Coming to a Close

Next week is our last week of summer break before school starts. Things are wrapping up and the nights are starting to get cooler and darker earlier. This time of year is always filled with highs and lows. We're trying to hang onto summer for a little bit longer, especially now that we are finally having "real" hot summer weather. But, I am also at my breaking point that I reach every summer where I am ready for school to start again. This is the time where I start organizing and cleaning out with a vengeance. It's time to clean out the closets and dressers and get set for a new school year. Next week is Kendle's birthday (she'll be turning 9!), the fair, and sports practices are starting. Here is a little more of what we've been up to:

*Kendle's team competed in a 3 on 3 soccer tournament last weekend at Columbia Park. Her team did extremely well and although they didn't get to play in the championship they really impressed us and played super hard. We were there all day playing in the hot weather and we only had four players so those girls ran their little legs off and never gave up. They won three out of their four games outscoring the teams they defeated by at least six or seven points. One of the most ironic moments was when the coach of the team that beat us went to complain to the people running the tournament that our team was being "too physical". As if it wasn't enough that they beat us, but I think he was just kind of scared because we outscored them in the second half and if we would have played like that in the first half we would have smoked them and he knew it. Just kind of funny how a lot of the other coaches took it so seriously and were just yelling and screaming at their players. I'm so glad Riley does not do that with Kendle's team. We were wishing we could keep all the girls together for their team this fall because they would be so awesome. I think the highlight of their day was going for ice cream afterwards and they more than deserved it.

We are also attempting to let her play some fall softball. I don't know if it's going to work out that well or not to be doing two sports at one time, but I told her coach we would have to just play it by ear and make whatever we could that didn't interfere with soccer. It is pretty laid back and mostly fun though so it's not that big of a deal if she misses something here and there. Just fun to keep her skills going from the spring and get some more game time in. Kendle's favorite part of summer is staying up late at night. She thinks that is a real treat.

*Riley has been doing lots of soccer related extra work lately. What? That's nothing new you say? I know, I know. He's started doing private training sessions for goalie's and is training two high school players in the evenings and mornings whenever he can squeeze it into his busy work schedule. He also is volunteering as the team coordinator for Pasco's tcysa. The spot was vacant when he called to check on Kendle's team and with all the problems we've had in the past he decided to just step up and help make the organization a little better. So now he also serves on their board and goes to their meetings once a month and hopefully can help impact some positive change. Needless to say, it is a LOT of work to put together every team from Pasco and there had literally been nothing done when he assumed this responsibility three weeks ago. Despite all of that,  he is pretty stoked to be getting to coach Kendle's team this fall and helping her team rebuild their skills.

*Morgan has been growing this summer and is a skinny, muscly little guy. He plays hard all day long and helps me by being my "garden monitor". He checks every day for veggies that are ready to be picked or need water. He always has interesting questions to ask, or cute little stories to tell me throughout the day. His favorite thing this summer has been sitting around the fire pit at night making smores. He asks us every night if we can make a fire. I think that boy has eaten his weight in marshmallows this summer. We've tried taking his training wheels off his bike a few times and will keep working with him on that because I think he is going to get it really soon. He loves riding his bike and racing Kendle. He is excited for preschool to start in a few weeks so he can go school supply shopping with me to pick out his own things just like I did with Kendle. He is a rocket of speed and jumping and playing all the time.

*Cooper and Kale have been wild little boys this summer. They love playing outside and getting really dirty. Also, if there is even an inch of standing water anywhere they will find it and wreak havoc. I've taken to letting them sit at the picnic table and eat whenever I can because they are SO messy. It gives us all a good excuse to eat outside though and it's fun. Except for the bees and wasps have been really bad this year and Kale got stung a couple of weeks ago when we were eating dinner outside. They love to go on our morning walks and cruise the neighborhood. They are still the biggest cry babies I've ever seen and super clingy. I keep thinking they will grow out of it, but maybe I'm just destined to have super clingy mama's boys? They are getting to be good helpers though and love to help do little tasks like wiping down the table or putting their dirty clothes and shoes away. Their favorite thing this summer has been running around naked in the sprinklers and eating a gazillion popsicles. If that is all they got to do in a day they would be happy boys.

*My summer has been pretty great for the most part. I made it a goal to do at least one fun thing with the kids every day even if it was just something little like going for a milkshake or letting them help me make some treats. This is the first summer in a long time that I have been able to be outside a lot and take the kids to go and do more. I've gotten super tan and am almost as dark as Kendle and Morgan. I've tried not to let the constant messes of summer and my untidy house stress me out like it usually would. I've loved my daily walks with the kids and also just having those lazy afternoons when the twins are napping where I can sneak out the backyard and put my feet up in a comfy chair and soak up the sun with a good book. I've tried to just enjoy my children more this summer because they are growing up way too fast. I need to work on being more patient with all of the little voices around me wanting my attention. Yesterday I went to my parents house and my mom and I made strawberry and raspberry jam. I am trying to get stocked up for the year and keep Kendle in good supply for all of her peanut butter sandwiches she eats. My favorite thing about this summer was having Riley home more and having our schedules be a lot more laid back.

Hopefully we are can try and fit as many more fun things in as we can before school starts on the 30th.

Homemade Oreos

This is another family favorite and I can never seem to make enough of these. While making these for a church activity yesterday afternoon, I heard many grumbles of disappointment from my family that all of these cookies would be going with us. This is worth doubling the recipe to either have more to share, or to freeze/save for later. At first I thought these sounded really complicated to make, but they are not and the frosting in the middle is REALLLLY good. This is a crowd pleaser for kids and adults alike. I've brought these to different get togethers and at one family get together in particular my grandmother offered her compliments and asked for the recipe which is about the highest seal of approval you can get in our family. You can also make these "mini" sized if you're trying to stretch the batch a little more. I would highly recommend chilling the dough before baking and also the recipe says to pipe the cream filling onto the cookies which is great, but if you're like me and more low maintenance, I just plop some on one cookie with a spoon and the press the other cookie on top of it until it is evenly sandwiched. Easy right?

The recipe I use is from Smitten Kitchen and if you click on their link you can read the full post relating to the recipe. Enjoy!

Homemade Oreos

Adapted from Retro Desserts, Wayne Brachman

**Let’s talk about the sugar for a minute, shall we? This is a sweet cookie. A good, sweet cookie. Yet, if you think of an actual Oreos, the wafers are fairly un-sweet and actually on the slightly salty side, which contrasts with the super-sweetness of the filling bringing harmony, happiness, yada yada. If you want your cookie closer to that original, you can take out a full half-cup of the sugar. If you want to make the cookie by itself (as I did a while back for ice cream sandwiches), go ahead and use the full amount.

Makes 25 to 30 sandwich cookies

For the chocolate wafers:
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 to 1 1/2 cups sugar [see recipe note]
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1 large egg


For the filling:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract


1.Set two racks in the middle of the oven. Preheat to 375°F.

2.In a food processor, or bowl of an electric mixer, thoroughly mix the flour, cocoa, baking soda and powder, salt, and sugar. While pulsing, or on low speed, add the butter, and then the egg. Continue processing or mixing until dough comes together in a mass.

3.Take rounded teaspoons of batter and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet approximately two inches apart. With moistened hands, slightly flatten the dough. Bake for 9 minutes, rotating once for even baking. Set baking sheets on a rack to cool.

4.To make the cream, place butter and shortening in a mixing bowl, and at low speed, gradually beat in the sugar and vanilla. Turn the mixer on high and beat for 2 to 3 minutes until filling is light and fluffy.

5.To assemble the cookies, in a pastry bag with a 1/2 inch, round tip, pipe teaspoon-size blobs of cream into the center of one cookie. Place another cookie, equal in size to the first, on top of the cream. Lightly press, to work the filling evenly to the outsides of the cookie. Continue this process until all the cookies have been sandwiched with cream. Dunk generously in a large glass of milk.

More Vacation Pictures

Cooper

Kale

Morgan



Kendle

 

Summer Vacation 2011

This was our second time staying in Long Beach and although it was a bit more of a challenge this time around with two more kids and even more STUFF to squeeze into the car, we made it! We had been wanting to buy a car top carrier for a while and it was one of the best purchases we've made in long time. But still, we were packed to the gills, and I thought we were packing light. Ha. We stayed right by the Bolstad Beach access point and everything was within walking distance. We loved being able to walk anywhere we wanted to go and also being able to pack a picnic and go drive along the beach with our car to find the perfect spot to hang out for the afternoon. The kids (and mom and dad) were absolutely worn out every night and we tried to pack in as much fun into one week as we absolutely could and I think we did.

Here are some highlights from the trip:

*Flying kites on the beach

*Building huge sandcastles

*Going for ice cream at Scoopers almost every night

*Walking the boardwalk

*Staying up late having checkers wars

*Spending an afternoon in Seaside

*Watching the look on the twins faces when they saw the ocean for the first time

*Taking a hike to an old lighthouse

*Having a big bonfire/hotdog/smores roast on the beach with the Trevino's

*Beach combing for shells

*Fresh caramel corn and fudge from the candy shop

*Mini golf, go-karts, the arcade, and Kendle went for a horse ride on the beach

*Kendle got to get her ears pierced

*Listening to the kids playing and having fun together

This has been such a crazy busy year for our family and we definitely needed a good long week away to spend time together and just have a break from it all. I have a lot more pictures to post but blogger is being funny about posting them sideways so I will try and fix them and post some more later.