FIFTEEN

Happy BrewCrew Birthday.

(a.k.a. An Anniversary Celebrated W/Children :) 

Today we are 15. 

(Yes, he smooshed me with the cake.)

DELAYS

My phone is backlogged with photos & video snippets. 

About a zillion cute or funny or tasty things have happened in the Brewer household over the last few weeks. 

I've got plenty to share. (whether you'll find it fascinating or boring remains to be seen... but there is plenty of content, understand)

It will just have to simmer a little longer. 

Life is very busy until at least Monday. 

See ya'll again real soon! 

Best Things First

Rye loves the "cone-part". 

So, that is where she started. 

Strawberry Butter

 STRAWBERRY BUTTER

~>Macerate  handful of frozen strawberries (cover with appx 1/2 c sugar)

~>Allow to thaw

~>Mash & mix into 1 stick of softened butter

EAT

On Toast: 

Lovey Gets A Bath

Grammy gave "Lovey" to Riley when she was born.

This large, loveable pink pooch has been through various moves and times of storage; as well as plenty of playtime with Rye.
Because of all the living and loving evident in Lovey's fur, we recently took him to the local laundromat for a quick, sudsy spin and a fluffy air dry... Riley cheered Lovey on the whole way, Fisher cheered Rye on.

Riley and Fisher have similar dispositions towards their stuffed friends-simply put, stuffed animals are real... and the cuter the stuffy, the more in tune with its feelings they seem to be... situations like being put in the washing machine are matters of survival, not just hygiene.

It's cute ~until something tragic happens, like a severed limb   (or ear!)   or a spill over of stuffing or something... you would think we'd lost a family member in the trauma unit should something like that occur. (There was a light stuffing leakage on this day and ALL of my kids thought we'd lost Lovey.)

So, imagine our motley Brew Crew hauling Lovey, the Giant Pink Puppy into the Laundromat; moving from station to station as the mob that we are, creating all the necessary chaos to operate the machines, as we fight for the best 'seat' to watch the 'show'(or camera angle to take pictures, ::guilty gulp::) pummeling & elbowing one another from time to time when someone blocks our view...some of us cheering and shouting at the 'screen' like we were watching that Notorious College Football Championship instead of ...a WASHING MACHINE.

I tell you, we fit right in at the Laundromat! And I cannot wait to go back sometime soon, which we are going to have to do, because I still have sixteen dollars on the Wash & Dry card they make you trade your real money in for. Turns out the math they taught me in school did not cover properly estimating time & money in a laundromat that lists prices like a slot machine... blinky little screen things that they are!

I have got to add two little asides before you get your turn at "Watching-A-Washing-Machine" (sounds like a great new trend to start- quick someone, Pin This!)

1.) As we were talking about this adventure later, Rye said "Lovey go in the dishwasher!" (I think that might be worth a try next time ... I've been needing to mop the floor again anyway.)

2.) There is a thrift store that funds a local pet rescue a few doors down from the laundromat. As we waited on the dryer to finish, we moseyed down to see what we could see. When the lady at the door asked us "Are you looking for anything in particular today?" and I explained "No, ma'm~ we're just washing our dog next door, killing a little time as we wait for him to dry." It really WAS the right thing to do to specify that we were referring to a stuffed dog, but it would have been so much funnier to just leave it at "dog" don't ya think?

Princess Clay

Rye has her daddy wrapped around that pretty little pinky... 

Whenever I Mop...

EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

Sometimes it is kool aid, other times an entire gallon of milk. This time it was the whole pitcher of tea...which I was really looking forward to, but did not resort to lapping from the floor... even though it had just been mopped a few hours prior.

Cheesy Potatoes (w/Bacon & Onion)

Cheesy Potatoes w/Bacon & Red Onion

• 5-7 Potatoes (we used red) Washed, Peeled, Cut to Fries
• Cheddar Cheese (the more the better, the more varied the sharpness, also the better)
• Half & Half/ Heavy Whipping Cream (about a cup and a half)
• ~Optional: Red Onions, Bacon (about 5 slices cooked & crumbled) 

Preheat Oven to 400º ~Wash, Peel & Cut Potatoes~ Fill 9x11 Greased Baking Dish w/sliced potatoes~Season Well Season Potatoes.

~Optional Steps~ Cook Bacon & Crumble.  Sautee' Onion in bacon drippings. Mix with potatoes. ~

If you do not prefer Bacon or Onions, omit & go straight to covering the potatoes in cream & cheese.

Pour Heavy Whipping Cream/Half & Half enough to engulf potatoes. Cover with Cheese. (I used a combination of half&half & whipping cream & various degrees of sharp cheddar) 

Cover top with greased foil. Bake for apps. 1 hour. When everything looks good enough to eat, remove foil, add more cheese, return to oven for appx. 10 minutes. 

Allow cheese to set up for about 10 minutes before serving.

EAT! 

VALENTINE

 Grammy made & mailed Valentines filled with candy (plus, LOVE obviously)

The candy is almost gone, the paper hearts have been preserved, the LOVE keeps multiplying on infinitely. 

Thank You Grammy!

And thank you for the camel too! 

(and the Gamecock clogs) 

Where Is Thumbkin?

Our  recent lessons in God's Design for The Human Body (science)  have been about bone structure. Yesterday we talked about our hands and feet; especially opposable thumbs and toes.

Today, we tried to spend five minutes without the luxury of thumbs to build a greater appreciation for one of the small wonders that we often take for granted.

Fisher screamed like I was duct taping him entirely... he has ultra sensitive touch... the tape felt weird to him... but he persevered and attempted to write without thumbs before being loosed from his bonds.

They were all asked to write: "This is me, without thumbs."

But first, because they are my children... and their father's... they had to be funny-writing S.O.S. & ABUSED with their four remaining digits.

This is Aletheia without thumbs: 

Puddle Splashing

As Clay was leaving for work, Rye decided to walk him down... we are in the midst of potty training, which should help explain to all who know, why she's just in a tee shirt. For the uninitiated, the less layers, the more success we seem to have.

 I thought, "No worries- it  is early morning, we will just walk him to the truck and be right back in the house" And we were right on schedule too, until she spotted the puddles. The neighbors came out to watch and cheer her on 

(She loves Mr. Jim & Mrs. Peggy and asked them to join her in the splashing fun) 

Eventually, I had to force her to slosh on in to the house... but not before Mr. Jim spoiled her with a bag of M&M's from his 'robot' (automatic candy dispense) 

Shoe Shopping w/Rye

While looking at shoes during our Saturday Evening Outing, Rye found a pair or two that she liked:

Afternoon Outing

Strawberry Milkshake 

On Saturday, after spending all day making flowers with the Big Girl, I took Little Girl out to run a few quick errands. And the thing is, they were truly quick errands... we were finished with daylight to spare... so we grabbed a bite to eat and had a make shift Mommy Date: 

Sweet Potato Fries in Browned Sugar Butter from Tasty's

Little Girl, Big Drink

The best time for gazing at this castle (What Rye calls it) ...I mean church, is when the sun begins to sink... even better if you step inside, where all the stained glass glows.

A little sriacha mayo & browned sugar butter were all that remained....

...even the sun was gone by the time we'd finished. 

A phone call from home told us that The Bigs were accompanying their dad on a baseball errand, so we didn't hurry home. Rather, we went 'browsing'. It's like shopping, only without spending money ;)

Rye picked a pair of shoes out on her own. She tried them on and declared "They Fit!" (video to follow)

She cried when we had to leave him behind.... she may adopt him yet.

Can't beat the "carry-her-up-and-tuck-her-already-sleeping-self-under-the-covers-by-9-PM " bedtime

Swinging In The Park on Sunday