March: ...Out Like a Lamb

Despite what the weather says, spring has officially made its presence known in our neck of the woods.  That's right, after the solitude and somnolence of winter, life in all of its noisy, playful glory has arrived in the woolly package of adorable little lambs.  While we have pared down our animals and do not have sheep (or lambs) this year, we are gratefully able to participate in this particular rite of spring at Jordan's folk's place.  Since the Lentz' have a few of our old ewes and Golly (our ram), we even feel a bit of parental pride over these cute little buggers!

These were the first three lambs, born early last week:

Here's Thane and a little ewe getting better acquainted:

One of my favorites is below.  Honestly, could this babe possibly be any cuter with its white eyebrows and fuzzy hind end?

 

Lastly, here's Jordan's Mother, who tenderly watches over the entire flock.

Wrestle Mania

One of the main reasons we moved here was to reduce the tension and noise in our lives.  Though we are quite low key compared to many, there are definite times of the day when our family moves to the beat of a decidedly heavy metal drum.  The time immediately proceeding dinner is especially chaotic at our place.  While it is our hope that we raise book readers instead of couch potatoes (and feel the need to lead by example), we were finding ourselves pooled in an exhausted heap on the couch in front of the tube after dinner each night.  The kids, of course, took our temporarily distracted state as a personal challenge and whipped themselves into a frenzy trying to compete with the television's sights and sounds.  

So, we've vowed not to watch tv until the kiddos are in bed, and  we are going to cancel our satellite cable subscription.  Problem solved, right?  Ha- silly us!  The kids have found a new, and infinitely louder, pastime: wrestling.  That's right, we are now treated to SMACKDOWN! mayhem each night, right on the kitchen floor.  As the kids roughly pummel their exhausted father, I do my best to clear the table and avoid any nasty plate upsets as I navigate my way through Wrestle Maniaville.  Utter cacophony ensues, and our hard won tranquility has, once again, become a thing of the past.

Ugh!  That had to hurt...

The Inside's Out

We've gotten numerous requests over the past few months for photos of the inside of our house, and we have been somewhat reluctant to comply with these requests.  Contrary to the wild rumors flying out there, it's not because the house is trashed (although there are days when it would be wise to call ahead before making any unexpected visits!)  The real reason is that the house isn't, well, done.  Yes, the construction has been (mostly) completed, but there is a plethora of trimwork, paint jobs & decorating that has yet to be finished.  To be honest, Jordan and I would both love for the house to be perfect before we show it off, but perfection takes time - and lots of money.  At the rate we seem to be moving these days, it could quite possibly take a LONG time to show you pics of a finished house.  Thus, we're proposing a compromise:  we'll post some photos of the inside of our home, if you promise not to look too closely at our unfinished business. 

So, without further ado (drumroll, please), here are some photos of our newly wallpapered hallway.  My Mom graciously volunteered her Sunday morning to help hang the darn stuff, and thank God that she did!  It totally transformed the space, and we can't wait until the runner, trumeau and console we're planning to add arrives.  Stay tuned....

 

 

Au Bon Pain

One of the wonderful gifts that we received when we moved out west was a cookbook entitled Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois.  Jordan and I have perused this book many times, practically drooling over the pictures of the delectable loaves of bread, pastries and biscuits it contained.  The book's premise is that, in just minutes, one can make a batch of dough, refrigerate it, and use this as a base to make various ethnic breads and other sweet delights.  Sounds easy, right?  Well, yes, it is very simple, but the thought of making homemade bread was just a little more than this weary Mom could handle.

After much imploring with no results, the husband of said Mom decided to take matters into his own hands.  Literally.  Well, almost...  (He did cheat and use the dough hook on our Kitchen Aid, but we'll just keep that a secret between us, shall we?)  Of course, I'm pretty sure that this Dad was also quite unprepared for all of the "help" that 2 additional little sets of hands provided, but I'm happy to report that my kitchen is still intact, the mess has been cleaned, and Annabel & Thane are still talking to their father.

 

We made our first loaves of bread earlier today.  Let me say, without too much prejudice, that this bread is REALLY GREAT!  We didn't get too fancy this time, but it didn't matter.  Our warm, peasant bread was deliciously perfect with some homemade raspberry jam.  I'd love to tell you more about it, but I'm going to run and grab another piece before it's gone!