Halloween 2012!

Bookworm

In Vancouver this week, we made a pilgrimage from the boat to the big city library. I like to visit all the books there, and to browse the shelves in a few sections, to see if anything catches my eye. I didn't find anything that grabbed me in the parenting aisle, did find an interesting behavioral economics book in the personal finance section, and, on a whim, decided to bring this one home, too:

Shoes

When I ask the little man to please put his shoes away, this is where he puts them:

Kale Monster

The garden is going strong, and the little man likes to eat stuff straight from it, including kale. We had snow peas for dinner, and have been eating collards and beets for weeks! The raspberries are ripening, and the scarlet runner beans are flowering. Bring on the sun!

Garden update

It is almost the date of last frost, we've had lots of sun, and the garden is coming along. Here are a few update pics: peas

lettuce

radishes and rocket

collards!

kale

baby marigolds

and a nodding poppy, the one the deer didn't get

Cheese!

It turns out that mr. T is allergic to cow's milk (it makes him vomit, ug). We've been off dairy for 3 months, waiting to see if the allergy/intolerance might just disappear, as the doctor said it might. So far it hasn't, and last week I picked up a litre of goat's milk at the store, thinking we might give it a try. He loved it, and drank 2 big glasses at dinner. I put a towel on his bed, under his sheets, just in case. But all was well! So goat's milk has found a place in our fridge, and I am learning to make goat cheese! I found a very simple recipe here and whipped up a batch to take to a delicious salmon & nori dinner at our friends' house last night. I put some garlic, salt, and pepper in it, and it was gone in a flash. Even our friends' kids, who normally gag at goat's milk, gobbled it up. So I made another batch this morning. It's so easy, it's ridiculous. I heated the milk and squeezed the lemons while we ate breakfast, then popped it in the cheesecloth before we left the house. It was ready and waiting when we came home for lunch.

Here we are, eating the fresh cheese, a loaf of (my new favourite) 100% whole wheat and olive oil bread, and arugula from the garden. Does it get any better? I don't think so.

And neither does mr. T!

Gutted!

The renovations aren't over. 8) They've just been stripped of their deadlines, which makes them a whole lot more satisfying. Our next big inside project is renovating little T's room. We were concerned about mold spores and the dust of the ages, and we noticed that we slept easier in our room once we ripped out the unbearable pink and silver roses wallpaper. So I tore out the carpet, gave it away on the Exchange, and have *just* finished ripping out the paneling.

Next is drywall, mudding, and painting, and then we can move him back in there, and hang up his airplanes again! For now he's sleeping in his bed in our room, which works, but I think we all miss having our own space.

Theo's new favourite hobby

This weekend we went down to the Ruckle Farm days to meet some friends for cupcakes to celebrate my birthday. There were a heap of fun activities, including pony rides, which were Theo's favourite:

 

He's been talking about wanting to 'ride a purple horse' non-stop! We also petted bunnies and guinea pigs, saw chickens and turkeys (our friend Thom's favourite activity was chasing them), and chatted to wool spinners about cleaning fleeces. A good time was had by all.