Easter, Elmo and Elise Come to Hammond River…

After another busy holiday weekend, I’m happy to say that we survived to go back to work this morning…

One of the things I wanted to do on Friday morning when I woke up was get my indoor seeds started…it was sunny and warm on our back deck, so it was perfect for it.  I also made an executive decision that it would be a “jammie day”, which for me consists of a T-shirt and yoga pants (I don’t do yoga…I just like the pants!).  I set my 130 small peat pots out on some metal trays that I bought at Value Village…13 to a tray.  One at a time, I brought the trays outside to fill the pots from the industrial sized-bag of dirt, and put the seeds in.  As I worked, the birds flew past me on their way to the 392 bird feeders on our deck, some brushing close enough to me that I could feel the wind from their wings (I was glad they were birds and not bats!).  I was leaning over the table poking holes with my finger in the soil to deposit the seeds into, when I felt something on my back.  Reflected in the glass of the deck door, I saw that a chickadee had landed on me.  I have no idea what he thought I was, since I didn’t resemble any local tree in my bright orange T-shirt!  I hollered for Jim, who was immersed in a computer game in the living room on the other side of the glass…by the time I got Jim’s attention, my new feathered friend had abandoned his perch.

After I’d finished planting, I carried the trays carefully into our back kitchen, where I set them on a table I hope is high enough to prevent a repeat of Jake’s destroying my plants like he did last year!

Trays of planted seedlings...

Saturday afternoon after picking a few groceries for our Easter family dinner, I decided to try out a new recipe for the rolls…Clover Leaf Rolls.  I spent all afternoon making them…three rises…they looked amazing!

Rolls before putting them in the oven...photo by Anna...

I put them in the oven, being careful to reduce the temperature by 25 degrees, as our oven is quite hot.  Fifteen minutes later, they came out looking like this:

Finished clover leaf rolls...

Unfortunately, I baked them a little longer than I should have, and I decided they weren’t good enough for company…I had Jim pick me up some more rolls that afternoon.

While I was baking, Jim had conned the kids into helping him raise the giant birdhouse from last summer into one of the apple trees…it ended up one platform down from its intended resting place, but at least it was finally off the ground!

Remember this from last year? (photo by Anna)

I dragged myself out of bed Sunday morning at 8:30…I had a 12-lb. turkey to make stuffing for and have in the oven for noon, 7 loads of laundry to fold, and mega cleaning to do for our company (Jim and the kids helped after they got up)!  I was still working on all that when Kaylee, Scott, and Elise arrived at 2:30 (dinner was at 6).  Hope had organized a small Easter egg hunt for Elise in the living room (Hope hid them in plain sight).  Elise fed Hope and Jake some of her Fruit Loops (much to Jake’s delight).  Later, Hope took the opportunity to improve on Elise’s hairdo:

Elise...hair by Auntie Hope, photo by Auntie Anna...the theme of Elise's bedroom is Dr. Seuss...surprised?

Jim presented Elise with a fun children’s CD by one of the singers from the Presidents of the United States of America (they did the theme song for the Drew Carey Show), Chris Ballew, aka Caspar Babypants.  We also gave her an Elmo building toy, which led to a rather hilarious slip of the tongue from Hope:  “Look Elise…it’s Elmo Kotex!”

Maybe "Kotex" is his horse's name?

Jim’s parents and his sister, Tracy, came a little closer to dinner time.  Jim had made his Grammy Clark’s dressing and gravy…I did the turkey, mashed potatoes, squash (from the garden), cauliflower/broccoli mix, and corn.  Synchronising all that food takes a little talent.  I realized as I was serving myself corn that it was still frozen, and took it back to the kitchen for a couple more minutes in the microwave.  When it was done, I brought it back, and spooned some more on to my plate.  It was only after I finished loading up my plate with other things, that I discovered I’d made two piles of corn!  Other people had noticed, but were too polite to point it out! 

After dinner, most people were too full for dessert…Jim and I put the food away in lunch containers, and he put on the bones to boil for turkey soup.  We chatted for a while and then I served apple pie to those who wanted it.  By this time, Elise was so tired she could barely stand up!  Her parents took her home, and Jim’s family left soon afterwards. 

We watched Amazing Race before I went to bed…we were all sad to see Jet and Cord eliminated…the Goths have gotta go, especially that whiny Kent!

Happy Trails, boys...you were true gentlemen and awesome competitors! (photo from cbs.com)

Jim stayed up to finish making the soup broth and finish his game on the computer…

 

I hope all my readers had a Happy Easter…I’m going to spend tomorrow catching up on all the blog posts I haven’t read yet…

Reluctant Cheer Mom Tears Up, and Other Random Events…

Here’s what’s been going on around Hammond River the last little while (this stuff is true…not like my recent Mark Twain post!).

1. Regular readers of this blog know that even though three of our four daughters are or have been cheerleaders, I’m not a fan.  Anna’s first competition of the year was Sunday, and her team was so amazing, I actually stopped thinking about how much my butt hurt from sitting on the hard bleachers, and teared up a little!  Here’s Hope and Jake before we left:

Hope and Jake before competition (photo by Jim)...apparently you can tie Jake's ears in a bow...

Anna’s team made callbacks for the first time in five years! I guess those ten hours of practice the week before competition paid off! Here’s the team during the routine:

Harbour View High Cheer team...Anna is the one under the middle red banner (photo by Jim)...

The girls were even better in the callbacks, but ended up fourth (several spectators around us were as shocked as we were…we thought they’d won!). We’ll get them next week!

2.  Jim’s been buying camera equipment on Kijiji to keep up with the girls’ competitions…we met a guy in the Wendy’s parking lot on Monday night to buy a flash meter (Anna’s comment: “That wasn’t sketchy at all!”), and then drove to another guy’s house to pick up a lens.

3.  Monday night, I learned that not having a plunger in each bathroom is a mistake…Hope flushed the toilet in the “kids’ bathroom” and it started overflowing.  I panicked, and it took several minutes for me to turn the shutoff valve off.  By the time I found the “good plunger”, Jim had already used the crappy one to unclog the toilet!  Then I got to wash the mats and the dirty clothes which had been on the floor during the mini-flood.  Note to self…do not put clothing in the dryer with rubber-backed bathmats…little balls of rubber will come off, and permanently attach themselves to very expensive hoodies…

4.  Speaking of sewage, we found out this morning that the lot next to our place has been sold (bad news).  This means that the landlord is redoing the septic field (good news!), but that our yard will be torn up (it will be flatter when it’s finished…good news), and we will lose the lilac trees by our back deck that the birds like to hang out in (bad news).  On the upside, they will be redoing the driveway so that it actually drains instead of a 20-foot puddle forming in front of our garage every spring…the bad news is that the neighbours’ new driveway will be through our front lawn.

5.  Hope made cinnamon muffins, but neglected to read the mixing instructions under the ingredients in the recipe.  They tasted okay, but were rather lumpy and heavy.  She redeemed herself last night with some delicious chocolate chip cookies, which she proclaimed were better than mine!  I actually agree with her this time!

6.  Anna baked chocolate chip muffins, and almost forgot to put in the chocolate chips…she ended up poking them into the individual muffins just before putting them in the oven!

7.  Jim and I went to see the movie Source Code last night while Anna went to a school dance…I’m not usually a sci-fi fan, but I made an exception for the chance to drool over Jake Gyllenhaal.  It was quite good, and had us on the edge of our seats a lot of the time.  While we watched, I ate a couple of Lowney Cherry Marshmallow Creme Eggs…almost as yummy as Jake G.!

Jake with his "Source Code" co-star Michelle Monaghan...photo from tom-samp-journal.blogspot.com

8.  Anna found out this week that a design she submitted for the Drama Fest at her school had been the one chosen for use on posters, brochures and T-shirts!  Her teacher wanted her to submit a short bio to be included in the brochure…I wrote it for her.  We’re very proud of her!

9.  We’re hosting Easter dinner for the family at our house this year…Jim’s parents are serving Easter Breakfast at their church, and his mom says she’ll be too tired to cook.  We’re still on the hunt for a turkey (Kaylee can’t eat ham)…will try to find one tonight.  We also need to clean up our house for company!  I’m looking forward to seeing everybody, especially my “Puddin’ Pop”!

"Oh, dear...how did that get there?" Elise tries fingerpainting for the first time...

10.  I got a Facebook friend request from musician Thom Swift a couple of days ago…I “Liked” his fan page…maybe he read this piece I wrote about his concert last summer…

The Sounds of Easter…

I woke up at 6:30 this morning to the sound of birds chirping joyfully outside.  Jim’s rhythmic breathing was interspersed with occasional snoring, as the fan on his laptop whirred away.  Downstairs, I heard the shuffle of Dad’s slippers as he crossed the kitchen, and the creak and then the slam of the screen door as he let our dog, Jake, out to go pee.

Dad...

Hope opened our bedroom door, and announced the start of the Easter egg hunt.  Jim and I came downstairs, and then Jim, Anna and Hope ran around the house finding eggs that Hope hid the night before…Devin chose to stay in bed (Brianna was in Moncton with her mother).  Careful counting (and trading) of the bounty left by the Easter Bunny followed.

Easter Bunny Hope...photographed by Jim...

Later, the hiss of the electric kettle will be heard before I pour one of many cups of tea (Ceylon Special).  We will turn the fan on the stove on while bacon pops and crackles in the frying pan, and buttermilk pancakes cook in the electric skillet.  Forks and knives will clink on plates as we gather around the table and eat breakfast as a family.

This afternoon, I will wield the potato peeler to scrape the skins off the  potatoes for the potato scallop for Easter dinner tonight.   The knife will thump on the cutting board as I slice onions.  The electric can opener will grind as it is used to open the pineapple slices that will adorn the twin hams.  The microwave will beep when the sweet potatoes and the broccoli are cooked.

Car doors slamming in the driveway will announce the arrival of our guests…joyful barking will ensue as Jake rushes to greet them at the door.

Chairs will scrape across the floor as people seat themselves at the dinner table.  Small talk will be heard, as bowls of food are passed, and family bonds are renewed.  Interspersed will be the coos and gurgles of my seven-month-old granddaughter, Elise, as she experiences her very first Easter.

Elise...

Life is good…

Turkey, Ham, and the Easter Bunny…

When I was small, we went to my Grandma and Grandad Thompson’s in Ohio for Easter.  My brother and I and our four cousins, Sandy, Larry, Barb, and Darin, always got a coffee can full of edible treats.  Each can was personalized, lined with Easter grass,  and hand-decorated by my grandma.  Grandad did all the cooking – a huge ham studded with cloves, mountains of whipped potatoes, and vegetables.  Dessert would be some kind of pie, sometimes peanut butter.  After dinner, my mom and aunts would do the dishes, while the men in the family retired to another room to talk (sleep off the meal!).

Grandma and Grandad Thompson

After we moved to Canada in 1969, we weren’t able to spend Easter with our grandparents, so we had to make our own traditions.  I remember Mom and Dad doing an Easter egg hunt every year for us and our friends  in our yard.  There were times we needed to wear boots for it – depending on the time of year, there was sometimes snow, or deep mud to tramp through.  My dad loved to hide the little chocolate eggs “in plain sight.”  We’d often walk right past them!

Easter Eggs...

We’d also decorate chicken eggs with the PAAS Easter egg decorating kits.  I still remember the smell of the vinegar the little colour tablets had to be dissolved in, and balancing the egg carefully in a spoon to dip it.  The finished product never seemed to look as good as the pictures on the box!

Paas Egg Decorating Kit...

After I had kids of my own, I introduced them to melting crayons to decorate eggs…I still have several egg cartons full of their childhood art.  I continued having an Easter egg hunt every year, but it was usually inside – our Maritime winters are not conducive to outdoor hunts.  Easter in the Maritimes is also different, in that there seems to be a (crazy, in my opinion) tradition of showering kids with all kinds of gifts – my kids always complained about not getting a new bike or new clothes for Easter (each kid would get a chocolate bunny, and the little chocolate eggs from the hunt).  They all survived, though…

This year, Jim wanted turkey for Easter, but the kids wanted ham, so he will cook a Good Friday turkey dinner (I’ve promised to stay out of the kitchen!), and I will make an Easter ham on Sunday for the whole family, including my in-laws (I hope mine is as good as my Grandad’s!).  Maybe Jim’s mom will bring one of her amazing pies.

Baked Ham...

My youngest daughter, Hope, is talking about having an Easter egg hunt, but since discovering the truth about the Easter Bunny (and Santa Claus, and the tooth fairy) this past Christmas, she says SHE wants to hide the Easter eggs…I might just let her…sometimes the Easter Bunny runs out of good places to hide things…