Our First Seder Meal

Last night we had our first Seder meal. It wasn't very well planned, but it did the job.  I'm hoping it will be a tradition and get better every year.  I got the script from Curr Click, but I saw one on Catholic Inspired as well.

The kids were very attentive throughout the whole thing. I think it was so out of the ordinary, they didn't know what to think.  Plus, I typically don't serve crackers and juice to my kids, so they were thrilled for the matzo and grape juice.

Here's a picture of Analee dipping her finger in the grape juice. How often do you tell your kids to dip their fingers in their grape juice 10 times for the 10 plagues? That was great.  Hiding the matzo was fun too.

Analee asked if the grape juice was lamb's blood. Would have been cooler if it was, although Eric and I were wishing it was wine.  Traditional Passovers include 4 glasses of wine!  I think we need to do this more authentic next year and invite some friends over.

I didn't have any parsley, so cilantro was substituted. It's Mexican parsley!

I love all the symbolism.  Chicken bone on a plate...morbid and weird, but cool.  Not sure about the roasted egg. Why does it need to be roasted after I boil it? Seems redundant.

Who knew it was the Jews who made the first Paleo granola bars? Choreset was eerily similar to these... I think next time I will just make those because my choreset wasn't the best.

The lamb leg roast with pan gravy was amazing! Such a treat. It was the first lamb roast I've prepared and even though I messed up the recipe, it still turned out.  This is definitely happening again.

Since the Seder meal isn't really a MEAL, I had to make some other food.  Besides the lamb, I wasn't sure else is typically served at a Passover meal.  So, we had also had steamed cauliflower and a nice salad with candied pecans, gorgonzola and green apple.  I think it was kosher.  At least I didn't serve bacon! no pork at this meal.

A Rooster Egg!

Roosters don't lay eggs, but this is a rooster egg!  A rooster is a sign of the resurrection, so it's pretty fitting to have my clay roosters put on an Easter egg.  I've gotten a couple requests to have my rooster cane on something other than jewelry, so I came up with this. It's not a new concept, but it's first time I've done it.  It was a lot of fun to make!

I used a wooden egg, so it's very durable and it stands on its own.  There are three roosters around the egg with my blue folk flowers creating a millefiori design around the clay roosters.

I put a shiny coat of sealer, so that's why the top one has a glare on it. The bottom picture is with the flash on, so no glare.

They are not in my shop, so if you want one, email me! The cost is $15.00 each. I'm catching up on orders, so no more new orders will be going out this week. Don't worry, though, the Easter season is 50 days long!

Awesome Book Giveaway

If you don't have Sally Fallon's Nourishing Traditions, here's a great chance to get it for free! It's one of my favorite cookbooks.  Janice, one of my fellow homeschooling moms in the area is giving it away on her blog. There aren't many entries, so you have a good chance of winning!

You also have the option of getting Sally Fallon's brand new Baby Book. I purchased it right after it came out and have been loving it! I was going to recommend it on my blog, but this will do.   She gives solid nutritional advice (think: Weston A Price Foundation) and a ton of other advice to keep in mind. I have learned quite a few things. I've owned probably a dozen baby books and by far, this is the best.

I also like that she's very common sense when it comes to parenting. She doesn't side with attachment parenting or baby training, but instead suggests parents use their good old common sense when it comes to putting their kids to bed, baby wearing, sleeping, etc.  She even says not to feel bad for giving your kids the occasional spank for very naughty behavior.  I like this woman! 

There is a weird chapter about not teaching your baby until their ready to learn. It's kind of new agey.  I forget the name of it.  Other than that, I think it's a great book.

Spring!

I think everyone would agree it's been quite the long, cold winter.  While we have enjoyed our new baby, it seemed like from January to March, all we've been doing is getting sick and trying to recuperated from being sick.  Thank goodness for the ray of sunshine called Faustina!

She's three months old now and getting so big! She's able to sit up when we hold her hands, is fascinated with her hands, and is trying to talk to us with her coos. 

Jude said today, "I just love her so much!" Sounds so cute coming from a two year old boy.

Liam has lost both front teeth now. According to traditional Fuji culture, he's now ready to leave the bosom of his mother and work along side his father all day.  I have yet to see a loss of attention. He's still the one-upper when it comes to affection. If I get one kiss from Eric, Liam's giving me two.  Yes, they make me feel like a queen every day!

Faustina is now back to good health after the RSV- pneumonia-hospital stay.  It was one of the scariest things I've been through as a parent.  To top it off, I got into a fender bender on my way to pick up a prescription after I learned she had RSV.  No damage was done, but the other guy made such a fuss over nothing, I ended up a hot mess of tears over all the stress.  I think that was the third day of lent.  Let's just say, dealing with that guy during that stress was all the sacrifice I needed to do.

Despite all my good intentions of celebrating the liturgical year in full, we had yet to celebrate one feast day- until St. Patrick's day. The kids decorated and we made green cookies. Today they said, "What can we do for St. Joseph's day??"  So I found the lazy mom's guide to a St. Joseph alter- a paper one! We did make some chocolate crowns of thorn though, which they are eating at present.  Maybe this is the start of something. 

I'm trying my best everyday to overcome feelings of being too overwhelmed.  Keeping my eyes from the over achievers blogs, really does help! I tend to feel like I have to do what everyone else is doing or I'm not doing enough.  When I look at my kids playing together, I realize that even though they don't get to do a whole lot outside the home, the best gift we've given them is inside the home. Siblings. Siblings are friends that live with you. God is good and His grace is always sufficient!

Some Good Questions

Allison gave me an a blog award and I'm going to be a good sport and answer these questions.  I'm not going to do all the other nominating stuff (I hope you don't mind).  

1. What delights you most about your life right now? Obvi, my new baby! She brings us such joy. I love the way she is filling out right now.  I can squeeze her with a little bit more vigor now! Her smiles can melt away any stress. I highly recommend having babies. 

2. What about your adult life is a surprise in terms of what you imagined as a child your adult life would be like?  Wow, that's a good question... I guess I envisioned my life as having more time to myself.  It's probably a good thing I don't have more time or I think I would be come too self absorbed. (just imagine me writing these about myself more often! gag.)

3. Where did you grow up and how far is it from where you live now?  I grew up in rural Minnesota. It's much too far from Virginia :(

4. What did you like best about being a child?  I enjoyed creating imaginary worlds and playing pretend.  I can't say I liked being carefree best because no one appreciates it when they are young!

5. What do you like about being a grown up?  being my own boss! Though I am not as much as a control freak as I used to be. I find it relieving when someone else takes control of the schedule and the decisions once in a while (like on the weekends when my husband's home).

6.. What do you think the value of old age is? Wisdom that comes from making mistakes and learning from them.  I wish I had a sage to tell me not to prevent me from making so many mistakes!

7. What do you like to do with your hands in terms of crafts, cooking etc?  I like all sorts of crafts, but I especially like making clay beads! Someday, I'd like to take painting classes.  I love cooking too.  Sipping a glass wine, chopping away veggies with the chef's knife, the smell of a sauteed onion... bliss.

8. Do you like to write letters or postcards? no. I have horrid handwriting.

9.  If you were coming to a potluck at my house, what would you bring? good question... probably something with bacon in it like a broccoli salad.

10. Does your family read your blog? Why or why not? I think my husband reads it sometimes.  I think it doesn't interest him. Probably because he knows everything about me already.

11.  If you could pick one adjective that you'd like people to associate with you, what would it be? loving. I think it's the best quality anyone could have.

Thank you, Allison for giving me something fun to write about. Those were some good questions!