Catching Up

Ok, so I just read the last blog, and it was posted nearly a month ago.  Once you read this one, I think you will understand why it has been a bit!

I did accept the science job, and so far, so good.  The kids had a teacher for the first month, but he resigned as he could not find a place for him and his family to live.  The district lost 7 teachers because of housing shortage, both to buy and to rent, and high prices vs. salary as well.  So, a month of a teacher, 8 weeks of subs (most lasted 2 weeks then bailed) then they get me.  Life is going to be very different from here on out for them, for sure!  Suffice it to say that order has been restored and learning has commenced!  I have my work cut out for me.  Wenatchee science really spoiled me-a team that knows each other and works well together, learning focused, and so dang organized!  I miss the pre-sorted red tubs of gear that held everything we needed for our lessons, demonstrations, and labs.  I have YET to do a lab with either my 6th or my 7th grade classes.  One, because I still don't have that level of confidence that the kids will follow directions, and two, because the room is not conducive to holding labs.  I have 2 working sinks and a room full of the awful desk/chair single student units.  They really only work in rows, which does not do well for group work.  I would have loved to do the lab to teach the kids how to use indicators for sugar and starch this week in 7th, and the 6th class to make pop bottle clouds.  There is only so much you can do watching YouTube demonstrations!  I can also do the demos, but have to have the equipment.  Which we don't.  Bet you I will be having a LONG talk with both my principal, secondary education assistant superintendent, and district science chair.  A LONG talk.  On the plus side, the kids are coming along, and I love my next door teacher.  It is his first year, but he retired military.  He got a chemistry education degree 30 years ago and wanted to do something after his service.  He ran an analysis lab in Afghanistan looking at the composition of IED's to see if they could trace back suppliers.  Delightful person with a wealth of life experience to share with us.  The kids haven't chewed him up and spit him out yet, so he'll be fine!

On the house front, we are closing on Dec 4, get the keys on Dec 8, and the container arrives Dec 10!  It will be unpacked on Dec 11, and we are so ready to move in.  The little bungalow is working, but we all want our things and our space.  I am taking off the week so we can get settled in ASAP.  Lyle is also taking a couple of days to help put it all together, and Dad and Ralph (hopefully!) are coming down on the 10th or 11th with the rest of our stuff that has been stashed in Idaho.  They will get to see us in full move in mode-which Dad and Mom witnessed when we moved from NY to Wenatchee, but that was with just 2 kids!  Looks like we will be getting some bonus things as well-another bedset, bought Meg's futon/couch for the den, my old formals (yikes!), boxes of games and toys from my old stuff.  I'm just hoping sis can find my old yearbooks and elementary pictures!  Watch out Facebook if they show up!  Also, the teachers will appreciate this-the week I am taking off is MAPS testing week-all week, and being done in the SCIENCE classes, so I don't have to make lesson plans!!!!  I'll leave some review work if they need something to do on the last day, but YAY in a BIG WAY!

We have also been in puppy research mode.  I think we have settled on either a Labrador/poodle aka Labradoodle, or a golden retriever/poodle, Goldendoodle.  They have a "non shed" coat, which I appreciate from my allergy standpoint, and it is a dog, which the kids can hardly wait for.  Alex has been dreaming of puppies as she has been taking point on the research front and feeding me names and locations of breeders in the southwest and west Texas.  We really, really, really looked hard at the Soft Coated Wheaten Terriers and Airedale Terrier, but those breeds look to be above average for busy and destructive.  Puppies are busy enough, and I don't want my shoes being eaten for years!  Looking to bring the puppy into the family in the spring or summer!  It's already named too-Bundy, after Bundaburg, Australia.  Sydney was too obvious.

Thanksgiving break has been a godsend.  We have the entire week off, and Lyle will just get Thursday off.  Football and traditional dinner coming our way!  I'm planning a lesson plan day so I can kick back the rest of the week and hit it after break.

Kids are doing really well.  They want their own rooms again, but school is going well.  Ian got a 100 on a spelling test.  The words all had those darn "sneaky e's" in them.  Word examples are like, make, take, etc.  Those long vowel, consonant, silent e words are sneaky!  His reading is really coming along, and he LOVES math.  He really enjoys the math lessons with me as they are hands on with lots of games instead of papers.  I love that he loves them and asks to do them.  For some reason, he doesn't ask to do his reading, but he does like to earn his stickers so he can shop at the dollar store.  Worth every sticker and every penny for the cheap stuff!

Most likely won't be writing until we are nearly all moved in.  I know how time gets sucked away when there is so much going on around here.  So glad to be back stateside-

Love,
Gayle

Settling In

Now that we are here, there is still so much to do!  First, our trip South.

We decided to take the 20 hours of driving in 4 easier days.  2 10 hours days-I think someone would have been left by the roadside!  Our first day we went to Salt Lake City.  We stayed just a couple of of blocks from Squatters Brew Pub and LOVED the food and drink.  We really wanted Polygamy Porter t-shirts, but they were out of our sizes.  Bummer!

Day 2 was to Grand Junction, CO via Arches National Park.  We had wanted to stay in Moab, but very few hotels there would let us put 5 people in one room.  The kids loved it-the short walks and views in the park are great for smaller kiddos who complain about walking!  We would love to do Canyon Lands in a couple of years with them!  It was a beautiful drive to Grand Junction when we were done and guess what?  Another brew pub for dinner!

Day 3 was a super short, but very scenic drive to Durango.  Dad had spoke very highly of highway 550 through Ouray, so we said why not!  He was right, it was one of the most beautiful drives we have done!  Snow, trees, lots of cliffs and stunning views!  Dad had done it on his motorcycle several years ago-there is a bit of perception difference when looking at a narrow 2 lane road that you can only drive 15 mph on and there is a 300 ft sheer drop down the side!  I was white knuckling the drive, Annika forgot to tell us she needed to pee before we drove through Ouray, so the whole drive was a bit of a trial to us all.  We didn't find a brew pub for dinner-bummer!  This was our favorite day of all.  We went to Mesa Verde National Park and were stunned.  We only were able to see one of the cliff dwellings, but it was amazing.  All of us are planning to go back next summer and see them all.

Day 4 to Albuquerque was a great day.  We stopped early and just--stopped.  I filled in all the registration papers for school for the kids-that took about 2 hours!  I'm sure there is plenty to do in town, but we didn't want to do much of anything.  Dinner was IHOP.  Pancakes for dinner ROCK!

Day 5 to Carlsbad was a long, boring, drive.  The roads are 2 lane each way highways, so easy driving.  But it is pretty flat and not much to see.  We got in early afternoon, unpacked the bags into the 3 bed 2 bath bungalow, and got ready to take on the town the next day.  Work and School, here we come!

Everyone is off to a good start. Alex is working her way through her middle school and figuring out where she will fit in.  She seems to have a nice group of girls around her.  Annika has a whole class of best friends.  Ian, I am still working on him.  He is enrolled in the same school as Annika, but I am looking at a Montessori charter school just down from Alex's school.  He learns differently-visual and hands on.  Reading is a real struggle for him, but he is doing well with the program working with me.  He struggles getting into the new routines and understanding what he needs to do, so has been really stressed.  When I picked him up yesterday, he burst into tears!  He had a headache, sore throat, and was exhausted.  He slept over an hour after school, drank several glasses of water (dehydrated) and I dosed him with some kids advil.  He's home with me today.  I made him start his new math program with me-again, he learns things differently!  He really amazed me with how much he has learned.  So, we will see how that all turns out.

Lets see-how about the house update next?  We finally settled on a price with the owner, and the appraisal came in MUCH lower than we had settled on.  So, at least in our favor.  The seller isn't happy.  He apparently based his price on appraisals he had done as part of a divorce settlement, and he got screwed to put it plainly.  So, he is taking it out on us.  Nit picky details in the amendments, closing 5 days before possession.  He has now said he won't do the nail holes and paint touchups since he redid the master tub and the dryer vents that were broken.  As of this writing, we still haven't finally got it done.  Hope to tonight!  I need to schedule the container delivery and get the house unpacked!

I also had a job interview Yesterday!  It is for a grade 6-7 science job, and it is full time.  They offered the job on the spot, so I have a lot of "homework" to do getting the paperwork in for yet another teaching license and the district job application.  The good news is they will accept up to 12 years of my teaching experience!  The bad news is that all the college credits I earned between my BS and MS won't count.  Bummer!  It will still make for a nice salary though.

Lyle is going to be doing the training programs at each of the different sites at the plant.  He will basically be doing 10-13 hours, 5 days a week for the next 6-8 weeks as he is rotated through.  This first bit will be a long haul, but it will be done.  Then I bet he will be doing long days just because that is what the job will need until they can get more engineers on staff.

And, off I go.  Ian and I have our reading to do.  As of the end of the lesson today, he has earned enough stickers to get the Nerf guns for wars with daddy.  Those two are too funny!  Looks like Ian won't be back with me tomorrow!

Love you all!

We are here, we are here, we are here!

As you may guess from the title, we are HERE!

It has been a crazy several days.  Travel back to Boise from Brisbane takes over 30 hours from start to finish.  You would have laughed until you peed your pants to see us hauling our suitcases from the maxi taxi to the airport terminal!  10 checked bags and 2 wheeled carryons with a backpack for each person.  When you have to live out of what you bring for up to three months, you pack it all with you.

We had a whirlwind time in Nampa.  2 cars and a mortgage dealt with (but more on that later!) in only 3 days and we are now in Carlsbad and have just put an offer down on a house we love.  Have to see how that turns out!  Now to wait until Thursday late afternoon to see if our offer is accepted or if we have much back and forth with it.

Lyle and I have the keys to our 3 bedroom, 2 bath bungalow.  It is about the same square footage as the townhouse we lived in our first year in Australia, so this will work just fine!  It's all on 1 floor, so no 3 flights of stairs to get into the house!  The biggest drawback is that it is on the opposite side of town from where the kids will be going to school.  Lots of driving in the meantime.

The cars have turned out to be a lot of "fun" to deal with.  The dealer finance office seems to be having a problem with our not having a permanent address when we applied, but we have the cars in our possession.  I feel kind of bad for the salesman as he is trying to get us to come in and re-sign our credit application with the New Mexico (temporary) address, but we are in New Mexico and can't just drop by to re-do the paperwork!  We have some letters from the company regarding our living situation.  It's hard for some to wrap their heads around!  Heck, sometimes we just have to look at each other and laugh and laugh and laugh.

We still have a run to Oregon to do before we do the drive south and get going here.  So, while we have done an incredible amount in the last week, we still have a lot to go!

Much love and hugs!!

1 Day, at least for us!

Finally, it is here!  While we are sad to leave our friends in Australia, we are excited to go back to the USA and meet more new people in our new place, Carlsbad, New Mexico.

We spent these last few weeks coordinating our last weeks of school and move out.  It has been a doosy too.  I handed off uniforms and sold uniforms as Annika and Ian had worn theirs for the entire time we were here and they were a bit faded.  Those were the had overs.  Alex, having just worn hers for a few months, were sold to a friend whose daughter will be starting at Cav Rd in February.  Good use all around by everyone.  I also pulled out of my teaching contract a week early. I was supposed to do the last full week of the term as opposed to my usual 2 days per week as my partner teacher was going to cover the assistant principal job.  I wanted to minimize the upheaval to my class kiddos, so asked to leave a bit early so 1 person could do the whole week, and they the first 4 of term 4.  The office didn't notify payroll of this, so I was overpaid for 2 days and had to get it back to them.  At least banking here is much easier as it is almost all online!

Sydney was beautiful as expected.  We have the usual gorgeous shots from the harbor looking back at the opera house and bridge, close ups of the tiles of the Opera House, and we visited the Taronga Zoo across the harbor from the opera house.  Our hotel was a bit of a walk from these scenic views however!  We traversed several sets of historic steps that wound down through old neighborhoods and to the warf area.  We then meandered through the botanic gardens, along with about 50,000 other people.  Apparently it was a running festival day and thousands were doing their 5k, 10k, half and full marathons!  Very crowded, but vibrant.  We passed through the crowds and to Circular Quay (pronounced key) and then over to Darling Harbor and the Rocks area.  I know we missed as much as we saw, and we didn't get to do the whole harbor cruise, but I was happy to have personally seen the highlights.

Once at home, we spent the rest of Tuesday packing our bags to live out of for the next 3 months of transition into winter weather.  We had to bring more than we wanted as we needed jackets, jeans, sweatshirts, etc.  Didn't need those coming over as it felt like summer no matter the calendar over here!  In all of 3-4 hours, the bags were packed, the pack last items from the kitchen set aside, and the craziness could begin in the morning.

Knock on wood, but this has been a pretty smooth process so far.  The packers were rock stars!  I gave them the grand tour and turned them loose.  They were happy to have an experienced mover on their hands who let them just get-r-done.  They worked from 8-1 both days.  In visiting with them I understand that many households have a last minute freak about packing and try to weed items out, delay packing because they want to have access to an entire room (kitchen) until the last possible minute, so their days can get insane long.  Not us!  But, I was the girl who was ready on time for the wedding pictures and was scolding the photographer for being late, when he had added 30 minutes because "brides never run on time."  HA!  I also convinced the loaders to come a bit early on Friday so my cleaners could start earlier and finish it all on Friday.  I hired professional cleaners as I knew I would not have the energy or time to do the total clean lease end required.  They washed every.square.centimeter of the entire house.  Walls, counters, everything.  Then I got a call from my carpet and pest guy (also an end of lease requirement) to see if he could get in and even get part of the job done Friday.  The cleaners said to go for it, and he even got the whole job done by 6 Friday.  The leasing agent was thrilled as they now have a day to get all their paperwork done instead of an hour on Monday before the new tenant moves in.  I'm thrilled as I only have to pay 2 days penalty for unleased property since the new tenants come in so fast!

And to keep things real, Ian pulled his front tooth our next to last night in the house, and AFTER his elk hide tooth fairy pillow was packed!  He really wanted his last tooth fairy Australia gold coin to spend on a treat before we left.  Of Course!

We are currently in an apartment hotel in downtown Brisbane and enjoying the city festival.  Friday night was the laser show at Southbank, last night was Riverfire-fireworks all up and down the river.  We did this the first year as Rio Tinto had blocked off their river patio for employees and family members to enjoy the show.  This year we hung out with the riff raff and enjoyed having a 10 minute walk over and back!  I love that with our latitude the show started at 7 pm and done by 730!  Annika and Ian had spent 2 hours in the hotel pool earlier and were passed out on the couch by 800.  As much as I love the fireworks on the 4th of July, having them start at 1015 or 1030 makes for a loooong night for anyone with little kids!  This is much nicer.

Today we are going to the science museum and natural history museum, hitting the pool again, washing and repacking, and organizing a maxi taxi to haul us to the airport in the morning!  We are 24 hours from departing Brisbane.  Love to all! 

This is easy, so far. . .

So, on the move front, moving right along!  Tickets home, tickets to house hunt, temporary medical insurance sourced and paid for, looking online for cars, and outlining our strategy for getting all of it done in a few weeks before we need to BE in New Mexico!  Lots of online paperwork for customs (most can be done once we get to Boise) and doing the detailed inventory for the insurance coverage for our big metal box containing nearly everything we own.  Daunting, but having done before, no big whoop.  I did laugh as the relocation company has me working with a new agent-we are her first move!  She is being closely helped by another associate, but at this point, I know more than she does about the papers and where to find the answers.  I really need to look at this line of work if I get tired of teaching!  Bet they would let me work from wherever we live too. . .

On the not move front, life continues to march onward.  We have taken a few farewell visits to our favorite places around Brisbane.  Headed back to Australia Zoo a couple of weeks ago.  Those were our beginning of the plague weeks apparently.  Alex told me she had a headache and felt blech.  We went anyway and she was ok-ish.  She begged off the next day when we went to a friend's house for a BBQ, but was ok to go to school on Monday.  I then began to feel a sore throat and headache-ugh.  Meds and tough it out.  I've done this before, right?  Then Annika got it really good and stayed home with daddy Friday and me Monday.  Then she started to complain of her chest hurting too-into the doc first thing Tuesday and yep, lung infection.  Then Ian starts in with it-chesty cough and lethargic.  He is not a lethargic kid!  Slept on the couch and a sick day with daddy.  He also got antibiotics to fight the lung infection.  Middle of last week Lyle crashed with it too.  Except he was in Newcastle and wearing a work respirator, which really made it hard to breathe!  He got home Thursday and crashed out.  Fever all weekend, and about the time he started to feel a bit better, the lungs got in on it too.  Into the Doc for him first thing Monday (I now have the office on my favorite list in my phone) and antibiotics.  I pick Annika and Ian up Monday and she is in tears!  Her ear has gone nuts.  Call up the favorites list while waiting in traffic on the speaker phone, the receptionist is laughing at me, and-miracle!  One of the office doctors had a cancellation and can I have her there in 15 minutes?  Oh, yes!  More antibiotics.  Lyle went in today to get his computer and came right home.  He is still fuzzy in the head, but improving well.  The kids are all sniffling, but back to their normal selves.  Goodness, I hope we are done with being sick for awhile!

We are also going to Sydney for a few days before we go!  Hooray!  I will get to see the Opera House, cruise the bay, wander the downtown and the gardens, and we will try very hard to RELAX before it all hits the fan the following week.

I'm also tentatively planning on a friends get together while we are in Nampa as well.  Seeing as we missed all of you on our whirl of a trip a couple of months ago and would love to catch up!  Look to your email inboxes or Facebook invites in a few weeks.  It will be a Saturday in early October!  Maybe we can cheer on the Vandals while we visit!

Love you all!

Coming together. . .

We now have pack and load dates and plane tickets home!  We were able to get flexible fare tickets which meant Lyle was able to use a crapload of airline points and upgraded us all to Premium Economy seats.  This means 6-8 more inches of legroom-hooray!  So instead of sardines, we get to stretch a bit.  These compare to the First Class domestic seats where you have a console between seats.  Also means the kids can't sleep across my lap (scarcastic font -DARN) and will have to stay in their own space.  The fold down Business Class seats are a thing of beauty, but not happening for this many tickets!

Things are doing just what the blog title says, coming together.  There is plenty to be done, but now that we KNOW dates, everything can start to line up.  I compare it to a tsunami-the tide just keeps rolling back until it starts to come in.  Nothing can stop it at that point, you just have to ride it out!  Lyle thinks of it as falling dominoes.  Once they are all lined up you just hold your breath until the first one goes down and you just hope they all go in order with no surprises.  Of course, I prefer the tsunami!

Life continues to move despite big things happening.  We have all had the crud these last few weeks. Ian home Thursday and Friday last week, Alex sick all weekend, Annika home Monday and Tuesday with a doctor visit on Tuesday.  Lung infection and antibiotics for her.  The rest of us just have a nagging cough and sore throat.  I do hope we all get rid of this soon!

We went to a friend's house on Sunday for BBQ dinner.  They have the most precious little girl who is just now 3 months old!  I claimed her for most of the evening.  She is so much like Alex was at that age-wants to look OUT, not over the shoulder.  Might miss something!  She fed and took a really little nap, and was up and watching the rest of the time.  Finally passed out on her mommy during dinner and reported to have slept past 8 am!  Doubt it was through the night, but if she only did 1-2 feeds during the night, that was great for her mommy!  I now understand WHY all the ladies wanted to hold my babies.  They are wonderful, and a few diapers are no big deal either.  But it is so nice to have my sleep and my big snugglers!  Annika had bad dreams and was in bed with us at 4 am.  Cuddles!

Lyle is doing the Bridge to Brisbane run on Sunday morning this weekend.  Sunday is Father's Day here and what better way to celebrate it than by being healthy!  One of his work mates is a runner too and we invite him and his family to come stay the night with us so he doesn't have to leave the house at 3 am to get to the race start.  They have a 4 year old boy and an 8 month old girl.  Ian is excited to have friends sleep over because the boys get the air mattress in the upstairs lounge!  Alex goes to Ian's room (but may be at a friend's house this year) so the grown ups have a bed and room for the baby crib.  Dinner together, Di stays with the kids when I take the boys to the start drop off point, and breakfast done twice.  Once for the kids and when the boys get back about 930 or so we do second breakfast.  Dinner will be homemade pizzas, salad, fruit and breakfast will be pancakes/scones, bacon, eggs and fruit.  Simple and yummy.

We are going through the fun of sorting out the house prior to packing it all up again.  Closet cleaning, clothes that have been outgrown, school uniforms to pass on or sell, taking the BBQ apart and throwing it away-what a mess it is!  While we are coming back with less, we still won't make the 20 foot container.  Have to be 2/3 of a 40 footer.  The patio chairs don't stack or come apart and take up a cubic meter EACH!

Will be posting the car for sale this weekend.  Wish us luck on that one!  Hope we can find a private buyer, otherwise we have to sell to a dealer and will take a bath on it.  Also selling the moving boxes we had to get here as the movers will repack in their own cardboard.  Will get those listed as well-oh the fun!

Miss you all but see you again SOON!

The Beginning of the Return

First my apologies for taking a bit longer than usual to get this post going.  We spent 2 weeks on a whirlwind trip to the states and a week trying to recover from it!  Some good news that I bet you have already figured out from the title as well.  Read on for the details.

For those we have kept in the know, we have been looking for an opportunity to return to the states for the last year.  Lyle took a very quick trip to Elko, NV to interview for a job last October that was a good fit, but they pulled it at the last minute due to a company wide hiring freeze.  Major disappointment and we would have owed back 1/2 of the moving costs to get us out as it was less than 2 years.  But as the saying goes, for every door that closes, a window opens!  Very true in this case.

A few months ago Lyle saw an opening in New Mexico at a fertilizer producer that seemed to have been written with exactly him in mind.  Process experience, technical know how, supervision of hourly and technical staff, trouble shooting, capital projects, prioritizing projects, etc.  You name it, he has done at some point in his career.  At the same time, he linked up with a recruitment specialist online who had been contracted to find someone for this job.  Match made in heaven!  Garry presented Lyle's resume and information to them and the hook was set.  Early morning phone calls and Skype calls for us and the interest continued to be mutual.  Talk of a trip back to the states to interview in person that just happened to be about the same time frame as our already planned trip home.  So, for those we did not get a chance to see, this is why.  We arrived on a Friday afternoon, had the family BBQ on Saturday, and left early Sunday (without the kids) to get to New Mexico for a couple of days of interviews and looking over the area.  Since we were there, Lyle also got to do the physical and drug screenings.  Lots of fun!  And the interest continued to be mutual.

So, returning to Boise on Tuesday night after midnight and leaving Wednesday morning to visit family in Oregon.  Whirlwind there, then back to Boise, up to Grandjean for a mountain getaway (before the fires got going as it turns out) back to Boise on Thursday, massive laundry to get the campfire smell out and wash out the dirt Australian customs just LOVES to find, and out on Friday.  Travel 30+ hours, land, organize for the next day back to work and school, and get caught up on the information coming out of New Mexico.  Needless to say, this was not the most relaxing trip we have ever taken!  I think a week solid at Disney would have had more down time.  Just Sayin!

The first week back we had to organize Lyle's references so they could either be contacted in person or submit their vision of him via online surveys.  Very nice system by the way.  Once HR had spoken with them and received the information on the surveys, they made a very nice offer both for salary, benefits and relocation.  We sorted out the questions and concerns, and Lyle sent the signed forms back in yesterday.  Today he put in his 30 days notice and I notified my school as well.  Now the immigration countdown can begin!

The lists of things to do are a bit overwhelming, but not unforseen!  Nice to have done this before, but we know there will still be surprises.  There always are!  Selling the car, appliances, some of the furniture if we can, sorting the clothes to be packed vs. those that will be shipped, sorting out the kids' "stuff" so we only take back what we will really be using.  The goal is to fit it all into a 20 foot container, but a 40 foot may be more realistic!  The relocation company will deal with scheduling the pack and ship, but anticipating 2-3 months before we get our stuff.  The real fun will be getting a house in Carlsbad.  It is a sellers market, and there simply isn't much of what we are looking for up for sale!  4 Bedroom, 2 1/2 bath and 2000 sq ft really isn't that much, but they don't have much.

So, here is our hoped for schedule.  Finish school here for term 3 on Sept 20.  Hope the pack can be scheduled that last week of school and we will live on air mattresses, paper plates and plastic utensils.  Leave the big bags here and go to New Zealand and Sydney for a week, come back and sign out the house lease, get the fridge/washer/dryer out and get on a plane to get to Boise.  We have to get to NM to either start the buying house process or start building a house, then get back to Boise.  Buy 2 cars, rent a u-haul and clear the stuff out of the shed at Mom and Dad's place and take the furniture.  Organize school registration and school clothes shopping.  Alex is torn on the school clothes shopping bit-she likes not having to think about what to wear!  Temporary housing either in a hotel or a rental until the house is bought or built.  Lots of don't-know-yets, but also lots of flow chart thinking going on.  You know the kind-If A then go here, if B then go here.  We rock at that!

The first week back here was exhausting!  It didn't really hit until Wednesday, which was a public holiday.  A nearly whole family nap from 2-5 pm, dinner and baths, and back to bed at 8.  Thursday was much better and this week has started out much better.  Don't have kids getting up at 4 am ready for the day!  On the plus side, it is spring in Australia.  We have seen 2 wild koalas in the last 2 weeks and the magpies are starting their annual "attack anyone in their territory swooping at your head" antics.  Sunny days and brisk nights.  Very nice way to end BEFORE the heat and humidity of summer hit!  Did I mention that this part of NM doesn't get much snow?  Hooray!  We can drive to the mountains when we want to play in it.  You can KEEP the snowblower Dad!

Get Ready, Get Set!

And going home soon!  Travel medical insurance bought, most of our shopping orders have been done (thanks for receiving all the stuff Mom and Dad!), leave request in for me at work, and sorting all the stuff we are bringing and leaving has commenced!  Our bedroom looks like some sort of strange assortment of munchkins have whirled through it.  Snowsuits, sweatshirts, dresses, hats, games, all sorts of goodies coming home for everyone!

You will all be shocked by how much the kids have physically grown this past year.  Alex is less than an inch shorter than me!  Her hair is halfway down her back and beautiful shade of blonde, and her teeth have really lined up (hope that means less time in braces!) and her skin is amazing.  She has a funky sense of style I am sure she will show (I personally love the short flirty skirt with boots and girly butterfly t-shirt she rocks-Dad, not so much!) in her daily routine.  She looks much older than 13, acts like it most of the time too.  Shoo the boys away. . .  Annika is her usual spunky self.  She is very fashion aware, but I don't allow her to wear the "cool stuff like Alex" as it is really not age appropriate!  She wants to do her own hair most days for school and the oddly placed pony tails are giggle worthy.  Just DON'T say anything out loud.  You pay for it.  She has decided Barbies are no longer cool, but Monster High dolls are.  Don't ask.  Just look them up.  And Sigh.  I prefer Barbie.  Ian is rocking the gap toothed grin and talking like a fool all the time.  He is big into Army stuff and just earned an Army tank and accessories with meeting his last reading goal.  His next desire is a Nerf gun.  Sensing a pattern here.

Would you believe taxes still are not done?  We get to visit with the accountant Saturday morning to find out why we owe money to the government AND to the company.  They had to pay our estimate tax when they filed the extension and it does not show on our return as paid.  Ought to be interesting if nothing else.  To think, I considered accounting as a career!  I think I would be really stark raving mad if I had!  I know I am a documentation freak on some things, but there are lines even I have decided are not worth crossing.  Someday we aspire to doing our own taxes on TurboTax again. . .

And, to finish the blog with the latest YUM recipe we found!  This comes courtesy of my partner teacher and was a homework assignment last week.  I made for my house apes Saturday for breakfast and had to make AGAIN on Sunday!  Really is that good.  I'll write the original recipe (I converted AUS measure to US standard) and my mods to make it even better!

1 1/2 cups self raising flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1 T plus 1 t butter

Mix flour and sugar, making a well in the bowl.  Add milk and egg.  Use wooden spoon to mix. Heat pan on medium low until hot, grease pan with butter as needed.  Pour spoonfuls of mix onto hot pan (suggest heaping tablespoons-and they spread out!) cooking until bubbles form on the top.  Turn over and brown other side.
Serve with butter, jam, whipped cream, nutella (OMG good), peanut butter

Now my notes:  Melt butter and mix in when the egg and milk are mostly incorporated.  Add 1 1/2 t cinnamon.  Put 1 T vinegar in the measuring cup and then fill to 3/4 cup with milk (makes them airier).  If you don't have self raising flour, add 1 1/4 t baking soda and 1 1/4 t baking powder to the measuring cup, then fill to 1 cup with regular flour.  Add in the 1/2 cup plain flour with no additions.  Cook on fairly low heat as they won't cook in the middle but get burned on the outside!  I doubled the recipe for my crowd.  Just right and no leftovers.

Happy breakfast everyone!

The fairy wren is still obsessively pecking on every window of the house all day starting at dawn and going until dark.  Ian had me get an Australian bird book to read all about it and other feathered friends.  We spotted several at the seaside this weekend when we went for a bike ride and run!  He was pleased, as was I.  We didn't remember the names, but recognized from their photos and looked them up when we came home.

Back to School

And here we go again!  Term 3 commenced yesterday and I was glad the kids were able to go back to school!  I weeded the entire front yard and mowed the back.  Took nearly 3 hours, but glad it is done.  Thinking the family will get to do the side and back beds as I'm pretty over the weeding bit now.  Everyone was glad to get to go back and see their friends.  Ian had a couple friends over to play and Annika got to visit as well.  Alex and her tribe did some movie making to submit to a contest for an advance copy of a book in a series they are all nuts for.  I never cease to be amazed at what kids and technology can do!  They filmed on her ipod, transferred to my Mac, and used imovie and garage band to edit and compose the music!  Annika and Ian were actors as they needed scenes from memories of the main characters.  Kept them busy for nearly 2 days!  Should be able to view when we get there if you are interested!

I've been switched to Thursday and Friday for my 2 days this term, and thinking so far at least, this is nice!  Able to get school plans done and stop in if I need anything copied before the day, so I can hit the ground running for my 2 days.  It also means Ian gets to do 2 days a week of Tae Kwon Do on Monday and Wednesday, so he is thrilled!  It does mean I have to go in on Tuesdays after school for staff meetings and planning, but that is fine by me.  I can also do laundry if the weekend gets away from us (excepting school uniforms-those get done no matter what!) and clean up the house.  Well, as much as I clean anyway!

Madly getting things done here-have to put a hold on the mail and organize travel medical insurance.  Not that I am a paid endorser of the policies, but did you know that if you are out of country, and this includes the US, you have to pay for your medical out of pocket?  When was the last time you bought a policy when you went to Mexico, the Caribbean, or Canada?  Really cheap when you look at the cost of medical care!  Most of the policies we looked at here cover medical transport back to Australia for domestic treatment at their discretion.  They consider the injuries, ability to fly back using medical transport, and cost of the country you are in.  Most of the time if you are injured in the USA they will bring you back here as the cost of treatment is insane!  I can testify to this-Annika had a horrible double ear infection last year-it cost us over $300 for the 15 minute urgent care visit and $70 for medication.  I know, soapbox!  Have things piled in the corner of the bedroom and shelves of the closet of things to bring for everyone!  Planning on just a few changes of clothes as we will be shopping while there, so plenty of space to bring stuff back!

The girls and I enjoyed the Bolshoi Ballet last month and this last weekend the whole family went to see the Queensland Ballet performing Giselle.  We hopped the bus into town and enjoyed a glass of wine and the kids had a dessert before taking our seats.  It is a very traditional, romantic ballet and the costumes were gorgeous!  Will admit that by intermission we were pretty tired of graceful albeit athletic moves and poses.  It was a bit repetitive, but also very athletic, especially at the end.  While we all agreed it was a nice performance and we were glad we went, the family preference seems to lean towards more modern theatrical productions!  Ian and Annika did very well, despite their boredom.  For that matter, so did we!

See you soon!

Lost Tooth!

Yep! Another lost tooth, and this time everyone can see it!  He looks so adorable with the gap toothed grin, and KNOWS it too!  Ian and daddy were wrestling in the living room and Ian's head met daddy's knee to get this one out.  Took him over a week to finally wiggle it all the way out.  He borrowed Alex's tooth fairy pillow (since it is the least girly) and she left a silver dollar for him!  He was excited to trade it for a $2 aussie coin and has plans to buy his very own candy bar with it.  Baba has made him a super cool leather pillow to use from now on, with a leather pocket and fringes all around.  Maybe the next tooth will be left in it?  By the way, Grandma, I still have the pink heart pillow you made me when I was a kiddo!  Annika alternates using it with the one grandma Claudia made for her.  Alex pulled her last baby tooth last month-a molar and is now officially done with the baby teeth.  Braces next for her. . .

Lyle is HOME until we leave for our vacation!  He even came home a day early on my birthday as they had done everything they needed to!  At least nothing is scheduled, which is not the same thing, but wow!  Home for dinner at night and breakfast in the morning.  It is strange having him home, but very welcome.  I did an uh oh yesterday doing the laundry though!  He left a blank notebook (thank goodness!) and his safety handbook in his pants pocket.  I never check them as he is so good about NOT leaving things behind. . . and you can guess what happened.  yep.  A washer full of grey goo that covered everything, worse than the odd tissue for sure.  Plugged up the drain so I got to clean that out, which meant the floor got washed up too.  And a pile of towels that needed washed after all that.  The dryer did a pretty good job pulling all the paper off the clothes-had to clean the filter 3 times and it was packed with the finest white fluff!  Looked like fluffy cotton.

So much for a dry, sunny Queensland winter here this year!  It has been chilly, wet, and windy.  It poured all night last night, but the sun came out for a peek at least!  Cold is redefined when there is no heat in the house-at all.  45 degrees is nice, but NOT in the house!  Love the crock pot and roasting things in the oven.  My favorite thing has been butterflied lamb shoulder marinated in lime and garlic, with roasted potato, carrot, onion and garlic.  Green peas or beans on the side and it is a YUM meal!

We have tickets to see Giselle with the Queensland Ballet this Saturday night.  The whole family gets to go to this one.  An evening performance and we will take the bus there and back.  So nice to have good mass transit!

Love to all!  We are counting down!

2 Days and Fathers' Day (Late!)

Hi all!  Time is zooming past so fast it is hard to catch a breath!  There are only 2 more days left in the school term and then our 2 week break.  Hooray!  Boo that the weather is forecast for cool and rainy.  40 degree overnight lows take on new meaning when there is NO heat in the house.  None at all.  Tile floors are elevated to a new level of Burrrrr!!! in the morning when it is cold!  I am grateful all over again for the gifts and trips to Pendelton to acquire our wool blankets!  Every bed is dressed with one now, which makes it hard to get out of in the morning!  I saw my breath the other day inside the house!

Today is Annika's sport carnival-track and field events are on the agenda.  Ian had his on Monday.  He got 2 ribbons and Annika has dreams of taking first in every event.  We'll see!  I think the coffee wagon will be a popular hang out for the parents as it is cool, but sunny today with winds of about 10 mph.  High temp of 65, so sweatshirts and a scarf are the dress for the day, with sunblock and a sunhat.  Crazy Aussie winters.

I got hit with a speeding ticket this last week.  Damn cameras.  I do laugh though because they send the tickets to those listed first on the registration, which is Lyle.  You can sign off to another person, but both have to have the signatures witnessed by a justice of the peace (think notary, but more common).  As there is never one open when we are both in town, he will be getting my ticket.  Burns as it was for 10 kph over the limit-which is about 7 mph.  In a transition zone no less.  They do know where to place these buggers to make the most money!

Ian's reading program has been going well.  It is taking about 2-4x longer than the author calls for as he has to learn to a specific level before going onto the next lesson.  I should not be shocked at the disengagement coping skills he has already learned in just 1 1/2 years of formal schooling, but I am.  It just drives home the frustration and acting out behaviors in older students who are struggling and use behavior to escape from difficult or impossible school tasks.  On the other hand, this kid is a master of using pictures in the book to predict the text and picks up on the patterns in the books and appears to know what he is doing.  I think I'd be more fascinated from a clinical point of view if it wasn't my kid!  He earns a hard work sticker each session and has to earn 10 to get a few dollars which he can spend right away or save up for a bigger prize.  I don't like to "bribe" but the kid needs some motivation until he can figure this out and learn that it isn't a painful thing to do.  Painful for me, but necessary to keep his interest and stubbornness focused on learning and not evading!

Happy Belated Fathers' Day to my family of men!  This isn't celebrated until August here, where Mothers' Day was on the same weekend.  Whoops!  To my Dad who taught me to be confident in my choices, and that hard choices when made, are the best choices.  Grandpa Gene for showing hard work and more hard work pays off in the long run.  Grandpa Ralph for a sense of fun and ridiculousness that makes the hard work fun work too.  My uncles on both sides-putting up with our crazy and laughing as we grew up.  For my husband and baby daddy (to put a modern twist on it you know!) for being a "with it parent" who wasn't afraid of diapers, puke (my hero!), does dishes, and even laundry once in awhile!  For encouraging the kids to try new things and cheering them on when they succeed and for letting me try new things and cheering me on too.  For letting me have a good cry once in awhile and dusting me off and getting me back onto it as well.  Loves you!

US taxes are nearly done-extensions filed so we have until October.  I am growing to despise the IRS and their rules and regulations.  Did you know they claim foreign income if you are a citizen or resident visa holder?  Grrrr.  They have more revisions to do, so hope to see the final pain next week.  Or not.  I really can avoid that.  The fiscal year is coming to an end here.  Aussie taxes are a breeze.  How much did you make?  Here's your percent to pay.  Any kids?  Daycare? Medical over a specific percentage?  That's really about it.  The accountant does them in the office and files electronically right then and there.  It took me 30 minutes total last year and I had the refund in the bank within the week.

Counting down!  Planning on making the caramel slice for dessert at the family BBQ.  Also hoping to do an Aussie Sausage Sizzle, so will have to sent Meg or Dad out on a sausage hunt for me.  Tasty and lots of fun!  Love you all!

Caramel Slice

Yes!  Another recipe!  This is one I have been trying to make practically since we moved here and finally found one that works.  They all tasted fine, except for the one the crust was awful.  Scraped the caramel and chocolate off and just ate those layers.  Would you believe I found it on the back of a Nestle chocolate melts bag?  Some of the best recipes in the world come off places like this-look at Nestle toll House choc chip cookies.  Nuff said about those!

Here's the recipe and my substitutions for you statesiders that just HAVE to give this a try.  I'm planning on making it when we come home in less than 2 months for the family BBQ.  Yummy!

Set oven to 350.
Crust:
1 cup plain flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup desiccated coconut (this is the dried, ground stuff, not flaked or shredded)
1/2 cup butter melted
Mix all together and press into the bottom of a 8x11 baking pan lined with baking paper
Bake for 15-20 minutes until lightly browned.  Cool for 1/2 hour or so.

Filling:
2 cans sweetened condensed milk (I use the fat free.  As rich as this is, you need all the help you can get here)
1/4 cup butter
1/3 golden syrup (cane sugar product, similar to dark corn syrup.  Use what you can find)
Place in a medium saucepan and stir on low heat until everything is melted and smooth.  Pour over cooled crust.
Bake for 20-25 minutes at 300.  Directions say to use 350, but the edges burn and get really hard.  Low and slow-until the caramel layer is golden brown.  Cool for an hour.

Topping:
1 cup milk or semi sweet chocolate chips
2 T canola or vegetable oil (Don't use shortening here!)
Melt and mix until smooth, spread on top of the cooled caramel layer.

Cut into 1 1/2 inch squares or so to serve.  Super rich and tastes heavenly with a cup of hot coffee or tea or cold glass of milk.

OK, some tips to keep this going good.  I found that if stored in the fridge the chocolate layer gets too hard to cut and just shatters.  No bueno.  So, cover and store on the counter, or cut into pieces and store in a tightly covered container with baking paper between the layers.

I have to think that a creamy peanut butter layer would be an excellent substitute for the caramel.  Need to work on that one next, don't I!

On another kitchen note, I finally broke down and spent the $8.96 for an electric kettle.  Who knew it would fast become my favorite kitchen appliance?  Practically instant hot water for making coffee, oatmeal, cup o noodles, and pouring down the stinky sink!?  It really is the small stuff, isn't it!

I also received the materials for Ian's reading program.  He sounded out 10 words yesterday.  He also knows the silly songs to remind him of the sounds.  Crazy, but it works.  He seems to like it fine, but would rather be playing with his cars or legos.  Buck up baby, you're going to learn to read!

We all have the day off work and school tomorrow to celebrate Queen Elizabeth's birthday.  Happy Birthday Elizabeth!  Course the forecast is for plenty of rain so we may just have to take in a movie.  Lyle is also home this week-yay!  But travelling the next 3 weeks.  Boo!  2 more weeks until end of term holidays.  The kids are tired and cranky by the end of the week now, so ready for some sleeping in.

The girls and I went to see the Bolshi Ballet yesterday for our adventure.  We had second balcony seats, so the nosebleed of the ballet, but it was absolutely beautiful!  The dancers are so graceful and athletic.  It was 2 hours and felt like it was much shorter.  I could have watched all day!  We will all be going to the Queensland ballet next month and have better seats in a smaller venue.  Can hardly wait!

Hey There!

Yeah, time did get away from me the last couple of weeks.  School is busy heading into the last couple of weeks for the term with assessments, report cards, activities, you name it, it is looming over all of us!

I went book shopping last Friday when I had a lunch date in town with my hubby!  Would you believe all these years we have met 2 times for a midday lunch date?  Neither of us have had jobs where it is remotely possible for such a civilized happening!  Teachers are not renowned for their long lunches (HAHAHA!!) and with Lyle on site and all the security and safety rules it never happened.  So, I took the bus into town, walked to the office and sent him a text that I was downstairs!  So nice!  Granted, it was a quick order type of place, but we did get to sit down and visit like real people with no kid interruptions, so plenty enjoyable.  We even walked all around the botanical gardens on the riverside before he had to get back to work.  Anyway, book shopping!  You will get to see them when we get home for a visit.  Grandma and Grandpa-would you like a field guide to Australia birds, or a common birds and their habitats in narrative form?  I found both!

Big time score here as well, I bought 3 tickets to see the Bolshi Ballet next weekend!  They will be performing The Bright Stream, which has not been performed outside of Russia until now, and was banned under Lenin.  The tickets are on the 2nd balcony, so nosebleed section for sure, but the girls and I are very excited to go!  Since the boys missed out on this one, I bought family tickets to the Queensland ballet to see Giselle.  It is a much smaller venue and we have decent seats, so pleased there.  The kids really enjoyed Annie last year, and Ian and Annika are so good when we take them out (as long as there is a parent between every kid, we are gold!) it is a pleasure to take them with us.  I have to remember to buy Ian a new pair of dress pants though-I put his old ones on him-and yep!  He has grown nearly 4 inches this last year!  High water pants!

The lower grades had their Fun Day yesterday.  They have all sorts of stations they can visit to make, create, and enjoy.  Ian made a pasta necklace, got a spider painted on his face, listened to a story and got a cool bag from the public library ladies.  He also drew a funny face on a balloon!  I got to take a couple of his friends around with him and we all had a good time.  He certainly did not argue about bedtime last night and slept an extra half hour this morning!

I had a meeting with Ian's teacher and the school psychologist as well yesterday.  I requested that they test Ian as he has been struggling so much with remembering information, processing information, and reading.  He knows just a few sight words, still doesn't know most of his letters, and looks to see what others are doing so he can understand the instructions for an activity.  On the good side, they didn't tell me what I didn't already know, which is our boy is bright, but struggles with learning.  His math is well above average, and his patterning and problem solving skills are literally off the charts (you should see the intricate layouts for his cars, legos, army men, etc.  Military strategist bar none here) but his letter recognition and recall is waaayyyy low.  His speech has come a long way and no problem understanding him now!  We will be working to figure out how he can learn in the classroom, but multi modal input is going to become a primary focus for him.  Think drawing letters on his back, him drawing with his finger on the table or on his hand, lots of repetition, etc.  He also has very poor working memory skills-this means that he cannot hold more than 1 piece of information in his head at a time and use it.  No wonder reading is so hard!  It is as if he is seeing the words new every single time.  Since he is a great puzzle solver and pattern maker, I am looking for home reading systems that will break reading down into patterns.  It will be a very phonetic approach, with lots of repetition (and mom, this goes above and beyond Spaulding method!).  What a ride this will be.  The psych did note that Ian is a sunny personality who is willing to put his best into a task and such a polite guy!  Ian loved the time spent with him, and wants to see him just to play those games again!  On a clinical side, the psych is fascinated with kids like Ian as he doesn't see them too often-really high in areas and really low in others, complicated with the memory issues.  Challenging, but rewarding to work with.  I'm grateful that I am his mom and know what to DO with all this information to help him to learn.  I'm grateful Ian is so good at trying his best and willing to work to please me and himself.  I'm grateful for his sunshine and happiness and crazy games he can play for hours.  I'm grateful for his sisters who are willing to read with him and help him with his homework and step over his layouts instead of messing them up and causing world war III in the playroom.  I'm grateful to his daddy who loves his boy over the moon no matter what.  I'm glad I have a kid who will be able to find what he wants to do with his life and be happy.

On that positive note, I'm off until next week!

13 and Mothers' Day

So the biggest turns 13 on Friday!  So hard to believe she is a teenager.  Such a nice kid too.  I know we love our kids, regardless of who they are, but it is so fun to really like them as well!  She is having a few friends over on Saturday to go shopping at the mall (and taking the bus on their own there and back again, hope it doesn't turn out like the Hobbit) and a sleepover, which we all know there will be little sleep to be had by anyone!  Her cake will be chocolate with white frosting and sprinkled with mint m&m's.  Yum!  Some things for her to look forward to-getting a facebook account!  She has to friend any family member who requests her, including me!  Ah, the fun of venturing into social networking.  She also has an instagram account, but with no wifi at home, has limited availability to upload and share photos.  Bummer for her!

Here's a picture of her new bed!  We went to Ikea last weekend and picked up a Malm style (classy lines and all white) bed frame and ordered her a new comforter set and sheets with some throw pillows.  She loves it!

The new bed.  Yes the slats show-we got a queen for her double mattresses.  It was intentional!

A blast from the past!  Alex "helping" daddy shovel snow our first winter in Massena, NY

In other news, working 2 days a week is so nice!  I have time to get things done, but also get my teacher fix and make a bit on the side.  Happiness for the mental state and for the bottom line.

The picture below is my little friend.  Not sure what species he is, but figured grandma and grandpa Curtis would like him.  He has been banging on the windows that flank the front door.  Body is about the size of a chickadee and the blue on the head and neck is brilliant!  The rest of him is black and shiny.  His tail is very long and quite an agile flier.  Very pretty birds and they are all over our neighborhood.

Ian and Annika love to put together bouquets of flowers for me.  They use the hibiscus flowers accented with cuttings off the hedges and long stems of grass.  Quite the budding florists!

Here's Ian's tough look!  He finally got his uniform for tae kwon do classes.  LOVES it!  The instructor is a gem.  He's from Korea, has a high level black belt in the sport, and speaks very little English, but the little boys who do his class adore him!  Such patience and the enjoyment he gets from sharing his sport with the littlies is so fun to see!  Yes, I did let the appropriate people know how much he enjoys his job!  Unfortunately his visa is up in July and has had no luck getting it renewed.  I haven't told Ian yet. . . Annika has been loving the rhythmic gymnastics class she does at the same time.  So much giggling from all the little girls!  She gets to use the aerofit practice clothes from aerobics last year.  Thank goodness!

And it wouldn't be Mothers' Day without saluting my mom!  Because of the confidence you instilled in me I am who I am today and letting me know that there were no limits on what or where I wanted to be and do with my life!  I don't think you quite thought I would go this far away, but the strings leading home are always there to be followed.  Your grandkids love you and sleep under your quilts of love every night.  How excited are they to see you in a couple of short months!

From my grandma Louise I have my love of baking.  I remember making so many Christmas goodies with you and Aunt Carol-once we were big enough to not destroy the kitchen we cooked in!  One of my most treasured possessions are the hand written recipes for those candies.  Yum for many holidays to come-but the divinity will have to be made here in August!

To grandma Carol-you have filled a place in my heart left by the loss of grandma Bonnie.  Your sense of humor, ready laugh, and vibrant personality I so look forward to when we are home!

I so love all the ladies in my life-my aunts are the best and from each of you I have learned something about being a better mom and a better person all around.  My cousins and cousins-in-law, so nice to have girls of our generation to figure out how to navigate our own kids through the modern day pitfalls of growing up.  My mother in law who raised an incredible man who gifted me (on a no return policy!) with his children.

And my sister-a devoted mom with an adorable chick who is growing up so beautifully!  I thought of you when I saw this a few days ago and had to put it in here for all of the moms I know!  I think we can ALL relate no matter the age or stage of life we and the kids are in!

Love you all!

School Pictures

Finally!  Alex had hers done the first week of school, the others before the end of the first month.  We just got them last week-nearly 2 months to see how they turned out!  Alex doesn't like her hair-the pony was not cooperating, but she has such a great smile!  Annika had just cut her own hair a few days prior-of course.  Ian just smiles and says how handsome he is.  That's my boy!

Plugging away on everything else!  I've been on a bit of a cooking jag and obsessively wanting to share recipes, so here's another one.  SUPER yummy-even Ian eats his veggies this way!

Pumpkin Muffins

1 cup mashed pumpkin (note all squash is called pumpkin here.  Canned pumpkin works great, but even better is baking your own, scooping from the shell, mashing/pureeing and using.  Use butternut squash-delicious!)

1 c wholewheat flour

3/4 cup plain flour

1 egg

1/2 c vanilla yogurt

1T cooking oil (I prefer olive oil)

1 t baking soda

1t baking powder

1 T vinegar in measuring cup, add milk to make 3/4 cup and let set 4-5 minutes

1 t cinnamon

1 t ground ginger

1/2 t ground cloves

Oven at 350, I just dump it all into a mixing bowl once the vinegar and milk has worked, mix until it is incorporated, put in cupcake liners and bake!  I have done regular size muffins and mini muffins, but not cake.  As it is sooo  moist, if you use a cake pan, use an 8x11 or jelly roll pan.  Muffins bake 15-20 minutes, minis 12-15.

Not a typo-there is no additional sugar in this.  The squash is sweet and the yogurt is too.  To reduce sugar further, use unsweetened Greek Yogurt.  I really can't tell a difference!

If you don't like pumpkin, replace with banana, applesauce (reduce milk to 1/2 cup), peaches or plums (reducing milk to 1/2 cup)

Also yummy to add in 1/2 cup choc chips!

Annika is selling Girl Guide biscuits this month (girl scout cookies!) and does not like the door to door approach.  She does not like hearing no and it makes her so sad!  They only have 2 varieties here!  The horror!  NO THIN MINTS and NO TAGALONGS AND NO SAMOAS!  All we have are shortbread and choc dipped shortbread, and mini choc dipped shortbread.  Yes, I will survive, but no Thin Mints??  Really!

Alex is planning her birthday party-sleepover with the girls!  A trip on the bus to the local mall, pizza and sushi for dinner with a choc cake, white frosting, and mint m&m's on top.  She scored big-a bed frame from Ikea (Malm style-white and simple!) with new sheets and comforter from Target.  Already got the bed and assembled it-the rest coming Thursday as they have arrived at the store!  Will have to post a pic next time!  It is pretty-and very Alex.

Happy Birthday to my Mom!  And almost happy retirement to my dad!

Love you all-counting the days down until we get to visit!