Concrete, Part 2

The cement truck came to visit Daddy's work again.

The guys were pouring concrete for the floor of the crawlspace. It was a lot easier in some ways because they didn't have to try to move heavy wheelbarrows full of concrete through sand. It was more work in that there was a large area to cover and it involved a lot of raking and screeting.

The weather wasn't quite as cooperative as last time and there wasn't quite as much to see this time. The walls for the crawlspace are up and so Lane couldn't see too much of what was going on. 

But it we still had fun.

Because what boy doesn't like to watch cement trucks?

Birthday Cake

Ever since my brother's birthday the end of May, Lane has been talking about birthdays and birthday cakes and saying "happy birthday". I'm not sure he totally understands the concept of a birthday but he sure is having fun talking about.

Here is Lane playing with his play-doh. He likes to make cakes and cookies and carrots and pretend to eat them.

This particular day he was adamant that he was making Uncle Mike a birthday cake:

 

"See, Mom! Uncle Mike birthday cake!"

Father's Day

Lane and I made our first card together. 

Which means I made it and he coloured it. Lots.

 

It is full of cats and dogs and tractors and spiders--just the way Dad likes it.

Happy Father's Day!

Concrete

My husband has taken a job helping a guy build a house. The hole was dug 2 weeks ago and the footings were poured early last week. The world of construction is new to our house; we're not used to the long days of dad working nor is dad used to long days of physical work. However, we are adapting and enjoying the process of seeing a house take shape. Not to mention seeing all the cool machinery that comes to work on a jobsite. 

Let me back up a bit. Our 2 year old, like most boys, has a fascination with machines. Motorcycles, trucks, trains, loaders, school buses, you name it and we have probably talked about it. Cement trucks (and yes, dad, I know they really should be called concrete trucks) are Lane's current favorite so when the concrete was being poured at the jobsite, I knew I had to take him to see his truck in action. 

He was not disappointed.

Not only did he get to see his dad working but he got to see how the cement trucks works. Right from the truck backing up with the tank spinning, to putting the chute together to pouring the concrete to cleaning out the chute to taking it all back apart. A fascinating process. And a long one.

James has dumped his wheelbarrow full of concrete into the wood forms and is going back for another load. Pushing wheelbarrows full of concrete through sand was not an easy task.

Waiting while the wheelbarrow fills with concrete.

Moving concrete to fill up the forms as it comes down the chute.

A big cement truck; a happy little boy.

Taking it all in.

While my boy would've loved to have stayed to watch all 3 loads of concrete, the baby wasn't of the same mindset. We were able to watch for a couple of hours, after which we were all tired and in need of being out of the sun. A brisk walk home, a couple of glasses of cold water and the start of neverending conversations about cement trucks—a pretty good morning, I'd say.

Ah, the joys of boys.

Simple Cinnamon Granola

I've been wanting to make my own granola for quite a while. I love my bowl of cereal first thing in the morning but the cereal prices here are steadily going up. Besides, homemade granola would be healthy for me anyways, right?

So I've been doing a bit of a hunt for granola recipes. I've heard of enough bad experiences with granola that I was a bit leery about giving it a try myself. I'm not always good at making things that burn easily in a matter of seconds. Especially now that I have 2 boys around to distract me.

But I found a recipe here that looked and sounded easy. And I found myself with a cool morning, content boys, and all the ingredients staring me in the face. Granola it was:

 

Yummy, too!

I haven't even eaten it with milk yet. Nor have I had it for breakfast yet and it is just about all gone. We eat it by the handful for a snack. It's that good. 

And the beautiful part? It's quick and easy.

Don't believe me? Try it out for yourself:

Simple Cinnamon Granola

2-¼ cups Old Fashioned Rolled Oats (I used Roger's Porridge cereal)
1 cup Coarsely Chopped Nuts (I used peanuts)
½ teaspoons Cinnamon
¼ cup Canola Oil
¼ cup Maple Syrup
¼ cup Brown Sugar
¼ teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
½ cup Dried Fruit (I used dried cranberries)

Preheat oven to 325F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

Mix together oats, chopped nuts, and cinnamon in a large bowl and set aside.

Combine oil, maple syrup, brown sugar, and salt in a small saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves into liquid, about 5 minutes. Do not let it boil. Remove from heat and add vanilla extract.

Pour the hot liquid over the dry ingredients and mix well to coat.

Spread mixture out onto prepared baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes in preheated oven. Stir granola and return to oven for 10 more minutes. Stir one more time and bake another 5 minutes until golden brown, not dark.

Cool to room temperature and then add dried fruit. Store in an airtight container and enjoy!

My 3 month old cutie

Once again, I have the privilege of introducing to you my youngest son:

 

His smiles are still a little tricky to catch on camera...

...but sometimes I can get it.

He is interacting more and more with his surroundings. Lane loves telling his little brother about all of his adventures and Avery will listen (or at least look like he is listening) and will even smile at Lane. 

Avery is still a monster in terms of weight; my back is starting to really dislike hauling the kid around. I've got a babywrap coming in the mail that should help me carry him a little more comfortably. 

No matter how heavy this kid is, he is a content child, which I truly appreciate.

And when he laughs he has a twinkle in his eye that will melt your heart.

Seasoning

As some of you may be aware, I am involved in a Moms & Tots group that meets once a week. We enjoy our time out of the house, but more importantly we enjoy a couple of hours during which some gracious volunteers look after our kids. It's glorious. While our kids are terrorizing our lovely volunteers, we moms occupy our time with various different things ranging from public health presentations to creating Christmas ornaments to sipping cappuccinos to making seasoning mixes.

This week I finally tried the taco seasoning mix we made a few months ago. I'm not gonna lie; I was the one that picked the recipe for the rest of the moms to make. I thought it was a great idea and the recipe's reviews were good. I had good intentions of using it. It was just hard to switch from my packaged goodness to an untried mix that I put together.

I should've just tried it.

 

We love it.

The flavours are just right. The heat is perfect. And I'll never have to run to the store for a packet of seasoning mix anymore.

Interested?

Here's the recipe:

Taco Seasoning

1 tablespoon chili powder

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon onion powder

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper (I use cayenne because we like it spicy!)

¼ teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon paprika

1 ½ teaspoons cumin

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

Mix together. Use 3 TB of mix per pound of meat.