Aerial Dancing

I'm the one with the darker purple top (the one that is NOT the instructor).

What foods don't you eat?

My friend Charlotte commented on the RIP post and made me think of what foods I eat, and what foods I am trying to avoid.

I have started buying nitrate free deli meat, since I'm uncomfortable with my kids eating so much lunch meat. It's harder to find, and our regular grocery store doesn't carry any. If I say I'm not eating meat with nitrates/nitrites in it, I'm also going to have to stop eating ham, hot dogs, and who knows what else.

The other thing that I've decided really grosses me out is jello. I LOVE jello. Especially red jello with bananas and raspberries inside and cool whip on top ala my granny (who died a few years ago). Gelatin just sounds nasty though. Thankfully, my sister found some vegan gelatin, and made some for us at a family party last year. It was a little runnier than granny's but didn't have the "ew gross" factor.

So what foods don't you eat, and why not?

(My mister loves it when I decide that "we're" not eating certain things anymore. He doesn't know about hot dogs yet. Sorry Mister. Maybe I'll be able to find some that both taste good and are nitrate free....)

RIP Chickie, Black, and Red (3/25/06-6/24/08)

In order to make room for the new chickens, we had to (ahem) "retire" the old ones.  We all knew this day was coming, and that this was "fulfilling the measure of their creation", but it was still difficult for me.  I'm glad they had a good life, not like battery cage chickens.

My sweet Mister took care of everything, making sure I didn't see anything that would be upsetting.  He came and told me after that he vocally thanked each chicken for providing us food before killing it, which made me feel better.

The boys wanted to see them (after they were plucked and cleaned) and were surprisingly not upset- although they thought it was gross.  We talked about how we were so grateful to the chickens for giving us eggs and now meat.  I think it's good for them to see where their food comes from.  

Mr. Gordon, Fred, Mario, and Little Jerry all seem to be doing well, and as far as we can tell, are all hens (although we're not so sure about little jerry (which is especially funny if you're a seinfeld fan)).  They are getting huge and are really hard to feed in the pen in the garage, because when you take the top off the fly up at you.  It's a little scary, and I've thought about wearing safety goggles (my eyes! my eyes!).

They'll be thankful for the larger pen out in the fresh air and sunlight. 

Joining the Circus

My sis (Hi M!) and I signed up for an aerial dance class together.  It isn't something I would have ever done on my own, so I'm especially grateful to M for asking me....

I love it.  Ever since our class last night, I've been trying to figure out how to hang silks from the ceiling in my house.  We decided that we need a barn.  

Note... This picture is not me, and I didn't do anything that interesting, but it gives you an idea of what I'm doing.  It didn't seem all that difficult, exercise-wise, except that I could tell my hands were going to be sore, but by the time class was over, I was out of breath and felt like I'd had a pretty good work out.  

Why I still read the Trib comments....

Usually the comments on articles are mormon bashing, and I try (unsuccessfully) to not read them.  This article, although not funny in itself (I don't advocate laughing at people who get attacked with shovels, really!), had the best comments.  My Mister and I sat last night (granted it was late) and laughed so hard we were nearly crying.

Check out the articleHERE, and if you need a link directly to the comments it's HERE

Rereading them this morning, they're not quite so rolling-on-the-floor-funny, but still amusing.

Here are the comments just in case they disappear from online...

This is the kind of headline newspaper people fantasize about!

A shovel? He may have been planning on more than urinating. (having a dog that we do poop scoop duty for, this one is my favorite)

It will be interesting when the name of the criminal is released.

I wondered where all my neighbors moved to.

Never bother a man urinating on your lawn while he is holding a shovel.

Looks like someone needs to be more discreet with their public urination. Its a skill that takes time, but once mastered, the world can become your urinal..

Not for the women :-(

Men have the power to water down bugs while camping and can write their name in the snow with urine. Maybe thats why "MEN" think they should rule the world.

Yard Updates on the house blog

House Blog Updates

Things that make you think it will all work out.

We've had a difficult time adjusting to having J home during the day. It feels a little bit like he is always in trouble, and I have been wondering if I need to let some things go, or keep doing what I'm doing in hopes that eventually he'll start listening and obeying. It's nice to know that even though they argue and yell and sometimes even hit each other, that they still love each other. (at least during cartoon time)