drawing, especially drawing people. Without my prompting, you draw very detailed faces and bodies with eyes, eyebrows, ears, cheeks, noses, mouths, hair, arms, legs, fingers, and clothes. You can also draw flowers with outlined petals and leaves, which you color in. Your teacher said this was advanced for your age.

According to your teachers, your other favorite activities at school are playing outside, painting, knot tying, sewing cards, eating snack, geometrical shapes, the brown stairs, pink tower, and the sandpaper letters. And playing outside. I am extremely happy with our decision to put you in a Montessori preschool. It is a great fit for you, my self-motivated, independent, and brave girl. I think about the first day you attended, and how they had prepared us for a few tears, told us to just drop you off and go because it would be an easier transition. That sure never happened with you. That first day, you didn't even say goodbye, nor turned around - just headed inside and got to work. We’ll be continuing for the fourth year, and maybe the fifth as well.

In terms of being a sister, you are supportive and tolerant (if begrugingly so) of Kaden, and have been a great mentor to him. It was one of our best decisions to have two children. Especially because you are so fond of the company of others. Kaden is a wonderful companion, and has helped teach you patience, cooperation, and empathy. I can't wait to see what's in store for you two.

Always willing to lend a helping hand

           

Things to work on:

Your competitive nature. You pitch historical fits when you don’t win. Everything is a race to you. Getting dressed, going down the stairs, eating breakfast, getting your shoes on, getting in the car… Being competitive is a healthy trait, but sportsmanship is just as important. And you also can't be the winner, if no one else is playing. We are trying to teach you that you cannot always win, you cannot always be first. You will lose. Sometimes, someone will get to the bottom of the stairs faster than you. Such is life.

Little blips you've said or done that I want to remember, sequentially from Years 3-4:

Ryan: “Whew! I’m pooped!”

Anika: “You pooped in your pants daddy? Oh dear….”

"Scuze me! I burped mommy. It came from my butt.”

"Sorry I can’t [....]! I busy right now!"

Something isn’t ever just special, it’s "Special Special"

Anika, outside playing Red Light/Green Light: "Red light!" (stops) "Green light!" (Runs fast) "Yellllllllllllloooooooooooow liiiiiiiiiiigggggght goooooooooooo sloooooooooowwwwwwwwwly..." as you walk in slow motion, and said this in a slow motion, low voice.

At the end of a long day: “I think my legs want to watch TV.”

Or one night, while sitting at the barstools, she puts her legs up on the other stool next to her. “My legs want to the lay down. They are really really tired.”

"It’s 30 o’clock!"

Calling a sleepover a nightover.

Calling Ritz crackers baby crackers

"Who" is "Whobody"

In response to many questions: “Um, no way!”

Calling a waterfall a water mountain.

“Mommy when somebody is doing something I don’t want to do I say 'not agaaaaaaain!'"

The names you make for your toys and things we see. (Your favorite bunny, Pillow, your pull-along puppy toy, Harlow, and the frog who lives near our front porch, Tickedy Tock...).

"That’s not Pah heh bull [possible]!"

"Uh oh, paghetti o!"

While bringing me a pan from your play kitchen: "Mommy I made you a Peter Pancake!"

"Howy mowy!"

"I have boobies now! I have milk in my tummy now so I can feed my baby!"

You constantly make up stories. All day long. And they typically begin with "When I was a baby, and...". Your life story is already quite exciting, if these stories are true.

You are always correcting me with reason.

Me: “Before we head to school, I’ve got to run to the bathroom.” [exits]

Anika, from the other room: “Mommy! That is NOT running! That is walking!”

And then you proceeds to explain to me the difference.

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Anika, you are growing up so fast. I used to be a fervent, desperate supporter of this. I would constantly think to myself "I can't wait until Anika ____ or Anika _____." And I do still look toward the future with some longing. But for every day I anxiously await, there is another for which I'm wistful. I do wish time would linger over you for a while longer now. You are so big, I can barely sit you comfortably on my lap when we read before bed. Your legs hang out from under the blanket, your hair is in my face, I can't see the book, and neither of us is truly comfortable... but we hang on to this small, but essential piece of our day's routine. The day I can't rock you my arms will be a sad one for me. I'll do it until you tell me not to. We might need to get a bigger chair.

Each day you catapult yourself into life, on instinct, until the moment you close your eyes and finally sleep at night. This, of course, is the great beauty of childhood.

I love you.