The Name Game

We are still in search of the perfect name for our youngest son (although don't bother with suggestions, Daddy has decided he will come up with the name after vetoing every single suggestion I have given him...I told him to go for it...) 

The kids enjoy name hunting with us.  Today at breakfast they started in again...

Kids: "Zaccheus!"

Me: "...was a wee little man and a wee little man was he. No thank you."

Kids: "John the Baptist!"

Me: "That's a bit long don't you think?"

Kids: "Samuel!"

Me: "Don't we already have one of those?"

Kids: "No. 1st and 2nd Samuel...just like in the Bible!"

Samuel was the biggest supporter of this plan.

Late Easter Post

This evening I attended a cake baking class hosted by a friend and taught by a friend (Rebecca from Blessed Bakes...you must check out the photos on her FB page!) who happens to be an EXCELLENT cake baker (pastry chef??? cake artist??? I'm not sure what you'd call her--she's just GOOD!).

ANYWAY...

Basically, at the class/dinner party, we had the opportunity of learning the ins and outs of cake baking and how to avoid the common pitfalls that people like myself never make. Because we all know I am awesome and would never make anything less than spectacular. (Those of you who have tasted my made-from-a-box cakes and from-a-tube frosting can stop laughing now). During her demonstration, I was reminded of Easter.

What does cake baking have to do with Easter?  Well...let me tell you what has happened for the last three Easters in a row...

It started with Resurrection cookies. The first year I focused mostly on the Scripture references; making sure I had all of the Bible verses printed out and ready to go as the kids helped me pour in the ingredients. I made sure all the ingredients were laid out on the counter and pre-measured to ensure a "happy" experience with all the kiddos grabby little hands. As we went through the story, we dumped in the ingredients...without actually looking at anything other than the preheat temperature in the actual recipe. We placed the nuts right in and then I remembered reading something about folding. Suffice it to say, that year's cookies did not come out like empty tombs. They were tasty, but they were flat and relatively hard. 

The next year I tried the Resurrection cookies again. I read through the recipe several times in preparation for baking these with my children sitting happily around the kitchen island. I knew what I'd done wrong last year and was not about to repeat that mistake. I followed the instructions very carefully, but I had no idea what a "stiff peak" was supposed to look like. I beat the mixture for 15 minutes, just as the recipe called for, but I either over-did it or under-did it because, again, when I opened the oven door the next morning, the cookies were flat. (Thankfully Rebecca kindly demonstrated the proper consistency of meringue and I think I can avoid my faux pas again...maybe)

So, this year, I opted for Resurrection Rolls instead. Five super easy ingredients. There was no way I was messing this one up!  I skimmed through the recipe and was certain I knew exactly what to do. What could be simpler? Samuel helped me place "Jesus" in each of the tombs and I sealed up the tombs making sure all crevices were sealed tightly per the instructions.  Then we placed them in the oven and waited.

"Jesus" had melted all over the bottom of the pan and all of my tombs were flat!  AGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What on earth did I do wrong THIS time???

I read through the instructions carefully. OH. That's it. So the butter, cinnamon/sugar mixture was only supposed to cover the marshmallow.  That explains what it was so hard for me to seal the tombs.

Sigh. 

So when Rebecca reminded each of us to carefully read the instructions all the way through before beginning, I knew EXACTLY what she was talking about. Three years in a row I've ruined Easter breakfast.

Or at least I did in my mind. I wanted it to be perfect. But you know what?  My children certainly didn't care.  For them it was all a treat...because they did taste good. All three years they were tasty...just ugly. To my children, it was an opportunity to show them that Mommy makes mistakes--things don't always work according to plan, but we can make the most of it. The real blessing of those Easter mistakes was the opportunity to share special time with my children discussing the true meaning of the Resurrection...which was the whole point to begin with.

And they can't wait to try again next year!

Too Good To Be True

Connor: "Mom, how come when I'm humming I stop breathing?"

Mommy: "Because you are using your breath to  push out your song."

Connor: "And how come when I talk I stop breathing?"

Mommy: "Same reason."

Connor: "Except with my voice?"

Mommy: "mmmhmmm"

Connor: "So it would probably be pretty wise of me to not make any noise at all."

Mommy (trying not to sound too excited): "Yes!"

We're Having a Boy!

Two weeks ago, I went in for my 18 week ultrasound and the baby was very stubborn. No matter what we tried, the baby crouched in a corner of my uterus and refused to show anything other than a hand, a head, and a really good view of the spine.  Because the sonographer could not get good measurements, we rescheduled the appointment for today.  The girls were able to come along this time around because from what I saw last time the baby looked healthy and I knew they would like to be the first to know...they've been very interested on the goings on in there from the moment they demanded whether there was a baby in my belly or not.

Well, today was thankfully a different story.  Right away the sonographer got a great view of the heart. From there she was able to get all the measurements and a clear shot of my baby boy being a "boy". No mistaking it for anyone.  He is also a thumb sucker like Honor. Can't wait to see how that plays out.

I would like to name him William Lester: William after my grandfather, Lester after Paul's grandfather (actually my grandfather's full name was William Lester, but I wanted Lester after Paul's grandfather before I knew my grandfather's middle name...) They called my grandpa "Bill" and they called Paul's grandfather "Les".  William means "strong-willed warrior" or "strong-willed protector", Lester means "from Leicester"--admitedly Lester does not have a great meaning, but we are naming him after a great person instead, like we did with his brother Samuel's middle name...

Daddy is not sold on the name yet, but we'll keep saying and see if it eventually sticks...

Everything looks very healthy and his measurements show that he is exactly where he should be for an August 27th delivery.  He is only in the 47th percentile, which is pretty much exactly average, but surprising compared to Honor and Samuel who always ran large (they were worried Samuel would be macrosomic and he probably would have been if he hadn't been delivered a week early. He is still 100th percentile in height and weight).  The doctor said not to worry, often babies start off average and then have a growth spurt in the third trimester. 

Yay. Something to look forward to...

Special Things

Someday I might forget what my kiddos called their special "lovies" and I don't want that to happen...so I'm blogging about it.

Honor has her "Blankie".  I may have mentioned Blankie before. Blankie is a soft, pink blankie that Aunt Amy gave her for her baby shower. Blankie is not an "it," but a "she."  Honor will look for her all night long if that's what it takes. She used to keep Blankie only in bed with her, but lately Blankie has been making appearances at school, during movie watching, and, just tonight, at dinner.  However, when Mommy catches Blankie out wandering about, Blankie becomes banished either to Mommy's locked room or Honor's bed. I am not a fan of hunting down Blankie at bedtime...

Connor has "Froggie," "Bunny," and "Fred."  It is fairly easy to guess what the first two are.  Fred is a worn-out, blue teddy bear that Grandma from Iowa gave him for his fourth birthday. Lately Connor has kicked Fred out of his bed and onto a bed he made on his floor, where he tucks him in at night, reads him a story, and prays with him. Froggie and Bunny typically stay in bed with Connor--bunny rarely leaves the bed, but Froggie regularly makes appearances around the house. Froggie is big enough to wear Connor's clothes so periodically Connor will dress him--or he might just stuff him down his own clothes as some strange, green growth appearing out of his shirt and shorts.

Ariana has her own blankie that she also sleeps with. Thankfully her blankie is an "it" and it pretty much stays on her bed. Nothing really sticks out as being her favorite stuffed animal or doll, however, she does like to pretend she's a cat at the drop of a hat.  The hissing phase got old really quickly.

Samuel has "Bear Bear" and "Beary."  Bear Bear is a little koala bear that is actually not the original "Bear Bear," but an identical Bear Bear replacement.  It used to belong to cousin Luke, but when Aunt Steph heard that Samuel lost his favorite toy in Iowa, she quickly volunteered the beenie baby that Luke never used. Luke only seems to miss it when he is at our house...  But he is a gracious older cousin and only reminds us every other month or so that Bear Bear used to be his.  Samuel's other stuffed friend is Beary. Beary is a small bear that rattles and is dressed like a boy, however, both Bear Bear and Beary are girls. I don't know why.  Samuel also has a "blankie" that is a "she" as well. Blankie used to be very valuable to him, but she has since lost her importance and is now only used to tuck in Bear Bear and Beary, though she will still be referenced upon occasion.

I wonder what the new baby will become attached to...