Look what we picked up yesterday…

Needless to say, it caused great excitement around the house. In an effort to branch out and try some new foods, while supporting our local farmers and also getting some organic veggies, we ordered a CSA box to try this week. I was pretty psyched to see what they sent us and I think J. actually said at one point, “this is like Christmas in a box for you isn’t it?”

Just look at the amazing vegetables that came in our box, though!

The girls and I made the new red potatoes on the grill tonight (very good), and also grilled some zucchini and summer squash. (I liked it, the girls – not as impressed.)

And we used the rest of the zucchini and nice squash (that is really what it is called!) for some bread and muffins. I think my baking powder may be old (we haven’t been baking as much around here), so the muffins look a little flat, and not all that pretty. But the girls both ate 2 and asked for more for their snack tonight – so they must taste okay. I’m sure it helps that we used this recipe – it calls for chocolate chips IN the recipe, I didn’t add them. Although I’m sure I would have, if it didn’t call for them. Chocolate makes everything better, don’t you know?

Now we are looking for some new recipes and ways to use the other stuff. I’m assuming I’ll be eating all of the tomatoes, since nobody else around here likes them.

We are a little perplexed on one of the vegetables, however.

Anybody have any idea what this is? It is some type of squash, I’m sure. But what do I do with it?

The weeks just seem to jam all together and I don’t get a chance to jot down all the things I want to write about, much less write actual coherent posts. Or maybe by the time Thursday rolls around, I’m really only able to think in bullet points. At any rate, you get another Chaos ‘This & That’ update today.

• The toe. Thanks for all of the advice, I knew I could depend on the internet to answer my questions. I did call my doctor just to talk to the nurse, and she suggested I have an x-ray, just in case. Since I broke my big toe right after J. and I got married all those years ago – and still have problems with it, I gave in and dragged the girls to the doctor on Tuesday. It is indeed, nicely broken, but clean and the bone is not displaced – so I should have full use of the toe in a few weeks. It is taped together and I’m hobbling around a little bit – but it looks so much better than it did earlier in the week. When I removed the tape the nurse just stared at it and kept saying, “Oh My God! Oh My God! How did you do this again?”  Um. Yeah. It was not pretty the morning after, even worse than when I took the photo for all of you to share in my anguish.
• Since I haven’t been able to run this week, (apparently those toes – while not appearing very useful – do indeed have a little say in the forward movement of my body) I have been extreeemely crabby. Well, that and other unmentionable reasons that seem to sneak up every single month on me. You’d think I’d learn, but no. I sit and try to figure out why I am so grumpy and impatient, and then wake up, “Oh! Yeeeaahh.” That is probably the reason.
• Despite the toe, the crabbiness, and general ever-present chaos, I agreed to a playdate yesterday. Em asked if she could invite Avery over and Addie asked if she could invite Avery’s little sister (also named Emma) over. Totally reasonable. Then Em asked if she could invite Audrey, too…and since the four musketeers have to stick together, Peyton as well. Well….yes, I suppose so. And then she says, “Mom? Can girls have a boy for a best friend?” I told her “Of course they can, Daddy was my best friend before we got married.” She smiled, “Good. Because I like Buckley and I think he is one of my best friends too. We should invite him, because he might feel bad if Peyton comes but he doesn’t get invited.” (Peyton and Buckley are twins.) Sure. Why not.

• So I had seven, count ’em, SEVEN kids to feed and entertain yesterday afternoon. And you know what? It really wasn’t that bad. I’m not saying I want to go all Jon & Kate, and fill the house with 8 kids, but we had a really fun afternoon. And then they all (except 2 of course!) went home.
• I realized after the playdate that our afternoon was exactly what I had hoped for when I envisioned being a stay-at-home mom. I hoped that the girls would bring their friends home after school and be able to hang out. And for their friends to feel comfortable at our house, and think it is so FUN, they just don’t want to leave. And maybe there might even be some homemade cookies for them to munch on. Ok, so there definitely WERE NO cookies yesterday, but we’ll work on that part of the vision.
• And I also realized that although I complain about the constant chauffeuring and volunteering, the projects I get roped into doing and the hectic social calendar (the girls’ – not mine!) – secretly (or not so secretly now, I guess), I LOVE this. I love this gig. Even on the absolute worst day, it is one more amazing day I get to spend with my babies. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

…kinda.

You guys are killing me, man! I’ve got grumbly people who complain when I don’t post something, pretending that it is essential to get their Chaos fix each day. You know what I think? I think you might be a wee bit spoiled, that’s what I think! I’m listening, though. I’ll work on getting more writing in – or more photos, at the very least.

And then I’ve got all my blog friends who clearly have shown no mercy either, as my blog reader groans under the sheer number of blogs I need to catch up on. I’m getting there, slowly but surely. That seems to be my recurring mantra these past few weeks, I tell you.

So Nana and Papa left us this week. Poor Papa was fighting the flu for most of his vacation here – but I think that we were able to give them a big enough taste of California that they will come back soon for more. And since they left, Addie has been fighting her never-ending cold, Em has been out of school for a few days with her illness, Mama has been crazy trying to get all of our “appreciation” for our teachers completed, and a website finished. Yeah, I think we have returned to Chaos. Slowly but surely.

Still here. We have just been crazy busy. I never really thought of July as a particularly romantic month, but Holy Guacamole! We have had an insane amount of birthdays this month. We just got back from our fourth birthday party in the past 2 1/2 weeks. I’m “birthday’d” out.

We have also been madly trying to get some loose ends tied up before my parents get here (tomorrow!). I was cleaning up my April photos tonight before tomorrow – TOMORROW! You realize it is May 1st tomorrow, right? Craziness.

Anyhow, what was I saying? Mmmm…cleaning up, photos…oh yeah, I remember. So you may see some very out of order photos in Flickr. (Like Meesh and the girls and the beach…that happened at the beginning of April!)

And I found this photo of Em. I love it. She is so contemplative lately. And moody. It is like she is a 14-year old teenager trapped in a 6-year old’s body.

Surely a sign of good, good times ahead. Shesh.

Have a great weekend – and a Happy May Day!