Darr Family Blog – Page 58 – The place to follow the Darr Family

Time Just Flies

This week just sped by! In fact, time seems to be speeding up. We’ve got two weeks of school left before summer vacation (yay!) and I’m just sitting here trying to figure out how we’re already almost into June. We didn’t do too much out of the ordinary, and thankfully it didn’t rain as much as was predicted (it was predicted that it would rain all day, every day, but it only rained once or twice).

It started pouring just as I pulled in to pick Joseph up from school. Luckily, by the time he actually got out, it had slowed to a sprinkle.

Well, that’s one way to hang up your sweatshirt!

We’ve had something coming and munching on our tomatoes as soon as they start to turn, so we put some wire around the pot. Hopefully now that’ll stop. I could tell it wasn’t bugs (though, I did just pick another tomato that I could tell was gone after by a bug, so we’ll need some food-safe bug treatment)

Paul was at the park spreading mulch and stumbled across this huge stick bug. So cool!

This morning was definitely a cuddle-puddle.

They were like this for quite some time.

Another Zoo Trip and Some Yummy Food

We had another good week. There was a little rain, but it was mostly dry, which was good, because we have rain in the forecast for the next ten days. It’s pretty typical for May. Paul was busy with work, I was busy with house stuff, students, etc., Joseph was busy with school (he had state testing this pas week), and Abigail was living up the pre-schooler life, haha. I did get to go to book club, which was fun, and today I took the kids to the zoo (Paul is at a Libertarian conference this weekend, but he’ll be back tomorrow before church) before the rain started in earnest. I also made some yummy food and treats, which is always fun. 🙂

Joseph’s Mother’s Day card. It starts out like this…

…and then opens up to show this. It’s a technique he learned in art at school. 🙂

She was pretending to be a cow with a bell…except her bell was full of her plastic eggs from her play food. 😀

Yummy meal #1: Parmesan chicken pasta. I made the whole thing in my pressure cooker! I cubed and browned the chicken and then added the noodles (uncooked), some water, and sauce. Once it was done, I mixed in Parmesan cheese, topped it with shredded mozzarella (then covered the pot to let it melt), and then sprinkled some toasted bread crumbs across the top. It was so good!

Step one for yummy meal #2: homemade rolls…

…seasoned pork shoulder in the pressure cooker…

…and, ta-dah! BBQ pulled pork sandwiches! I went easy and served canned baked beans on the side.

We’ve got a couple that are almost ready! In fact, I might go out and look at that bottom one a little more closely…

I was out watering the bit of the lawn around the tree (the shade from the tree makes it a little harder for the grass there to grow). I looked up and was struck with just how much I love where we live (that, and I don’t have many pictures of the front of our house and thought it might be fun to throw one more in).

Abigail and I both needed new shoes, so we decided to get matching ones. So fun!

It is imperative that she take a picture at the butterfly wall.

Can you spot the lion (it’s a girl lion)?

Some type of African antelope (and Abigail). 😉

Rhinos! Abigail was sticking her arm out, trying to feel the raindrops (it sprinkled on us a bit while we were there).

The okapi was using its long tongue to get something off of the leaves (not sure if it was water droplets or bugs, but it was clear that it wasn’t eating the actual leaves).

This is one of their favorite parts of the zoo (it may or may not have to do with the fact that it’s air conditioned). 😉

There are cave walls that they like to climb.

Yummy treat: I decided I wanted to make some donuts.

It was fun to pipe the dough into the pan.

Now to get them out of the pan (which was easy since I brushed the wells with oil and it’s a nonstick pan). I like my little tool that helps me get them out. Since it’s nylon, it won’t scratch the nonstick coating on the pan.

All iced. I’m so glad I have an offset spatula…that made spreading the icing way easier.

Drying Out for a Bit and Some Outside Fun

Well, it finally stopped raining (for the time being…we do have more rain in the forecast for next week). Once things dried out a bit (even on dry days, it takes a bit for the ground to be less muddy), we ventured out to do some fun things: playing in the back yard, going to the park, and going for a zoo trip today. We were able to let Abigail loose at the zoo and she did great listening and not running off. It was awesome! One funny story about her: At the end of her baths, I always tell her that she can play until all the water is gone…so she always gets a cup full of water and waits until all the rest of the water in the tub is gone before she gives me a mischievous look while holding her cup full of water. She always looks a little bummed when I tell her she has to empty her cup. Smart yet sassy girl! In other news, Joseph is really enjoying being back in school. He says it’s much better than trying to learn remotely from home. He’s also been able to choose a prize out of the prize box for good behavior/staying on task, which has been a highlight of his week (his teacher recently started this with the in-person learners and loaded the prize box with different toys that are good for hands that need to be kept busy…which are toys that he loves, so it’s a win-win).