A Snowbear in our backyard

Who says you have to build a snow-man? How about a snow-bear with antlers, dried-hydrangea hair and radish eyes?

The big snow

After the big snow, we had our older kids Eric and Laura over. We all tromped through the woods in the freezing cold to hurl our fragile bodies down slippery slopes on sleds, tubes, cardboard–whatever we could find.

Fun was had by all, although Kai seemed a little out of sorts with the freezing temperatures.  Not to worry though, we came home and enjoyed steaming hot chocolate from our own chocolate stash downstairs.

Kai on his big brother, Eric’s lap

Walking on the way to go sledding–it was so cold!

Walter used the cardboard as a wind-blocker. Kai braved the cold like a trooper.

Kenji loved sledding

That’s Walter and Kai in the foreground with the Laura in the background

Me and poor little Kai (those are tears from cold wind)

Walter going headfirst

Kai wondering why we’re outside in this frigid cold

Eric gave Kai a ride back (Laura in the background)

Laura and Eric

The shortcut over the snowbank didn’t work out so well…

New Years Day

Yup, I am just now posting pics from New Year’s. That’s the type of January we’ve had. Busy, busy, bizeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

We had a great time with dear friends on New Years Day though, and I wanted to share the photos with you. My friend Mika made amazing osechi ryori (traditional Japanese new years dishes), although she was a bit disappointed that she didn’t have everything she had been planning. It was still wonderful to us though, and we enjoyed celebrating and toasting the New Year with them.

The food and presentation was beautiful

We were excited to eat it!

The boys entertained themselves with trains

Mike and Emile

Um, we drank this whole bottle of sake. It was delish.

Can you believe this food? It was so yummy and beautiful, you almost didn’t want to eat it.

Boys behind the couch

The little ones watching TV

Mika made these lovely little smoked salmon covered rice balls and topped them with salmon roe. They were so cute.

Fun with a box

Fun with a box

what are you doing?

where did you go?

surprise!

Christmas 2009 –here and Virginia

Lights should be up all year round.

Oh the ornaments are so tempting

Kenji making a reindeer out of a toilet paper roll and popsicle sticks

A ball of lights ready for the tree

What Elmo has to do with Christmas? Not so sure…

Kenji and Kai watching the carolers at Seasons Four

Kai on Santa’s lap

Still shy, Kai looks a little unsure. Santa, oh Santa’s happy. He loves his job.

Shy Kenji

Apparently something was funny. To the kids, not so much.

“This bell is more interesting than you, Santa.”

A very impressive winter wonderland train display at Seasons Four

Kenji was very pleased with our hotel choice in PA on the way down to VA

Kai at his finest after the bath at my parent’s house

Grandpa and grammy (photo taken by Kenji)

Silly and excited boys

Drinking tea and excited to open stockings

The reindeer ears never get old

Kenji and Grammy on Christmas morning

I’m pretty sure Kai had just had some chocolate. We start them young.

Grandpa and grammy look on as Kai opens up his truck

Here I am ho;ding the roof together while it sticks

Kenji carefully placing a gumdrop on the rooftop

Gingerbread house

Some December Scenes

You mean I’m not supposed to turn my bowl into a drum after I’m done eating my rice?

Of course he’s pleased with himself

Kenji and Walter had an outing that involved a trip to RedBones BBQ in Somerville

Snow angel

Kenji

Somewhere deep in those bushes lies a small little animal, otherwise known as Kenji

Kai getting a nice handful of yummy polluted snow

Eating snow is unavoidable

Shout out to my husband

The first real snow of the season

Walter’s most recent posting on his blog, Kokobuzz, is very timely and worth a read if you have an extra moment. I, for one, am tired of accumulating more “stuff” and like his idea of “disappearing gifts.”

Happy Holidays. Hope you’re staying calm and stress-free.

Before you know it

Kai and I playing in the backyard

It was just fall last week, I swear. And now it’s winter. And almost Christmas. How does that happen? Seriously, every year seems to go by quicker than the last. It sounds cliché, but it’s become painfully true in my life.

We have a small Japanese maple in our backyard that produces the most exquisite delicate red leaves. Less than a week after this picture was taken, the tree was bare and the leaves on the ground had dried and all but blown away.

Everything is this life is so temporary. This is one of the biggest lessons that I have learned in my life so far. And yet I forget it all the time. It’s a cruel twist that the things that seem the hardest

Our Japanese maple tree

seem to last the longest, and vice versa. Winter is pretty high on the list for me. Try as might to weather the storm, I can’t help but fall into a mild (albeit temporary) state of depression. Laughing, being outside in the sunshine even when it’s cold, talking and spending time with dear friends and family, all of those things help. My sweet husband has even bought me a special light therapy box that emits light similar to sunshine without the harmful UV rays.  Now I just have to remember to dutifully sit in front of it on those really gray days.

Dried up oak and red maple leaf

I have holiday cards to write and lists to be written. I should be doing them, no? Blogging should be pretty low on the priority list right now. But it’s a helpful outlet for me some days. And if you’re reading this, let me know. I always like to hear your comments. xox

Kai in the leaves

My little monkey *helping* to rake the leaves

A sweet ride

Now whenever I vacuum, Kai jumps on for a ride.

I don’t enjoy housework. Mostly because I don’t have time for it. Between taking care of my three boys (yes, I’m referring to Walter, my third grown-up boy), making meals, wiping butts, making sure the kids get playtime and don’t turn into TV junkies, grocery shopping, picking and dropping off Kenji from school, and making sure I don’t become a fat-ass by going to the gym, I have about zero time or energy to keep the house clean. Not that I’m complaining. I understand that this is all temporary. These kids will only be this young and needy for so long (I hope), and I want to spend time enjoying this time rather than worrying about when the last time I mopped the floor was. With that said, I think I manage to keep the house somewhat clean, although I’m sure some of my neater friends would disagree. Kai makes the most of cleaning as you can plainly see.

Blue sky, sunshine, and apples

This reminded me of a painting that I need to do someday

This year the boys and I made it twice to pick apples out at our favorite apple orchard, Autumn Hills, in Groton. This time we went as a family with Walter, who hadn’t been there since last November when we went with my mom. After picking a HUGE amount of apples (about 22 lbs), we headed back home. Once home, I made an apple crisp of big tart green Mustus, small crimson red white-centered Cortlands, and sweet crunchy Spencers (a cross btw a Mac and Red Delicious).

Here’s my recipe for an almost never-fail apple crisp:

My apple crisp (combo of mutsus, spencers, and cortlands)

Filling:

• About 8 cups of sliced peeled apples (leave peels on if you like)
• 2/3 cup of white sugar
• 1 tsp of cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp of nutmeg
• Juice of 1 lemon

Topping:

• 1 cup of quick oats
• 1 cups of flour
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup(1 stick) of melted butter
• 1/4 tsp of baking powder
• 1/4 tsp of baking soda

Preheat oven to 350°. In large bowl, mix all filling ingredients together well. Place in 8 x 8 square buttered pan.  Combine topping ingredients until moist and crumbly (add more melted butter if too dry). Lightly press topping onto apples so they are mostly or completely covered. Bake at 350° for about 45 minutes until golden brown. Let cool for at least 20 minutes before attempting to eat. Best eaten with french vanilla ice cream.

Milkweed flying through the air

The sky was so crisp and beautiful that day

Walter felt a little under the weather, but still managed to enjoy himself

All these apples that had falled on the ground were such a waste–I wanted to scoop them up and take them somewhere.

Kai and Kenji quickly got to the important job of eating apples

Looking for the best pick

You can get it!

The colors, view, and patterns were amazing that day

This reminded me of a painting that I need to do someday

The light shining off the billowing grass with the lines of apple orchards in the background were magical

A little love and apples are always a good combination

Kenji is getting to be quite the photographer

Bittersweet!!! I picked some which is now hanging as a makeshift wreath on our front door

The old pear orchard (sans pears) and an amazing blue sky and clouds

Kai on their apple wagon

A lot of apples!

My apple crisp (combo of mutsus, spencers, and cortlands)