Boys at work

Some days it's impossible to get anything done with a two-year-old running around. And some days he happily helps out. As long as there's a tractor ride in it for him.

My kind of cookie

I'm kind of a picky dessert person. I don't really care for chocolate chip cookies. I'll usually skip dessert if apple pie is being served (even if I made it.) But this! This lovely Lemon Icebox Cookie, is my kind of dessert. Buttery, lemony, salty, sweet. Yes, please!

Garden beginnings

The garden is started! Well, it's built. Ok, mostly built. We've been working hard out there. Nate built the frames for five raised beds. 

We got them set into the ground over the weekend, and filled with dirt today. 


Even Walter pitched in and moved some dirt around. He also buried some cars in there. I wonder if a car tree will grow...

Now that the beds are made, the next step is to protect them. Nate has big plans for a big fence. It should be done just in time to start planting!

Easter bunnies

Lookie what we found hiding in our daylilies this morning!

Cute little baby bunnies! (Cute until they get into my garden, that is.)
Here are a few more shots from the morning. Happy Easter, everyone!

Easter eggs

A rainy day like today is just the right kind of day for an indoor project like decorating Easter eggs. I decided to try silk dying this year. I've been collecting silk ties from thrift stores for just this reason. It was a fun experiment – wrapping the eggs up like presents, boiling them, and then unwrapping them to see the surprise inside. We followed Martha's instructions and ended up with some pretty little eggs. 

Spaetzle

Many years ago, Nate's great aunt, Auntie, gave me a spaetzle maker and her spaetzle recipe. And, (can you even believe this?) until two days ago I NEVER used it. I have no idea why. I guess I thought it would be complicated or something. It wasn't until I read this post from Smitten Kitchen and was convinced by both my sister and mother-in-law that it was an easy, kid-friendly meal, that I finally made spaetzle for the first time. Guess what! It was easy. It was good. Walter gobbled it up – what kid doesn't like noodle-y things? I cooked it up with onions, bacon and mushrooms and we all cleaned our plates. The spaetzle maker will be getting much more use from now on. 

Birdwatching in his underwear

Yes, he's wearing more than just underwear. But he is wearing underwear! As in, not a diaper! Woohoo!

Daffodils

Daffodils outside means fresh flowers inside too! Walter pointed, I cut, and we now have a little vase of sunshine brightening up our kitchen. Yay, spring!

What we came home to

It was nice to spend the week in the 80 degree weather down in Florida, and it was even nicer to come home to 80 degree weather in Wisconsin. It didn't last, of course, but we enjoyed the warm weekend and the loads of pretty spring flowers that had popped up in the yard. We also enjoyed seeing the huge amount of progress that Grampa had made on Walter's treehouse! It's so cool! Slides, sandbox, swings, ladders... Walter is having a fabulous time out there. And since he has such a nice play space outside, it gives us free time to do some yard cleanup. And some relaxing on our comfy new bench swing. I may have found a new favorite activity for Sunday mornings.

Zip-a-dee-doo-dah!

Sorry for the long break in posts, but we have been on vacation! We took a week-long trip to Walt Disney World in sunny Orlando, FL. Walter did really well with his first plane ride. It took him a couple of days to get comfortable with the theme park atmosphere, but he was soon jumping on rides with confidence and giving high-fives to any 6 foot tall animal that happened to walk by. We lucked out that Walter is just exactly 40 inches tall, so he got to go on some pretty cool rides – Splash Mountain was one of his favorites. But the real thrill for him was the trains. Even before you get into the Magic Kingdom you get to ride the monorail. And once you get in, there's a steam engine! He was in train heaven. The weather was great, except for one day of rain, which meant the park was empty and there were no lines for rides. Here are some photos from the trip. Click on any photo to see some more on Flickr.