Look who came to our house yesterday...

Mrs. Sally Nesbit!

We always thoroughly enjoy her visits!

All in a Day's Work

What do you get when you put 3 mothers, 1 grandmother, 7 children, bushels of tomatoes, lots of garlic, basil and oregano, 40 glass jars with rings and lids and several diet cokes together for 6 hours? Well, besides a ginormous mess, you also get this:

I have been canning for about 11 years. My mother-in-law taught me when I was first married. This is probably something I should've or could've learned from my own mother, but I can imagine it is a lot like when my husband tried to teach me to golf. I just didn't want him bossin' me around and I guess I didn't want my mother doing it either. But since I have learned my mother and I have canned several things together. My sisters-in-law wanted to learn how to make this spaghetti sauce that I have canned for many years, so we got together yesterday and boiled, peeled, measured, poured and canned our little hearts out. Canning is not hard at all, but it is very time-consuming especially when you have little ankle-biters constantly wanting to be feed or wiped on various parts of their bodies. That is what is so great about canning with other ladies. Even when one of you gets distracted by offspring, there is someone else who can be moving the product forward. Ideally the best scenario is to invite a grandma or your own mother who doesn't bring any more little people to the premises, but one isn't always so lucky. We were fortunate to have my mother-in-law with us yesterday- even with her gimpy knee! She had knee surgery about 2 weeks ago, but she was a trooper and played "Mother, may I" with the kids and even would chop oregano or peel tomatoes. She is a canner at heart. And I think I am too. There is something so satisfying about being able to look at those filled jars on your counter and think, "Wow, I really accomplished something today." Plus you get to enjoy yummy food for a long time. I know I am weird; sometimes I think I should have been born a century ago. But I still have a plethera of tomatoes in my garden so i think I will be doing several more batches of spaghetti sauce and salsa. So if anyone wants to join me- you are welcome to. Just be forewarned if you do it:

A day of canning="left to their own devices" orphans=

The Many Fashion moods of Katie

Several posts this summer have been devoted to Katie and since today is her 4th birthday, I thought this post- which has been a long time coming- would be appropriate to celebrate the spirit of our little Katie-bug. She has a very unique spirit that is reflected in her clothing choices. I don't micromanage her attire because it is honestly not worth the fight. So without further adieu I present to you the "personality dressing" of Katie:

Katie is the one on the right hand side of the photo, directing traffic. I included this picture because if you saw Katie at all this summer, she was probably wearing this skirt, even with her patriotic tie-dyed shirt on the 4th of July. No holiday is safe from her fashion sense.

Seriously, does it get any better than finishing off a brownie trifle in your princess dress.

Katie doesn't really buy into the theory of less is more. More is more when it comes to having flowers in your ensemble.What goes better with a dirty white shirt than shorts that are just a shade whiter although probably not less dirty.Pink is a neutral- right?!?Ahh- a classic combination in Katie's wardrobe- pink and purple. The week just isn't complete without some combination of these two colors.

We call this outfit "Desert Sunset Meets A Tiptoe through the Tulips in Hot Pink Clogs."

Also in honor of Katie's 4th birthday I am including some new vocabulary Katie has begun to use.

*"Duh"- as in "Duh, mom! I'm a big girl now. I don't need a sippy cup. Duh."

and

"Actually"- like "Actually mom I don't want macaroni and cheese (after mom has already fixed it, mind you) I want chicken nuggets."

Mom's thought response to this is-"Actually, you'll eat this macaroni cheese because I'm not fixing anything else- duh!"

Really we love our "Katie Kathryn Sara." Our family wouldn't be the same without her.

Fun with Vegetables

Ok -so I am a little obsessed about what comes out of my garden and how I use it. Besides the aforementioned zucchini, we also have a bountiful harvest of some pretty gnarly squash. I have made some things with this squash, but my kids have found a much more entertaining use for it. If you have ever seen the TV show "Whose line is it anyway?" you know about a sketch where the comedians take turns using props in different ways. Now picture that with squash and you've got just one example of how my kids entertained themselves this summer!

"Hey, batter, batter- Suh-wing Batter."

You may have heard of the elusive jack-a-lope, but we found a new species in our house- the Suz-a-lope.

"Uh- if you'll excuse me, I have to take this call."

Finn's impression of Sherlock Holmes.

"They call me 'Squash'... Double O 'Squash'!"

And of course after a hard day's work as a double gourd secret agent who wouldn't need a vegetable-powered jet pack!

How sweet! It looks like two swans forming a heart!

And of course "Repeat"-pictured has to follow "Pete"-pictured from above.

You might be my sibling if...

I saw this post on a friend's blog and thought the idea was so cute, so I had to copy it. Thanks Emily and Kelly. So you might be my sibling if...
*You lived with a "goddess of nursing."
*There was pineapple juice mixed in with whatever other juice was in the fridge.
*You know who the "Ray Coniff Singers" are.

*You got half an orange in your lunch that had the top edge of rind cut off for you.
*You love Bill Cosby stand-up.

*You can quote several Shel Silverstein poems.
*There are several pictures drawn of you with rosy cheeks and a beveled chin.

*You know what the ledger is.

*The ledger still owes you money.

*You can sing many Oakridge Boys songs.

*Patriotic music reminds you of Saturday mornings.

*You don't see the need to turn the A/C until it is at least 95 degrees outside.

*Your "stomach hurts real bad" when you are crying.

*You remember the party wagon.

*You've ever won the "Sunshine Room Award."

*You know what "Come on Bloser" means.

*You understand a few hells and damns.

*You also know what "Who wants to dance with Heddy Larue?" means as well.

*You know who "Freddie" and "Frankie" are.

*You have been asked "Where's your trial?"

*You know that hunger has nothing to do with eating.

*You've ever had Norwegian pancakes.

*You've ever been spotlighted at FHE.

*You've played "Sacks on the Miller."

*One of your childhood heroes was Dale Murphy.

*You've been asked to check the window wells or if the iron is still on.

*You still will check to make sure the iron or the curling iron is turned off before you leave the house.

*You've been told, "Okay, I'm mad now- you can move."

*You've been called a "Primary low-life."

*You've had a sign put up on the garage welcoming you home from girls camp, scout camp, vacation, or a sleepover.

*You can come up with a song for just about any occassion.

I'm sure there are many more that I didn't think of and if my siblings can think of any -let me know! I know that few people outside the 6 other people with whom I share similar DNA will really appreciate this post, but I want them to know that I love them and am so grateful for their love and support. I am who I am because of them.

"Mom, take a picture of us and put it on your blog."

That is what Annie and Katie said to me when they found big glasses in our dress- up box. They said they are lawyers working at their desks. Oh-kay!?! But I thought I would indulge them and put them on my blog. They love to see pictures of themselves on the computer. And no they are not the glasses I had when I was 13. Although if you want to see those glasses click here. But I do have a funny story related to big glasses. Yesterday I was making breakfast and somehow me having boyfriends came up in the conversation I was having with my kids. Annie was shocked that I had boyfriends and I assured I had them before I married dad. She wanted the particulars and wanted to know how old I was when I had a boyfriend. I told her I was in my twenties. Then she asked if I had a boyfriend in high school. I told no I didn't. Finn looked at me slyly and said, "Is that because you had big glasses?" I beg your pardon- no that is not the reason! I just didn't want to be fettered by a boy. At least that is what my parents and Young Women's leaders told me!

Why a 3 year old should never, ever have bubble gum.

The other morning I was making breakfast when I saw Katie coming up the stairs. Her hair looked quite different from when I put her to bed the night before. It almost looked like it had been curled, but as I got closer I realized there weren't any curls in her hair. It was gum- lots of bubble gum. And it was in several spots in her hair. I had put her to bed the night before and didn't remember her having any bubble gum in her mouth but I'm sure this isn't the first time she has slipped something past me and I can guarantee it won't be the last. But this is one of the blessings of having a blog- normally I would get upset by this kind of predicament, but instead I reach for my camera and think about what a great post it would be. So for any husbands out there who think blogging is a waste of time and are tired of their wives blog surfing- here is proof positive that blogging can be good for your family. It prevents child abuse! Here is the photo:

Isn't she adorable!?! The best part about this was the excuses she started coming up with about why the gum was stuck in her hair. The obvious first excuse was to blame it on Annie and she tried to. Then she was saying how stores shouldn't sell bubble gum. Well sure blame it on corporate America. But the best and most accurate was, "I shouldn't have bubble gum because I just do crazy things when I am three!" Amen, sister! I couldn't say it any better myself. Although I don't think it will deter her from wanting more gum sometime in the near future. After we got down to the bottom of who was responsible I googled getting gum out of hair and got a whole list of suggestions from using vinegar to peanut butter to olive oil to ice. I decided to try the olive oil and here's why. Just about everytime I google a problem,olive oil seems to be the answer. Case in point- a few weeks ago I was chopping a jalapeno and burned my hands from the seeds. I googled jalapeno burn and rubbing olive oil on them came up as the answer. I have read olive oil is a good furniture polish and the other day my mom heard that oilve oil is good to put in your hair to create a nice shine- although she did use a bit too much! So I think olive oil is going to my "Windex." If you have ever seen the movie "My Big, Fat Greek Wedding" you know what I am talking about. In case you haven't the father in that movie thinks "Windex" cures everything and even soaks his elbows in it to help with arthitis. My Grandma Sara had her own "windex"- but it was cranberry juice. She thought it cured everything and there was always a bottle in her fridge. Not to discredited her or anything, but she also thought that if you put a big bottle of water at the edge of your yard it kept the cats away. You can't help but love grandparents for these quirky things. But the older I get the more quirky I become. And the olive oil did get the gum out of Katie's hair without having to resort to scissors. So who knows maybe in 40 years I will be soaking my elbows in olive oil with a big bottle of cranberry juice in my fridge while my grandkids blog about how crazy their grandma is. I hope so!