Bits: Laughing Good

Once when my brother was a wee thing, he told a joke.  Jokes that I totally get now that I'm a thirty-four year old mother who often has to fake-laugh to the likes of:

Knock, knock!
Who's there?
Duck.
Duck Who?
Duck, who's gonna quack on you!!!!!

My Dad, being not so good at the fakey kinds of stuff, responded with a literal hardy har har har.  Kind of kidding, but still-- not good.

My brother, usually a pretty laid back fella, was mad and hurt rolled into one.  The rest of us poorly attempted stifled laughter, and to this day we joke about it from time to time.  I still don't believe he thinks it's funny.

Well, that's the way of comparing Friday before last to this past one.  Last Friday being all "Homeschool-yay! TGIF, e-v-e-r-y body!" and this one being all, "Where'd you come from cold?  My head's going to explode.  Alysse had a twenty four hour bug and I literally had to sit up all night with her in the upright position 'cause girlfriend was so out of it she almost choked every few minutes.  Thank you, movie collection, for the awesome job you and our box full of art supplies did babysitting.  Jesus help me; is it bedtime yet?"

In the matter of a week, I guess the week told me:

Hardy har har har.

That's alright.  I'm not going to be bitter, largely due to the fact that God's been answering prayers around here.  More on that later, but I am grateful.

Long story short: patience IS a virtue. 

And grateful, even when I've had my moments of sick and grumpy and all, is what the bits are all about.
****

:: Add cartoon artist to her list of dream jobs.  She creates in a flurry of passion and thick strokes and bold colors.  And loves heroes, adventure, and comic strip style.

:: Maddie, on the other hand, is slow and careful with most of her creations.  They are soft and detailed.  She likes romance and sparkly, happy endings.

This is totally a Katrina-face.  People, you should see my kindergarten photo.

:: Alysse just likes to have a paint brush or marker in her hand.  Can be deadly with some scissors, though.

{Photo replaced by your mental image of my carefully chasing her and the scissors down.}

:: So glad folks love new recipes!  I too need some new inspiration every now and then.  Here's a no fuss, much lighter option that we make some variation of almost every week.

Did you know Joe's family is Mediterranean?  That's not really why we make this salad, but anywho-- it is an easy, peasey meal. Chop favorite lettuce; romaine works great but mostly spinach is pictured since that's what we had on hand.  Then add any or all sorts of Mediterranean-like toppings; tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, feta cheese, onions, peppers, etc.  Toast some pita bread and serve on the side with your favorite hummus (roasted red pepper is delish!) Dress with your favorite balsamic or greek vinaigrette.

Note: I don't make different meals for our family; generally everyone eats (or at least tries) the same thing.  Sometimes, though, I serve it up in different ways-- like for this I would serve the girls pita and hummus, while breaking up the toppings on the side.  Since we really dig salads, I do this often with lots of different combinations (Another fave: romaine lettuce, mandarin oranges and/or apples, cranberries, feta, walnuts or almonds, and a raspberry vinaigrette).

:: It's Valentine making season.  Feeling the love, especially while we try to understand the best explanation of love there is.

Our little family love note station. Adorable, free printables here.

:: When we have sick days or catch-up days and the girls get some extra dvd/video time, I've learned not to be too concerned.  It fuels plays, reenactments, new plots, pausing the show to try and draw the characters, a desire to understand cartooning, newspaper or book spin-offs, and more.  Of course, I love them to read and play outside and tap into their own originality-- but I also love that they see potential for creativity everywhere.  Plus, who doesn't need to vege out from time to time?

Toy Story aftermath; First thing in the morning and they have gathered every toy or object in the house that could serve as a character.  Alysse is barely awake and already jumping into some terrific story lines.  Hope was probably off finding or creating the rest of what they needed.

:: My baby loving one of her babies. Sometimes I so badly wish I could have my Leesie pint sized again and in a carrier right over my heart.  I smile just remembering her as a chubby little ball of love.

Oh.

Laughing Good,
Katrina
xo

ps... Valentine's Day math, no?
Free bar graph printable here.