Exercising my brain

I spend most of my day putting out fires started by my very own High Queen of Drama...ahem...sorry...Grace, and wiping various stinky and sticky places on a little boy who manages to get dirty and disgusting only 5 minutes after getting dressed for the day. So...I figured I needed to exercise this brain of mine, you know, give it a little stimulation, a little run for it's exhausted money (other than Facebook and blog stalking of course)...so I've started reading more, MUCH more. It's something I've always enjoyed, but just stopped doing once children took over my days. So with the help of a ROCKING garage sale loaded with hundreds of great books priced to sell, my arsonel is loaded, and I find myself wanting to read all. the. time.
I started with several Dean Kootz books. I can read through one of those in about 24 hours...I'm not sure if it's the fact that the man is a fantastic writer or if I'm so dang scared I just wanna hurry up and get to the "happy" ending. But then last week I picked up a book called "The Year of Living Biblically" by A.J. Jacobs...and let me tell ya, loyal blog readers, this is one of THE BEST books I've read in a long time! It's about an agnostic guy who decides for one year to literally LIVE the bible--Here's a little bit about the book:

"The Year of Living Biblically answers the question: What if a modern-day American followed every single rule in the Bible as literally as possible. Not just the famous rules – the Ten Commandments and Love Thy Neighbor (though certainly those). But the hundreds of oft-ignored ones: don’t wear clothes of mixed fibers. Grow your beard. Stone adulterers. A.J. Jacobs’ experiment is surprising, informative, timely and funny. It is both irreverent and reverent. It seeks to discover what’s good in the Bible and what is maybe not so relevant to 21st century life. And it will make you see the Good Book with new eyes. Thou shalt not put it down."

....and...here's his website

I'm only halfway through...but I just want to shout from the top of Blog Mountain "READ THIS BOOK"!!!!!!!!!!! It's funny, it's heartwarming, it's making me a better Christian...

P.S. Oh...and A.J. Jacobs...if you're reading this (you said you often "goggle" your name)...that is just so way beyond cool...please...leave a comment :)

Ummmmm....

.....yeh, how much watermelon is TOO much watermelon?? Can a baby "overdose" on watermelon? Do I need to be alarmed?? Sam ate. his. weight. in watermelon tonight. I finally had to tell him it was "all gone" and pry his wet, sticky hands from the bowl. My mom sez there are two types of people "those who like watermelon, and those who don't"...she also sez that a watermelon lover should not marry ANOTHER watermelon lover or vice versus--a watermelon hater should not marry another watermelon hater. Nope. The two should be "equally yoked"--a watermelon lover should marry a watermelon hater...(I'm not really sure WHY but she also sez to marry as man who loves his momma and who loves cats...but that's a whole 'nother story) After his initial "watermelon experience" I can say with absolute certainty that Sam is a watermelon LOVER...and seriously folks, I'm thinking too much of a good thing might make for a NASTY diaper...I dunno, Grace never really ate watermelon (she's a hater), so this is ALL new territory for me....I'll keep you updated :)

After much anticipation...

Grace got to meet baby Peyton Cofer! (And I got to meet him too...) Peyton was born on July 10th...He weighed 8lbs (yes EVEN!) and he was 21 inches long. As you can see from the pictures, he is absolutely perfect! We can't wait to teach him all SORTS of things!!! Good job Kristy and Justin...welcome to the wacky world of parenthood!

And no my loyal blog readers...this is NOT a preview of "things to come" for the Farris household. We are DONE procreating...all ya get from us is two...and I think that's MORE than enough...

The 4th of July

I am very "bloggy" lately...oh well, when it rains, it pours I suppose.

I do not like the 4th of July. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE this country. I love living in the USA and I love apple pie and hamburgers and hot dogs. I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. It's just the means of celebrating our freedom that sends me running for a dark room, and makes me want to shove those foamy ear plugs into my ears. The sound of fireworks, the deep boom they make that reverberates through my entire body, and the ever present fear that one might, just might, blow a hand or foot (or both) off all in the name of Lady Liberty makes me cringe and wish wish wish for July 5th...ANYWAY...I've already blogged about my hatred for celebratory explosives, so I'll get to the REAL reason for this post. The REAL reason for this post is to tell you that my husband, the man I have chosen to spend the rest of my life with, my "soul mate", my partner...yeh, that guy....he LOVES fireworks (I think secretly he would tell you that he likes most anything that blows up and fireworks are a GREAT excuse to channel his unnatural obsession)...yet another example of "opposites attracting" But you see the problem we run into is that we have procreated--not once, but twice--and Earl feels that it is his obligation to expose our offspring to the American tradition of blowing stuff up on the 4th of July. So I just stepped back, packed a cooler, and let him do his thing. And what fun we had. I honestly say that with ALL sincerity. I'm truly glad we went. The fireworks were loud, yes. But the community orchestra was mostly on key and the light show was beautiful. Both children had a fantastic time and I do believe a memory (and a family tradition) was made. I told Earl in the car on the way home that next year I will most certainly dig my heels in and insist that fighting the crowds just to see stuff explode is not worth the trouble, but to make me go anyway...to remind me what fun we had the year before. It's a good thing these kid have two parents....one to make sure there's lots of fun memories being made and one to pack the cooler.

The 3rd of July...

was Friday night. And Friday night at the Farris house is PIZZA NIGHT. Not the kind you have delivered. Nope. Handmade, choose your own toppings, grate your own cheese kind of pizza. This past Friday we invited our friends Kristy and Justin over to join in the fun. Kristy is VERY pregnant with baby Peyton, due ANY day...and can I just tell you how super duper excited Grace is about this baby! She can hardly wait to "meet baby Peyton and hold him and look at his tiny hands" and "Mom, do they have chairs at the hospital? Because I want to hold baby Peyton and I will be very quiet, and very still Mom...and I will wash my hands" She says she is "SO decided (meaning "excited") for Peyton to come out of Kristy's tummy"...I'm excited too, just not that 4 year old kind of innocent, wonderful excited. It is fun to watch Grace anticipate this baby...thanks for letting us join in the journey Kristy. Anyway...Pizza night. I am on the quest for the ULTIMATE pizza crust recipe and have found that this recipe from EasyPizzaCrust.com is my favorite so far (please send me your recipes if you have them...I love to try new stuff!!):

4 cups all purpose or baking flour (I use half wheat flour) 2 cups warm water 2 tablespoons instant dry yeast 1/3 cup granulated sugar 1 teaspoon salt Mix all these ingredients into a bowl and stir them together until a sticky dough is formed. Cover the bowl with a moist kitchen towel and let the dough rise in a warm area for about 30 minutes. Turn the dough out onto a floured area and knead with your hands about 5 to 10 times. Roll the dough to about one half inch thick and top with sauce and your desired pizza toppings. You will want to bake this pizza crust for about 15 to 18 minutes. Set your oven to 375 degrees F.

We made a MeatLovers pizza with hamburger and turkey pepperoni! And a Veggie Parmesan Alfredo pizza with zucchini and onion (my personal fav!)! And I also made my first FRUIT pizza, decorated red, white, and blue for the 4th of July! It was a wonderful feast with some good friends! I love pizza night!
Sam loves pizza night as well...and he can eat it like a normal person now, too! No more cutting it up into little teeny tiny pieces! Nope, just throw a slice down on the highchair tray and homeboy gobbles it up. It's not pretty and he goes STRAIGHT to the bath after dinner, but it sure is some delicious fun!
I hope Kristy doesn't kill me for posting this one, but it's such a sweet photo...Kristy has been so gracious to share her pregnancy "journey" with our family. It has been fascinating to watch her tummy grow rounder and rounder. I know, I know...I've been pregnant twice, this should be old news to me now...But it's a totally different thing to be a bystander and not a participant! Sam loves belly buttons...ANY belly button, so when we pulled up Kristy's shirt to watch baby Peyton roll around, Sam discovered that moving, pregnant belly buttons are LOTS of fun!!! We can't WAIT to meet you Peyton...we have lots to teach you--like how to work the water/ice dispenser on the fridge, or how to climb onto the couch using the DOG as a "step stool". And we have lots of cars and balls for you to play with when you come to our house!!! Keep Kristy and Justin close in your prayers the next few days (and NIGHTS!)...the doc has decided that it is time for Peyton to join us in the real world and Kristy goes in tonight (July 9th) to be induced!! WE ARE SOOOOO "DECIDED"!!!!

We RAN OUT OF COFFEE. For 2 days. No coffee. That is absolutely ludicrous. Trust me, it will never happen again. And being married to a NON-coffee drinker (I know, I know...that's a whole 'nother post), I was the only person concerned about the lack of the delicious black drink that brings me to life every morning. I almost went next door and asked my neighbor for a cup, but she doesn't drink coffee either (WHAT? is wrong with these people?!). But last night after VBS, Grace and I stopped at the store and fixed the problem...Ahhhh , it's amazing how a few scoops of coffee grounds can transform a girl...

On a different note: I've started my training for the half marathon in October. I feel pretty good...slow as mud, but getting stronger with each run. I have started tracking my runs on mapmyrun.com! It is addictive!!! Dan and I got our Road ID's in the mail a few days ago...like I mentioned earlier, mine is pink!! LOVE it!! I also run with another form of "security"...just to be safe! Ya never know who is lurking in the shadows of your running route...soooo meet my running partner...Harry the dog....

He does great. His stride matches my stride. He keeps his nose up most of the run, with only the occasional *sniff* of a mailbox or trashcan. He is learning that I HATE it when he stops to pee and that I WILL NOT WAIT on him...nope Mommy just keeps one running, whether the dog is moving or not. He really is the ultimate running buddy, and is always thrilled to join me at 6am, with a doggy smile on his face. And the best part? He's my very own furry bodyguard on a braided leather leash.

And now...I'm going to rant a little...

2 things. People who text and fireworks. RUDE.
We'll start with texting. There is NO reason for it. Don't do it while you drive, or while you're standing in the MIDDLE of the aisle at the store, or in church, or EVER...it's rude. Plus it removes you from the real world. You are at a disconnect. Do you REALLY believe that texting back and forth is in depth, meaningful conversation? CALL. PEOPLE. Visit people. Get in their lives, learn about them...love them, embrace them, support them. Be in the moment...But by all means....STOP texting. You're gonna have a wreck.
Kay...now...fireworks. Is it really necessary to spend your HARD earned money on something you just blow up?? At 11 o'clock at night and then bright and early at 7:30 in the morning??? It hurts my ears...it makes my dog freak out...it wakes my kids up....and something is gonna catch fire...I just know it. Or you're gonna blow your hand off. I'm glad we're free...I'm thrilled to live in America, wouldn't live ANYWHERE else...but can't we celebrate with food?? Ya know, a fruit pizza carefully arranged to look like a flag? Hamburgers are good...Cookies...chips. Streamers and balloons even. But let's not blow stuff up...It's terribly unsafe and highly annoying.
ahhh...much better...thank you and goodnight...

Baby brother goes to time out...

Isn't this the SADDEST thing?? This is Sam's first time in "time out"...he hit Grace...square in the face...I had to do SOMETHING...for Grace's sake anyway. He actually took it quite well. Sat for the full (well ALMOST full--He crawled toward me at one point) 1 minute. When he got out, he had to "apologize" to his sister. She was so gracious (I think she realized this discipline was all very new to her baby brother)...she forgave him with a hug and a kiss...about an hour later, he did it again. It's gonna be a LONG toddler hood.

We are going to GrandTone and Grandpa Trumpet's house soon. This visit is preceded with a lot of excitement by all members of the Farris family. If you haven't BEEN to GrandTone's house, you should go...it is Neverland (and NO, not the Micheal Jackson kind). Lots of room to roam and explore, lots of random outside toys (a tricycle, an old rusted wagon, a pile of dirt filled with wiggly worms), coffee--always the coffee. When we arrive I turn the kids loose...they return to me hours later, grinning, exhausted, hungry, covered in dirt and melted Popsicle. We stay up too late, we plan too many projects, we eat great food...and we drink more coffee. Here is what we want to do when we go to visit:
Danny--Ride his bike...ride his bike...ride his bike...ride his bike...eat weeneroni...ride his bike
Grace--Catch fireflies and worms ("Mom, the worms are still at GrandTone's right?")
Me--Make a rain barrel, run Dad's 4 mile loop, drink coffee, go to Meig's and get my wedding ring cleaned, sit on the back deck and drink more coffee, make orange Sunkist pop ice cream, go to Sonic and park on the "cool side", catch fireflies with my daughter
Sam--He doesn't really know what he is in for just yet...he'll probably enjoy the weeneroni and the worms...there isn't much he doesn't like....
Can't wait Mom and Dad!! See you soon!