26 April 2014

April

April has gone by so fast... here is a little of what I have been up to:

The first week in April my middle son had a birthday... as I was making cupcakes for him my oven died. DIED. Completely. After an hour in the oven I had raw cupcakes. The light was warm enough to activate the baking powder, which allowed them to ooze over the edges of the pan and develop a very thin, light crust on top...


but they were completely raw. The oven has been dying since we arrived here in July - but, it was waiting for a special moment to die completely. So, I improvised and bought cupcakes and added sprinkles.


Nobody noticed the difference.

 I'm not sure how I feel about that.



The kids all skipped school and we went to crystal palace - an indoor amusement park. It was nice to spend some time just with our family. It's been fun having exchange students but I miss spending time together just as a family.

We have a family birthday tradition of whoever's birthday it is, they get to choose what to have for dinner.

They can choose anything.

My daughter always chooses a big greek feast with leg of lamb. I look forward to it all year.

This year, my son challenged me.


He chose hotdogs.

 Hotdogs.

I have never bought hotdogs in my life. I really don't like them. When they ask for them I will usually buy bison smokies...but hotdogs? Really? My poor deprived child was so excited when I served him real hotdogs.

It was the easiest meal I have ever made. I see the appeal. About ten minutes in the kitchen and dinner was served. But, I still am looking forward to that leg of lamb...

After the oven died - we had to special order a new one. Ours is natural gas and not many people here have natural gas - so, we had almost three weeks without an oven. The week our oven died there was a sale on BBQ's, so we bought a charcoal grill that neither my husband or I knew how to use. Lucky for us we knew a griling expert...


and my husband began his grill master training. He's still learning...but we are enjoying his attempts at perfection. 


We've been grilling a lot...pretending summer is coming...or at least spring... it snowed this week again.

Easter was pretty low key this year, but I had fun decorating eggs with the kids. 


We didn't get too fancy... just coloured them and then I bought some face stickers...


My six year old loved them and didn't want to eat his.


I've been busy with school and trying to practice everything I've learned. I think I'll need a few years of practice before I get really good at it but I am having fun.

The six year old was super excited this week when he lost his two front teeth at once. He looks older now.


This month I have been thinking about how quickly my kids are growing up. This is a strange year for me. This is the first year I have all my kids in school and it is the first time I am away from home going to school. I miss my family. I feel so blessed to have them. There really is no greater joy than being a mom. 

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for the smiles! You've gotta just love real life!! It's such a breath of fresh air to know I'm not the only one not living a "fairy tale life". Raw cupcakes and all. Your mention of Crystal Palace brought back good memories. My little boys are now men and you are absolutely right that they grow up fast. But that's ok. I love them just as much and they are still my greatest joy! Have a good week! :o)

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