Ratatouille!

I (Geoff) decided to make fresh ratatouille today using only things from our garden. I walked out with an empty basket and came back with this


Some preparation shots


Ceci helped chop veggies - and her finger!









4 hours later!!

But it was delicious and worth it! That's good living!

Taking the trash out

The other day I noticed Geoff taking out the trash. I commented how nice it was that he was well enough to take the trash out, and mentioned the days in France when I took the trash out every day. Then in that moment of reflection, in one flash of an instant, I could see how valuable that mundane task was to my overall sanity while in France.

Geoff was sick and on doctor's orders to have "no responsibility" and I was taking the bulk of the load of family life, in addition to homeschooling for the first time...in a foreign country where I didn't speak the language or have any resources of any kind. It was an overwhelming challenge most days.

Every day I took the trash up the 122 stairs to our trash bin. It wasn't one of my favorite jobs.



In recollection, though, I remembered turning around to descend to the house and seeing this...


A camera can't capture the breathtaking beauty of this view, with Italy just a mile to the left with its beautiful mountains and cliffs, and colorful old town Menton to the right, and the wide, clear view of the Mediterranean spread out with its sparkly blue expansiveness. I would stop every day and take it in, and I would think to myself, "This may be a challenging time, but it is a challenging time in paradise!" Suddenly I went from feeling beaten down and tired to alive and full of gratitude for the absolute gift it was to be where we were. It was simply having a larger perspective that changed how I was feeling. Looking back, what seemed like a burden at the time was really what kept me going every day, and grateful every day for what was so amazing in our lives.

I don't have that amazing view anymore, and new burdens have replaced the old ones, but the principles of perspective remain: pausing a moment, opening my view, and being grateful...every day. Grateful even for the mundane tasks that may seem dreadful right now, but someday we may look back, with new perspective, and see how they sustained us.

Tennie the cook

We went blackberry picking earlier this week and Tennie decided she wanted to make a cobbler...which she did tonight. Here it is...


It was fantastic!!

Preserve the asset

Years ago when I was weary from carrying too heavy a load at too fast a pace Geoff encouraged me to get away, to slow down and to identify resources that could support me. He told me we needed to "preserve the asset". As you know, when mom isn't happy, no one is happy. (I like knowing that I'm an asset...somewhere...somehow!)

With the school year fast approaching, and my hopeful lazy summer quickly diminishing, I mentioned to Geoff that it would be nice to get away and get some R&R, get focused and prepare for a new school year. Before I knew it I was on a plane to Southern Utah to visit my mom with Geoff waving me off saying, "We'll be great here! Enjoy yourself!" Man, I got a good one.

Geoff and the girls are in San Francisco eating ice cream sundaes at Ghiradelli and going to the Picasso exhibit. Since there probably won't be any pictures I thought I would at least give it a mention. Meanwhile, I'm looking at math curriculum and researching extracurricular activities, and enjoying a nice slow pace. I can feel my very low battery recharging...

Random bits of our week

We've been busy getting ready for Blackberry Days which begins tomorrow! The girls look forward to this week all year. When not waxing floors and washing endless sheets we spent some time with friends. The girls had a Spa Day at their friend Kylie's, and I wish I had some pictures of them with their oatmeal masks, and the fancy hairdos Kylie whipped up. Kylie also got a new kitten so we spent a few more days there getting the girl's fill of cats. Here are a few of the random shots that ended up on my camera...

Ceci took this photo of herself. The pose is most definitely inspired by her aunt Brittany...

Ceci took this picture of Tennie...a common shot with pencil and paper!

This picture of Ceci is for my dad...she is in one of his t-shirts (her pjs)

Adele set up a beauty salon in the bathroom

Her customer all decked out with polished nails, hair styled, make-up done, and a feather extension to boot!

We spent an afternoon at Folsom Lake with my old high school friend Hayley and her three kids:
Dolly, Sophie and Tucker

Lastly, helping Mormor with the planting

More on summer jobs...

Summer jobs are coming along. I dream of my children finishing breakfast and jumping into their daily jobs cheerfully, and without reminder; the house running smoothly with everyone doing their part. During this summer training I would like to say that all the jobs get done, checked off, and we are a well-cogged wheel. But some jobs go undone, and I still do a lot of reminding. Overall though, these kids of ours do a great deal around the house without complaint. Their help most definitely makes my/our life easier.

A week or so ago I was running kids around, trying to do a list of things (that were for the family), and felt that I was getting behind on some of my housework. My room was a mess, and I had a pile of laundry a mile high. While making dinner the girls asked if I would read more of the current book we are reading to them and I told them I had some things to get done that I didn't want to put off any longer...so no, I was not available to read. After dinner, feeling tired, yet determined, I went to my room to get started on my tasks. It was spotless. The laundry was folded and put away (all of it!), and there was a little note written by Adele on my bed that said something like, "We wanted to help so we did the laundry." The girls were so full of joy for having done something for me, and were dancing around saying, "Now you have time to read!" I was so overcome with their love, and figured that while our summer job training is far from ideal...it must be working...at least a little bit!

The girls helped Geoff's mom paint the old trailer with spray paint. Adele is guarding her nose from the smell...

Adele cleaning out Kipper's food/water dishes

Tennie scrubbing the sink...

and a few of her finishing touches

And totally unrelated to a post about job training...

Ceci wanted me to straighten her hair for church today. I took a picture and then she took over the camera and somehow got these two adorable pictures of herself. I wanted to share.

Lazy Summer Days

We're alive here, just lazy. And in between being lazy we've been sprucing up the garden, cleaning the house a little more deeply than we have time for during the year, trying out some healthy recipes, playing games and reading good books, having friends over, and swimming whenever possible. Unfortunately, no matter how slow we try to take it...summer seems to be zooming by!

An extensive Littlest Pet Shop game has taken over the hallway this week