Wrong Place, Wrong Time

Coming home from Cub Scouts on Thursday night we were hit by a young woman who decided to cross against 2 lanes of oncoming traffic with out looking. She was traveling entirely too fast. Her little car hit our big truck, bounced off and hit again and ended up facing in the opposite direction than she was originally traveling. Look how far she pushed our truck off the road!!



There were plenty of bystanders who came to help. Yay for human kindness! Two police cruisers showed up as well as a fire truck and an emergency paramedic truck. The other driver is entirely at fault (although, I think at first she didn't want to believe it) She was really hysterical and has a minor bump on the head. We are all sore and badly shaken. Chris has some bruising and much more sore than the rest of us. He saw it coming and tensed up trying to prevent us from hitting the telephone pole that ended up just a couple of feet from my side.

The paramedics deemed us ok and not in need of medical attention at the moment (but they said we may change our minds after a couple of days). The kids were pretty scared. Charles has a bruise and a small scrape on the neck from his seat belt. They are still out of sorts.



(Topher is such a ham for the camera, even in an emergency!)

We were lucky to be in the truck. If we had been in lower vehicle, the damage would have been much worse. They said they were surprised that our airbags didn't deploy! Thank goodness they didn't. I don't think I would have been as calm. The damage to our truck is worse than the picture looks. There is a good chance it will be totaled.

I've slipped into a bit of a depressed state. I'm trying to pull myself out of it. We are all ok. Trucks can be replaced. It's still such a scary thing to go through, though.

A Day at the Beach

A little early in the season but fun none the less! Yesterday Topher and I spent the morning at the beach on a field trip with his preschool class. The weather was beautiful for it! Warm enough to wear shorts and dip our feet in to the icy water but cool enough to a little sweater.

The tide was low enough that we had plenty of areas to hunt for shells (and a little beach glass too!). We found a lot of shells and plenty of snails too. Topher was really hoping to find some crabs and a fish or two. No such luck this time. He was pretty fascinated with the seagulls. He kept trying to sneak up on them and catch them! I think he planned on bringing one home in his little (4 oz!) Glad container. He tried to get everyone and anyone to help him catch one of those birds! He also really DID think that one was going to fit in to his little snack cup! He's a real character! What did he think he going to do with that seagull once he got home, though?

We also took a walk up to the pier to look out across the water. (That is him with his favorite teacher) We looked across the sound and Topher excitedly pointed out Charles Island which he is just convinced is named for his own brother! The children all loved hearing that it is believed that the pirate Captain Kidd may have buried some of his treasure here! Of course now they all want to go looking! Who wouldn't hough! We saw a few small boats on the water and a large ship (an oil tanker possibly?) in the distance. We also saw a few Cormorants bobbing up and down in the water searching for fish. However, my shark obsessed son is absolutely CONVINCED they were sharks! But they are nice sharks he tells me, because they know he likes them. It makes him happy so we believe.

Partially Accommodated Esotropia

That is what they told me today at the pediatric opthamologist. Topher was first diagnosed with Amblyopia and Strabismus as well as extreme Hyperopia (farsightedness) a little over a year ago.

He got glasses and they made a huge difference. He could suddenly see! He told me. He said "Mommy I can SEE!" when he first put his glasses on. His attention span also greatly improved. He started doing so much better in school. It's just preschool. but still. We then had to patch his good eye 2 hours a day to help strengthen the weak one. He did pretty well for awhile. He then decided he didn't want to be a pirate anymore. It was a real struggle.

Last month he went in for his eye check up and his eyes are crossing again. The Dr changed his glasses prescription in hopes that it would help. (He also told us to stop patching for now) We went back today and it did not. His vision has gotten so much better and his eyes are crossing less but they still cross. He also is still only relying on one eye. He doesn't see binocularly so he has no sense of depth. He does really well for a boy who can't see depth!

His eyes have gotten as good as they are going to get with the glasses. He has such a strong prescription (boy oh boy are they thick!) and it can't get any stronger. We need to get both eyes working together or he runs the risk of going completely blind in the weaker eye and the stronger eye has a chance of developing a deviation. sigh......

Now we go back to the eye patch. This means I need to come up with some little tricks and incentives to get him to wear it. Topher will also need to have surgery - on both eyes. I started to cry in the doctor's office. We've done all we can and surgery is really the only option now. I know it is the right thing to do and I completely trust my Dr but it is still very scary.

I'm a wreck.

This Week at the Library

I've decided to post my weekly library finds. It is more for my future reference than anything else. My comments are open if you'd like to make some recommendations. (I love recommendations!)

Due June 16-

The Naked Chef Takes Off
by Jamie Oliver

The recipes in this book look really yummy! They appear simple enough to be everyday food while at the same time being elegant enough to be dinner party food. I have several recipes already earmarked!

Roots, Shoots, Buckets and Boots
by Sharon Lovejoy

A great book about gardening with children. There are several theme gardens outlined in the book as well as a multitude of tips and trivia. The boys and I are looking forward to planting a garden this summer! This yard is a clean slate - not one plant other than a lone rhodedendron in the front bed.

The Great American Cookie Book

A very thick book chock full of cookie recipes with enough pictures to make your mouth water! The kids and I have looked through and marked quite a few recipes to try.

~*~
No novels or thought provoking reading this week. I AM reading a little paperback for pleasure, though. Two For the Dough by Janet Evanovich. It is a fun little mystery. Not a lot of thinking required which is perfect for me right now.

~*~
Topher and I also went to story time. Once again he had a loads of fun. They read several classic children's stories (Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Billy Goats Gruff, The Three Little Pigs, Etc) and sang several songs. The craft this week was making necklaces from shoestring licorice and Fruit Loops. Not the best idea for a bunch of 3 and 4 (and a few 2) year olds to have sticky candy and cereal just before going in to paw over books in the Children's Library. Topher willingly saved his to eat after lunch. Unfortunately it has been rainy so there was no playground time after the library. We are hopeful for next week though!

Take Me Out To The Ball Game

Little League season is here! I love this time of year!


Edmund plays coach pitch baseball. This is his second year in coach pitch and his third in baseball. This was his first game and the team looks good. I can see a lot of growth and improvement from last year. His favorite position is catcher. Unfortunately he only got to play catcher for 1 inning in this game and it was a "1-2-3" inning and so he didn't see much action. There are a lot more games in the season though. He did make some great plays while in the field and he was really hitting well.
















Charles plays T-ball. This is his second year. He is coming along and he has a lot of fun. Of course, like all the other 5 and 6 year olds, he gets a bit distracted out in the field sometimes. They are so much fun to watch though. He says his favorite position is first base but he seems to end up playing third base the most. A tough position for a lefty!

Science Fair

Today was the Second Grade Environmental Science Fair. The student were learning about the environment - various types of environments and ways to protect the environment. They had to do a research paper on an environment and then create a diorama depicting that environment. They also had to build something out of recycled products and write a report detailing what they built, what they used and what they learned. WOW! Second grade!!



Edmund chose the Savanna. He created several animals (giraffe, zebra, cheetah, warthog and an elephant) from pipe cleaners (and pom poms for the elephant). He also made some trees using pipe cleaners, a toilet paper tube and green tissue paper. He did a great job!!

His recycled product was a car. He used a bread crumb canister for the body and chopsticks and yogurt tub lids for the wheels and axles. He used lots of other little bits for various other parts of his car.

I'm really very proud of him! He is doing so well in school. I think moving and changing schools back in February was the best thing for him (and for Charles too). They are learning so much more and doing so much more than they did in the other school.

Mischief

"Ninja Swords" by Topher (age 4)

This week's theme for is "Mischief". I was working on my own entry when this one sort of fell in to my lap. Topher decided to "make the walls pretty". He is a mischievous little scamp for sure!

The picture quality is not that great. The drawing is done in a light crayon on white walls so it was hard to get enough contrast in the picture to have it show. Next week, a real entry!

Sourdough Starter: The Big Pay Off!

Sourdough French Bread

1 1/2 cups warm water (105F)
1 envelope yeast
1 cup sourdough starter
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
6 cups flour, divided

Pour the warm water in to a mixing bowl and sprinkle yeast over the top. Set aside for 5 minutes. Add starter, sugar and salt. Beat in 3 cups of flour until blended. Cover with a tea towel and let rise in a warm, draft free spot (1 1/2-2 hours until doubled in size). Punch down the dough and add enough of the remaining flour to make a medium-stiff dough. Turn on to a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic adding flour as necessary.

Shape the dough in to 2 loaves, tapering the ends. Place on to a greased baking sheet and cover with a tea towel. Let rise in a warm, draft free spot 1-2 hours or until doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 400F. Pour water 1 inch deep in a 9x13 baking dish and place in the bottom of the preheating oven. Brush the tops of the loaves with water and use a razor to slash the tops of the loaves in a diagonal. Bake 45 minutes or until golden and the loaves sound hollow when tapped.

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So many of you have asked about my starter. (woohoo! I have regular readers!) I finally got the bread made! It came out great but I think next time I will make it in loaf pans instead of free form. The dough ended up having to sit in it's second rising longer than it needed so it over rose and then deflated a bit. I had 2 very large, somewhat flat loaves - somewhat like the ciabatta loaves that the local bakery sells. It's good though. We'll have sandwiches on it tonight before Edmund's baseball game.

Sourdough Starter: Maintenence

Standard Feed

1 cup milk, room temperature
1 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar

Measure out 1 cup of starter to use for baking (or give it to a friend with instructions). Mix the feed ingredients to the remaining 1 cup of starter. Cover loosely and leave on the counter overnight. The next day, put in to the refrigerator and stir as needed.

You should repeat this process every 7-10 days.

Spring!

Spring has sprung at Our Home on the Hill!

This is the tree in our front yard. I just love it! I can see it from my living room (and depending on where I sit, it is sometimes all I can see) It makes me happy when I look out side. I'm not sure what kind of a tree it is but you can be sure that I will find out!


We also had a family of Canadian Geese in the front yard. There were 7 goslings and 2 adults. It is so cute how they all stick together almost as 1 entity. They crossed the road and tumbled down the little hill to the pond. We watched them for awhile but eventually we lost sight of them.

I love Spring!

Bead It

I saw this little swap and decided to give it a whirl. I followed the instructions posted by Poor Miss Finch and went to town. They were so much fun to do (and very addicting)! These are wrapped and off to my secret Bead It swap partner. I hope she likes them!

*(I'd really like to know how everyone takes such nice crisp pictures of stitch markers! I took about a dozen and they were all slightly blurry.)

Books and Crafts!

Today was Story Time at the Library. Topher loves to go to the Library so when I found out that they have a story hour - with a craft! - for preschoolers, I knew we had to go. A good time was had by all! We sang songs ("ABC's, "Twinkle, Twinkle"), read stories ("Alexander and the Wind Up Mouse", "Are You My Mother?"), did finger plays ("I'm a Little Teapot", "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes") and finally we did a craft. The children decorated little plastic visors with stick on letters and sparkly bits. (No pictures during story time as the woman reading was a little, umm... cranky with anyone she deemed the least bit distracting) After story time, we explored the stacks and found a few books to bring home. One about being a garbage man and one about dinosaurs and fossils. We then went upstairs to the 'big people' books where I found a (new to me) cookbook to try. Next week I think we will pack a picnic lunch for after.

Expanding My Horizons

I have a pretty extensive culinary palate. I love food and there is really nothing that I don't like. I am willing to try anything and everything. That said though, I have never cooked with Tofu. I am not sure if I have ever had it before either.

Our monthly Supper Club meets tonight and this month's theme is "Cinco De Mayo". In my continued effort to cook light and healthy I found a new recipe for guacamole. In addition to the avocado, it uses tofu.

Light Guacamole

1/4 pound firm tofu
2 oz sliced avocado
1/2 of a medium tomato, chopped
1/4 cup diced green bell pepper
1/4 cup diced onion
1 clove minced garlic
1 Tbls diced green chile pepper
1 Tbls fresh lime juice
Dash of ground red pepper

In a food processor, blend tofu and avocado until smooth.
Transfer to a mixing bowl and stir in remaining ingredients.

**Update - The guacamole was great! Really very good. It met with rave reviews, too. Everyone gobbled it right up and no one had any idea that there was tofu in it. This recipe is a keeper.

My Knitting Bag

I've been on the hunt for a knitting bag. I've just been sort of stuffing my knitting in my purse but I wanted to switch to a smaller purse so that would no longer work. I've seen some that I really like but they are just not in my budget right now. I've thought about making my own but I got overwhelmed at the fabric choices. (there are just too many wonderful fabrics!)

While at Target picking up cleaning supplies, I found this bag.



It is just the perfect bag for my knitting right now. It is light and summery. Large enough to hold my knitting, a book and/or pattern and what ever notions I want to carry around. It has a small zippered pocket inside and it ties closed with some pretty bits of ribbon. The price was right, too. ($12)

I may eventually want a more standard knitting bag with lots of pockets inside but until I find the one I want, this one fits the bill.

Sourdough Starter: Day 9

Standard Feed

1 cup milk, room temperature
1 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar

Measure out 1 cup of starter and toss the rest. Wash your container.
Mix the reserved starter, milk, flour and sugar and put back in to the container.
Cover loosely and refrigerate for at least 2 days.

(mine will sit a few days longer. I plan to bake bread on Monday)

Sourdough Starter: Day 8

Repeat instructions for Day 2: Stir.

The Big Reveal!

Secret Pal 4 has come to an end. This was my first time participating in something like this and I had a lot of fun. I also learned a lot (like how understanding people can be when I am a complete bonehead and don't get my packages in the mail in a timely manner!) Anyway...

I had a wonderful Secret Pal from Australia. I really enjoyed getting to know her through our emails and I am thrilled to now be able to read her blog. Her packages really made me feel special and I can't wait for the last one to get here. (she told me there is one more coming! How exciting!) Check her out, she is Ailsa at Pick Up Sticks.

I was Secret Pal to another lovely lady from Australia - and as luck would have it, they are good friends! What are the odds! She is a very sweet woman and has been more that patient with me. She knits things and sells them and uses her blog as a contact for her clients. You can find Donni at Moggy and Me.

I hope to keep in contact with both of them. You can never have too many friends! In the mean time, go over and say "Hi" yourself.

Sourdough Starter: Day 7

Repeat instructions for Day 3:Feed.

* for those of you playing along at home, we have now fed our starter 3 times. We are very close to the part when we get to make bread!

TV Knitting

I did a little TV knitting. A co-worker of Chris' just had his first baby so Chris asked if I could make some little booties. Take Charlies Angels: Full Throttle, Stitch'N Bitch Nation, and some bulky stash yarn and this is what I made.

The "One Hour Baby Booties"

I especially love the little buttons!

Sourdough Starter: Day 6

Repeat instructions for Day 2:Stir.