Another Sunny Weekend

If I could tell the difference between a weekend and a weekday, I'd be thrilled at how lucky we've been to get hot and sunny weekends after cold and wet week days. I think a pattern of such has repeated itself for several weeks now. As a stay at home mom with no life beyond my kids, the purpose of my Saturdays are no different than what is in store for my Tuesdays. Sunshine or downpour, I do as I please (well, with all those normal stay at home mama limitations of course). I love it - rain, shine, Fridays and Wednesdays. There are times that the people of the working world remind me when the weekend approaches by way of their plans, and by including me into their plans.
This last VERY warm and sunny weekend we attended a birthday party, an Earth Day garden clean up at Esperanza's new school, an evening relaxing with family and we enjoyed lots of time in the yard playing with chickens, digging in the dirt, running through sprinklers and picking/eating flowers (I mean weeds).

These kids were crackin me up!!!

Grandma Angelina helping Hannah with her knitting project

From the left: Kiko, Sadie, Andy, Rafa, Esperanza

Happy at the park

I tried my best to get a family photo at Yareli and Estevan's birthday party

you take what you can get

She likes to eat dandelions

and I LOVE that she likes them

Break On Through

Ezra has 4 teeth breaking through his gums right now. They are the four top front teeth. The first top one appeared a couple of weeks ago, and has just barely broke through the skin. Then a few days ago he had diarrhea, was very fussy and felt hot to the touch. His last three teeth caused him to be fussy with loose stools also, but he has never gotten hot enough for me to want get concerned. I checked his temperature the other evening because he was just burning up and it was102! The next morning I notice a bulge in his gums where a tooth will soon be emerging. That was Wednesday morning. Yesterday morning I noticed another tooth and then this morning yet another. 4 teeth! At the same time! The three teeth that have yet to break through are bulging and swollen with just a layer or two of skin to go. He is so uncomfortable and in pain. Sleeping and eating come in very small doses at a time and he is just downright miserable. And I'm tired. Please hurry up and come through teeth so we can get some rest and back to being happy.

Strawberry Patch

3 years ago, when we moved into this house, I planted 4 small store bought organic strawberry plants which produced half a dozen small grape size berries that first year. Those four plants have multiplied into what is now dozens and dozens of plants which produce HUGE juicy berries! I always clean up the patch this time of year, before the plants begin to flower. Trying to find the time to do this was challenging this year, as I needed several hours to get it done. Between kids' naps, their temperaments, the wet weather we've finally been having, my own motivation as well as other activities and events that seemed to be more important than digging in the dirt, I was beginning to think we'd just have to rummage through the weeds to pick our berries this year. But then we had a free, warm sunny day last weekend with two happy kids, a motivated mama and a few baby chicks that wanted to play outside with us in the sun.
A few of the plants already had flowers on them, but after all the love we gave them, vermicompost (worm poop) we mixed in with their soil and marigold seeds we planted all around them, I'm confident they will reward us with amazing fruit this June-October (yes, they give me strawberries that long). I can't wait! Whats even better is that Ezra will be a year old (that magic age the 'experts' say it's okay to introduce strawberries to babies) at the exact same time the first batch of berries will be ready to eat. I think I'm envisioning strawberry short cake as his birthday cake!

This is Sparkles. We won't know for sure for awhile but I am pretty sure she is in fact a he. I've told Esperanza that if she is a boy, we will be eating him for dinner. She wasn't the least bit bothered by the idea. Butter and Fluffy are behind her.

When the chickens come outside I have to enclose them with chicken wire caging so the cat doesn't eat them. Soon, they will be bigger than Lucy. Until then, they don't get to 'free range'.

As the day progressed and the sun became warmer, layer upon layer of clothing was shed.