Watch Out Ladies...

...he's at it again. That's right, that crazy husband of mine was cooking again tonight - - this time, a little "early" Valentine's dinner, since he's a working boy and all. Tonight's menu was roasted new potatoes and parsnips, a touch of salad, and pan-roasted chicken with lemons, olives, and rosemary, from the fabulous cookbook, At Blanchard's Table. Oh, and I feel inclined to mention the delish sauvignon blanc that I washed it all down with. I had to chuckle a little bit, because Steve has cooked more for me in the past month than he has in the past year. I am thinking that he is feeling the pressure, after having read all of your flatterning comments here on my blog. Lest you think that he is perfect, I must let you know that he has retired for the evening, but has left all of the dirty dishes from his cooking escapade lining my countertops.

Another note about dinner - - Steve was running a little late, so we fed the boys, and then somehow came up with the utter brainstorm of bringing the little DVD player in from the car, setting it up in the bedroom, and voila, it was almost like being out on a real dinner date. Okay not really, but it sure was nice to chat with my spouse without constant interruption. Griffin has about zero interest in television, so he spent most of the time annoying Camden, but still, at least they were down the hall, in their bedroom while we ate.

Steve has every other Monday off, so tonight ends a fabulous three-day weekend for us. We decided to shake things up a bit and declared this past Saturday "family day", and headed for the Big City. I think we tend to get into the rut of feeling like we have "things to do" around the house on the weekends, so we forget to get out and have fun. We decided to take the boys to the Discovery Center of Idaho, which I am ashamed to admit, we'd never been to before. A little over Griffin's head, but at this point in his life he is happy just to run around and squeal, so he was happy none the less. Camden loved it, and I envision us getting a family membership in the near future. The boys sure loved the little play market, and this picture of them shopping really cracks me up.

From there we headed over to the Boise Co-op for some assorted treats, which we then took to the Boise Train Depot for a bit of a picnic lunch. I love the view of the Capital from there - - just lovely.

After that, we made a quick stop (to humor me) at a little antique shop, which, unfortunately didn't allow children into the best part of the shop (hmmm...I wonder why?!??), so I was left to make a quick dash through, where I made mental notes of the oodles of vintage Pyrex, Fire King, and deviled egg plates lining the shelves. Alas, in a couple of weeks I will be sneaking back there, all by myself, so that I can look and linger.

Yesterday, I spent most of the day working on my most recent project, which is, decluttering my home. That's a topic for another post, but let me just tell you, it is life-altering. I am currently reading a book by Peter Walsh, and has totally changed the way I view and think about "stuff". If you have even the slightest problem with clutter or disorganization, I highly recommend his book.

Today, we took Camden shopping to get some soccer gear, because he's just signed up to play spring soccer. I'm still feeling a little anxious about all of this - - the state of organized sports anymore makes me a little distressed, which was only amplified, when I had to sign a "Parents Code of Conduct" form at the Rec Center, when registering him. I kid you not, it was two pages long, all about how I would promise not to act like a complete idiot whilst my 4-year-old child plays soccer. I mean, really. It makes me so sad to think that there are parents out there who behave in a manner that makes these sort of forms even necessary. So, back to the soccer gear. Camden was so excited to try everything on when we got home, because, you know - - it is like another costume of sorts, and you know the boy loves a good costume. The boys headed into their room to play, and Steve and I were each seperately occupied when suddently we heard what sounded like a gun shot, followed by hysterical screaming. Long story short, apparently Camden sat on his soccer ball, and it exploded, peppering his bare little legs (he was wearing soccer shorts, you know) with bits of soccer ball shrapnal. That kid is going to have some nasty bruises, I can tell you that. I'm happy to report that the afternoon drama did not deter him from wanting to play soccer, but he certainly won't be sitting on a soccer ball any time soon.

As for the rest of the week, it is jam-packed with Story Time tomorrow (Valentine's theme), Valentine's party for Camden at school, Valentine's festivities at home of course, more decluttering, and certainly our weekly fill of reading, playing, and all things little boy. Steve leaves this weekend for his annual arctic camping trip - - more about that in a few days.

Ending with a shot of Griffin, reading with Steve. He spent a good part of the weekend bringing book after book to us, wanting to sit and read. I love it!