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Author Archives: Brianna

back to school

Ben got to go back to the Co-op today, in the Younger 4s classroom, after more than a month of asking when he could.  He proudly chose a special clothing ensemble for the morning, which included a green John Deere ‘Dirt Rocks’ t-shirt, blue camo shorts and orange crocs.  When I took him to his [...]

fire

It’s surreal here in ATX today.  The air is hazy with smoke.  The smell is strong, strong enough that it’s uncomfortable for many folks to stay outside for long. Bastrop State Park, around 30 miles SE of our home, is burned. One article I read today stated that 130,000 acres have burned across the state. [...]

Left-over pizza packet greens

At least once every few weeks or so, I crave these.  An easy pot full of Vit A, Vit C, calcium and chlorophyll. No, leafy greens are not even remotely in season here.  Pretty much nothing is, since we’re on our record-breaking, drought-loving 73rd consecutive day of triple-digit temps here in ATX.  But I make [...]

a game

If you’re the grown-up, you sit behind the couch and watch for “the show,” which consists every time of two small pairs of wiggling feet sticking above the couch, and nothing else.  It’s called “two kids upside down!”  <insert hysterious giggling here>

4 years

Where did they go?  Yesterday marked the completion of Ben’s first 4 journeys around the sun. On Saturday we celebrated with friends and family at our neighborhood pool.  Swimming, hot dogs and fruit for lunch, vanilla cupcakes with chocolate frosting for dessert.  We even got a break on the heat Saturday morning, with some cloud [...]

childrens’ sangha altar

We provided altar decorations for Plum Blossom childrens’ sangha this afternoon: A dish of cedar elm leaves and twigs.  A few flowers from my patio rose.   A piece of meteorite that was gifted to Nathan by a co-worker.

baking bread

Tomato soup

I make a lot of soups, y’all.  But this one is really, really good and needs to be shared: Tomato Soup 2 14.5-oz cans diced tomatoes 1/2 can tomato paste 1 1/4 C extra virgin olive oil 2 stalks celery, diced 2 small carrots, diced 2 med onions (I used a yellow and a red), [...]

first movie in the theater

These photos are from a couple of weeks ago, when I took Ben and Maddie to see their first movie in the theater, the live-action version of Charlotte’s Web. Ben dressed up for the occasion. Maddie needed a booster seat to keep the chair bottom from flipping back up while she was sitting in it. [...]

mud

I was sick on the couch most of last weekend, and Nathan completely rocked solo parenting while I rested.  He did what any good daddy knows to do under the circumstances: help the kids make mud in the backyard and then become beyond recognition filthy.  When they came inside, I emptied nearly half the bottle [...]