A Year Older

With so many different obligations throughout the week, it was great to sit down once again as a family for a birthday celebration. This time it was Robin's special moment. We are so blessed to have him in our lives as a husband, father, and friend. He really is our rock and our soft place to land. People have frequently asked me over the years what I did to deserve him. I don't know why we have it so good compared to others, but I'm so thankful. And because we want him to stick around for a while longer, this birthday was a heart healthy one. He loves all kinds of battered and fried seafood but especially scallops. I stayed clear of the grease and I found a recipe for scallops with a fruit salsa. It was easy and good. Then I came across a 5 Layer Cake recipe which I altered slightly but it was still heart healthy and low fat. The ricotta cheese layer called for 4 cups of ricotta. That seemed like a bit much to me so I cut the quantities in half. And I just toasted some almonds and walnuts for the crunchy layer. I omitted the oats and flaxseed. I liked it. The taste was good. I suppose my criticism would be that the taste was too mild. Peter gave his dad a frame just waiting for a photo of the 2 of them together. I think we'll use this one. Emily and Kaylin finished off the evening with a final corsage for one of the local proms this weekend. Emily's fund raising for Julia has gone well but she is taking some summer courses so has not had a lot of time. She still managed to pull this off and do well in her classes. We're so proud of her and all of her hard work. Overall, a wonderful day.

Staying home or going out

This short post is once again all about the girls. We were supposed to go for a full family outing but one member of the family decided this was not his idea of fun. So the girls headed out. And we ran into the Rogers mascot. Which has got to be the dorkiest costume ever. But great for a photo op.

We went to one of our favourite playgrounds and surprisingly, Gaelle could have stayed there all day. She had a blast. There were several kids that she interacted with and she also spent time showing off for me. And I can't forget the wonder mom of the playground. One mom started a rousing game of tag and soon had almost every child there participating. Laughter was ringing out all over.

The family was also supposed to go to a local nature park and once again, a certain member of the family decided this was not part of his plans. So it turned into a daddy daughter event. I think it's safe to say the nature park ended up being more fun than the stay at home event. Altho the stay at home event was great for me. I lit my candle and pulled out my book and notebook, put on some coffee, played my new instrumental CD and just had a nice relaxing afternoon. I don't mean this to be snarky at all. Lately we have struggled with outings and bad attitudes. It's difficult to know exactly how to handle it. We're not used to being snubbed by a child when we attempt some family fun. But I think we've found the solution because I love solitude. Neither child does. So if they choose to stay home, they are choosing indoors and quiet with mom. Surprisingly the last time we suggested a family event, the whole family was on board. No solitude for me, but I like being with my family even more. So it was a win win for everyone.

Crafty Giving Girls

Emily has a passion to help the children in Thailand with mental and physical disabilities get the services and opportunities that will enrich their lives. Julia is her friend who shares the same passion. Julia LOVES the orphaned women and girls who spend their lives in the wards there. All she wants to do with her life is to be there for them. Emily wants to help her be there.

We recently spent an evening helping Emily put together corsages and bracelets with every single penny of the sale going to help Julia stay in Thailand. Not only is this helping Julia help others, it's also an environmental bonus. She has been using left over material I have been hoarding for years.

My great Aunt Ruth took apart her old worn out slips and saved all of the lace and gave me a lot of it many years ago. I have used bits of it on several projects. Now it is going towards Julia. I know that would make her happy as she donated so much of her own money through the years towards missions all around the world.

Random photos

Gaëlle plays hard every single day. And at night she falls fast asleep. We've been fortunate that we've never had any sleep issues with her. Another cute thing is how she has become attached to this huge stuffed dog. She sleeps on it every night.

Now that Emily has her own apartment we are always excited to have her over for a meal. Or just to hang out.

Just missing one child this year on Mother's Day. But Kaylin took me out earlier and we had a nice time together.

With all this healthy eating nobody made dessert for Mother's Day. But Robin picked up a small chocolate cake and he didn't eat a single piece. Way to go.

Healthy Eating

Robin has always battled high cholesterol. He's often borderline and with his job he has regular check ups so he often has reminders to watch his cholesterol. Well this spring he was more than borderline high cholesterol and so he has taken steps to really watch what he eats. So we've tried a few new recipes to help him with his goal.

We're boosting the times we eat fish. I've always tried to have fish once a week but am not always successful. Now I'm working harder to have fish 2 times a week. At least for Robin.

This is actually a recipe we had before but it's a good heart healthy one. Crock Pot Black Bean Pumpkin Chili. Surprisingly you can't taste the pumpkin but it just helps to make the chili smooth.

I have several variations of black bean salads that I have been making. This one is a Southwestern Black Bean and Corn Salad. The kids chose to take this to school for lunch over a chicken sandwich.

Even with the internet recipes I have found, I bought a small cookbook called Heart Healthy Recipes. It's not specifically for low cholesterol but for better eating. This heart healthy meat loaf is one of the recipes we tried. The flavor wasn't as intense as we would like, but it was certainly a great alternative. Robin made this one and froze the individual meat loaves so he could just take one out and reheat it. I certainly hope this helps him to lower his cholesterol. We're all rather fond of him and would like to have him around as long as possible.

Catching up

I dragged out a few of the older photos that I never put on. This year I tried something different for dye. I never buy it but always use vinegar, water, and food coloring. This year I tried water and Kool-Aid. The color was nice and bright but the eggs smudged easier.

Last year we easily ate all of the eggs that were hard boiled so I didn't hesitate to make more this year. Peter and I enjoyed our egg salad sandwiches.

Gaëlle is one of our cuddlers. She loves to snuggle in and read a book or take a little snooze.

The other day Gaëlle and I had a foot race up the hill. She beat me by a lot. She is fast. So knowing that I run longer distances she was all set to run with me. Yesterday we did it. She thought she could run 5K with me, but I wasn't sure. She started out nice and light but about 1/2K I could tell she was huffing and puffing. But she didn't want to give up. It was too cute to see her determination. We turned around and she easily managed to complete 1K. I think if she ever wanted to be a runner, she could. She has the mental determination and the physical ability. Watch out world.

Bunny Day 2012

Instead of a giant basket on Easter, we have always done a small candy hunt on the Saturday before Easter and we call it Bunny Day. Today was the day. It doesn't take much to excite Gaëlle and the promise of candy really puts her over the top. She found the first hiding spot.

Generally these kids don't miss anything, but they both climbed down from the tree fort with the skittles still there. If you look, you can see the red skittle container beside the tan bucket.

Gaëlle loves to share the knowledge and couldn't help herself from telling Peter when she found something.

Sweet success.

Kids and cousins

Proof that the people mover mini van really works. All 7 of us can go from one place to another. Not pretty but it works.

I don't always think to get a picture of the 5 kids together but here they are.

Melissa and Emily are cousins who we have always thought resembled each other. Melissa is 10 years older and the resemblance is still there but maybe not as strong as it once was.

Haitian coffee

Robin and Kaylin brought back some roasted coffee from Haiti. One of the employees at Clean Water for Haiti roasts the beans and they sell them as a fund raiser for CWFH.

Gaëlle loves grinding the beans up. The first time she pressed the grinder lid down and it made such a loud noise, she jumped. I wish I had caught that on film. It was priceless. She's ready for the noise now and loves to grind.

It's nice to have freshly ground Haitian coffee. Gaëlle and Peter love to share their Haitian "stuff" with our guests. So now anyone coming over is offered not just coffee, but Haitian coffee. Too cute. We also have some Haitian vanilla so when we bake, we refer to our vanilla as Haitian vanilla. It definitely fills them with pride.

Belated Birthday

I know it's April but I'm going to flash back to March and our last March birthday. We haven't been able to celebrate Joshua's birthday in person for the last 4 years. So Robin made sure to keep up the trend and he decided to get stuck in Haiti so that he missed the actual date. However, the party went on. Joshua opened a bag and found his favorite chips.

Peter also painted a picture for him. It's also signed by the artist because that's so important.

I picked up some peeps and Peter and Gaëlle had their first peeps. Pure sugar. How can that be bad?

And of course, we had lemon meringue cake. This would be Joshua's cake of choice. Altho he is pretty easygoing when it comes to cakes.

This is Kaylin waiting it out in the Port au Prince airport instead of being home with us. Latte, game, and patience galore.