Yay! Summer Movie Express is...YESTERDAY?!?! Uh-oh!

Yup.  I blew it.  Mom sucks.  This one totally blew up in my face.  BIG TIME!  I have been pumping the boys up for this all week.  I woke up this morning and even made a big deal about it when AJ came in to say good morning.

I didn't realize anything was amiss until I decided to check to see what movies were playing next week when I noticed the line that said "Tuesdays and Wednesdays".  My heart fell.  It's Thursday.  Oh no!

Immediately I dreaded the conversation I was about to have.  I started scrambling for solutions.  How was I going to make up for this?

I grabbed my phone and looked up Redbox.  I searched for Ice Age: Continental Drift (the movie that we were supposed to see).  It was at WALMART!  Suddenly my mind began to clear.  I can do this!  You see, Walmart sells Movie Theater candy for 98¢.

I now had something to bring to the table when I approached my boys.  Granted, I knew it still wouldn't be pretty (and it wasn't), but at least I was trying.

As I figured would happen, AJ cried and G got mad.  It took me ten minutes to calm them down so that they could hear me out.  Unfortunately, that calming down included me walking away and telling them that if they didn't want to hear me out then they could settle for nothing.  Not my proudest moment, but it did the trick.

I took them to Walmart after breakfast and we got all we needed.  We even stopped by Dutch Brothers because Daddy wanted a blended coffee to cool him down.

Overall I think I more than made up for the lack of theater.  They got to see the movie, they got candy (which they probably wouldn't have at the theater) and they got popcorn.  In two weeks we will go and see Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked and all will be well with the world once again.  So maybe Mom doesn't suck that much.

Summer Is Here...Time To Read!

This weekend Todd and I got our Library Cards.  Let me tell you, there was a LOT of excitement surrounding this event.

I am prodigiously ashamed to say that while living in Humboldt County, I took the library for granted.  The Humboldt County library is beautiful and has a lot to offer to the community.  Unfortunately, it also had a particularly odd schedule.  Due to lack of funds, for the first 10 years after it's move to the new building, the county could not afford to actually run the library.  This lead to many people abandoning the library out of sheer frustration and confusion.  I will admit that in recent years they have improved their hours, but they still need more support to get to where they want to be.

This brings me to the delight that surrounded our new Library Cards to the Salem Public Library.  The library itself is huge (to me) and has half a floor dedicated 100% to the Children's Section.  Obviously this is where we will be spending most of our time.

While we were there we decided to not only sign both boys up for the Summer Reading Program, but we also decided that Kindergarten Graduation was a good reason to get AJ his own Library Card.  He was so proud and loved the frog on the front.

We spent nearly an hour there and pulled the kids out with the promise that we will come back at least TWICE this coming week.  The effect of visiting and getting the cards had the desired effect on both of the boys, because since that visit we have read about three hours.  It also presented a challenge that I was more than happy to meet.  Do I really want the boys tearing books off the bookshelf?  Or can I make a box or basket of some sort to organize their books?

Thus came about the idea for the "READING BOX".  I took a medium sized, slightly shallow box and cut the flaps off.  I labeled the four flaps as dividers for the box ("Read To Me", "Read With Me", "Read Myself" and "Library").  Then I wrapped the box, labeled the box, and reinforced all of the loose edges with packing tape.

The idea for the dividers came to me while I was sorting through books to read with AJ.  We have a TON of Children's Books.  Some of them AJ can read all by himself, some of them he is working on and still needs help with, and some of them are harder books that I read to the boys at bedtime.  I also decided to add a section for Library Books so that there is always a place to put them while they are not being read.

It makes me so happy to see AJ applying himself to his reading.  He wasn't so thrilled with reading during the school year, so I think this Summer Reading Program might be the best thing that happened to us.  I made a deal with him that I would only match his hours of reading.  I read to the boys all of the time, but I told him that half of his logged hours would have to be his own.  It seemed to help because this morning he read 45 minutes all by himself!

What A Larger Kitchen Means (Help with Pancakes!)

Growing up, my family always had a rather small kitchen.  I often heard my mom mention wanting a larger kitchen, but I didn't really know what that meant.  Every kitchen I had been in was about the same size as our kitchen.  No one I knew had a "larger" kitchen.  Besides, what would you do with one?  (Keep in mind, this was my childish mind speaking.)

I started to understand the upside to a larger kitchen around the age of 12, when I started to really cook.  By this time my brother was already cooking as well.  Two adults and two teenagers could NOT fit in our kitchen at the same time.  In fact two adults could barely fit in the kitchen without getting in each other's way.  Yet still, what did a "larger" kitchen look like?  I had still never seen one.  

Then two things happened around the same time:  My grandmother bought a larger house and our next door neighbor remodeled her kitchen.  Suddenly I knew exactly what I wanted in a kitchen.  I wanted something more that two people could work in at once.  I wanted something open enough that I could teach my children to cook and do dishes.

It was nearly two decades before I got my large kitchen, but the small kitchens I worked in in the interim taught me a lot about appreciation.  Last year, when we were in Washington visiting my FIL, my SIL referred to his kitchen as a "two-butt" kitchen.  That meant that one person could be working at the stove, counter, or sink and there was just enough room to allow someone to pass or stand behind them.  I love this phrase and now use it quite often.  

Our first apartment had a "three-butt kitchen".  Until now, it was the largest kitchen I had ever had.  It was tucked into a corner and had very little counter or cupboard space, but it was open, so it wasn't all bad.

Our second and third apartments were both "one-and-a-half-butt kitchens".  They were not family friendly at all.  I love to cook, but these kitchens made it very difficult to achieve anything beyond small batches.  I found myself doing a lot of prep work in the living room.

Our current kitchen is an estimated "five- or six-butt" kitchen.  That means we had four people working in the kitchen at the same time and there was plenty of room for more.  My husband actually stopped what he was doing and pointed it out.  We both laughed and had to explain it to my sister and mother.

I love the fact that I have a kitchen large enough for many people to congregate.  I also love that it is centrally located, so anyone who is working in the kitchen doesn't feel like they are banished to the back of the house.  To me cooking is a social activity, not a chore.

That being said, I mentioned above that I started cooking around the age of 12.  This is kind of a tradition my parents started that I want to continue with my kids.  My parents started teaching us how to cook at a young age.  By the time we were 12 we were tasked with being able to cook an entire meal unaided (my meal was meatloaf, baked potatoes, and corn).  I think this instilled in all three of us a love for cooking, and an understanding of the importance of independence.

At this point my little guys are only 6 and 3, but it won't be long before it is their turn to cook for themselves. I want their repertoire to go beyond Mac & Cheese and Top Ramen.  That is why I am so excited about them being able to help me in the kitchen whenever they get the chance.

A few weeks ago I decided to make a large batch of pancakes (in order to freeze left overs).  As I was going about my routine of prep work I saw G peeking around the corner.  It suddenly dawned on me that now was the perfect time for them to help.  It was Memorial Day and we had no plans to make us hurry.  So Cooking Lesson #1 commenced.  They both took turns putting in the ingredients and stirring.  Afterwards, both took turns helping me portion the batter onto the griddle (we have one of those cool pancake squirters).

I'd like to think they enjoyed them all the more for having helped make them, but who am I kidding...they love them no matter who made them.

PANCAKES

(Modified from recipe in Betty Crocker Cookbook)

Ingredients

1 cup flour

1 Tbsp sugar (I usually add more, but I like mine sweet)

3 tsp baking powder (I know it's a Tablespoon, but that is how the recipe is written)

1/4 tsp salt

1 egg

3/4 cup milk

2 Tbsp oil or butter (melted)

Directions

1. Heat a griddle or frying pan over Medium heat.

2. Mix together all dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl.

3. Stir in milk using a wooden spoon.

4. In a small bowl, whisk together egg and oil until frothy.

5. Stir egg mixture into batter until smooth.

6. Oil griddle, then ladle batter into small circles.

7. When batter starts to bubble (about 2 minutes), using a wide silicone turner, flip pancakes, cook for additional 1 minute.  Remove from griddle.