Happy Birthday, Bambi!

Your children are not your children.

They are the sons and daughters of

Life's longing for itself.

They come through you but not from you,

And though they are with you,

and yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,

For they have their own thoughts.

You may house their bodies but not their souls,

For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,

which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams. ~Kahlil Gibran

I can't believe that my baby is turning 16 years old today. It is unfathonable that so many years have passed since they put her into my arms for the first time and I fell in love at first sight, at first touch, at first smell. I knew that she would be my last and perhaps that's why her growing up has been so bittersweet, why the milestones touch me so deeply. She is an amazing young woman now, and to say that I am proud of her is an understatement. She has brought so much joy to my life, I am incredibly blessed and ever-so-grateful to have lived these past 16 years with such an amazing creature.

Happy Sweet Sixteen, Bambi. I love you.

Summer Romance

"Summer romances begin for all kinds of reasons,
but when all is said and done,
they have one thing in common.
They're shooting stars,
a spectacular moment of light in the heavens,
fleeting glimpse of eternity,
and in a flash they're gone."

~ Noah, The Notebook

If you know the story of Beren and myself, you understand why I am so enamoured with the movie, The Notebook. In many ways it is so much like us, what we have been through to be together. We, too, started out as a summer romance, were separated for years and now here we are together again. The shooting stars continue to shoot through the sky, though, with no end in sight. If I wish on each & every one perhaps this "summer romance" will continue throughout eternity.

Now Playing at the Castle: Sandrine Kiberlain

My wonderful Mom surprised me with an early birthday gift from my Amazon wish list, a cd I've been coveting: Putumayo Presents: Women of the World - Acoustic. I love the Putamayo compilations and this one does not disappoint! I listened to the cd for the first time yesterday in the car, it made errand day much more pleasant! I think it would be perfect cooking music as well.

The first track called M'envoyer Des Fleurs by Sandrine Kiberlain is especially enjoyable. I couldn't find that particular song on YouTube but did locate another one called Y'a du monde. I don't speak French so I have no idea what she's saying, but it sounds beautiful! Grace, can you help translate? *smile*

Happiness Is...

*an all-afternoon rain storm! The perfect excuse to get stuff done around the house..or take a nap. (I vote for the latter)

*Lily's laughter, haven't heard that in over a week! She's finally starting to feel better, thank goodness.

*the surprise of finding a newly-hatched Monarch butterfly drying her wings in the herb garden, so beautiful!

*glancing out onto the patio and finding a squirrel helping himself to the container of sunflower seeds. Apparently I didn't feel the bird feeder quickly enough for the little guy!

*a new digital camera! Whoo-hoo! I'll be posting some pics as soon as I learn how to use it

In Pursuit of My Inner Pin-Up

A small announcement: I've decided to start another blog chronicling my weight loss journey, feel the need to separate it from here just so I can focus better. I need to get serious and really get a handle on this issue once and for all. If anyone wants to take a peek, here it is: In Pursuit of My Inner Pin-Up. I can use all of the input & support I can get.

Thank you.

Now Showing at the Castle: Women in Art

This is so absolutely gorgeous,I just have to share!

The Joys of Summer

My friend Grace just posted about summer reading which made me think back to past summers when my girls were younger. Immediately what comes to mind is the year that Kali was in middle school (11 or 12?) and Lily and Bambi were 5 & 6. I got together with two of my friends and, determined that we would not lose our sanity by the time school started again, we sat down and made plans for the three of us and the 8 children between us at the time. We decided to get together three times a week - Monday, Wednesday & Friday. Monday was library and ice cream, Wednesday was pool and/or the $1 matinee, depending upon the weather, and then there was Field Trip Friday where we did something a bit more exciting. We adults had someone to groan with during those awful kiddie movies (who can forget the horror of the Cabbage Patch Kids feature-length film?), we sat around the pool and sipped a glass of wine while the kids tortured each other (we were watching them, I promise!), we talked and laughed and generally had a wonderful time. There were late night runs to Barnes & Noble to claim the newest Dar Williams album, afternoon picnics at the park fueled by popsicles and spinach dip, children's music concerts at the preschool where Susan worked..oh, so many simple ways to have fun. Kali says that that it was her best summer ever, and Susan's son recently shared with me the same thing. He says that our three families were so intertwined in his childhood memories, he cannot separate us from them. What a lovely testament to an amazing summer. We never re-enacted the experience but it was indeed a magical time full of bonding and friendship and fun..the summer even ended with one of us giving birth, a memory that certainly will never be forgotten.

On My Hearth: Italian Vegetable Bake

Lily is still sick and now Bambi has it as well! This has got to be the flu, it's lasting too long and the symptoms are flu-like. They've both been living on fruit & toast and whatever else I can get into them, poor babies. Tonight Beren's having dinner with his girls so I'm going to make a really healthy recipe for myself and hopefully the little patients will feel up to eating as well. I found this on Sparkspeople, will probably serve this with some type of pasta.

Italian Vegetable Bake

This colorful low-sodium cholesterol-free vegetable baked dish is prepared without any added fat.


Ingredients

* 1 can (28 oz.) whole tomatoes
* 1 medium onion, sliced
* 1/2 lb. fresh green beans, sliced
* 1/2 lb. fresh okra, cut into 1/2" pieces or 3/4 cup (1/2 10 oz. pkg) frozen okra
* 3/4 cup finely chopped green pepper
* 2 tablespoon lemon juice
* 1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil, or 1 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
* 1-1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano leaves, or 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
* 3 medium (7" long) zucchini, cut into 1" cubes
* 1 medium eggplant, pared and, cut into 1" cubes
* 2 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Drain and coarsely chop tomatoes. Save liquid. Mix together tomatoes and reserved liquid, onion, green beans, okra, green pepper, lemon juice, and herbs. Cover and bake at 325º F for 15 minutes.

2. Mix in zucchini and eggplant and continue baking, covered, 60-70 more minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir occasionally.

3. Sprinkle top with parmesan cheese just before serving.

Yield: 18 servings--Serving Size: 1/2 cup

Nutrition Information

Fat: 0.2 g
Carbohydrates: 7.5g
Calories: 33.0
Protein: 1.8g

Today's Inspiration: Grandfather's Cars

My dear friend Susan sent this, said it reminded her of me and that's she's glad I "kept the car." I do have a wonderful car, a red convertible I've named Bettie Page, I love her dearly! Above is a pic of me taken the first day I brought her home. Life's too short to drive a car you hate, or to settle in any way for that matter.

The Writers Almanac SATURDAY, 2 June, 2007

Grandfather's Cars by Robert Phillips, from Spinach Days

Every two years he traded them in ("As soon
as the ashtrays get full," he said with good humor);
always a sedate four-door sedan, always a Buick,
always dark as the inside of a tomb.

Then one spring Grandfather took off to trade,
returned, parked proudly in the driveway.
"Shave-and-a-haircut, two bits!" blared the horn.
Grandmother emerged from the kitchen into day-

light, couldn't believe her eyes. Grandfather sat
behind the wheel of a tomato-red Lincoln
convertible, the top down. "Shave-and-a-haircut,
two bits!" "Roscoe, whatever are you thinking?"

she cried. Back into the kitchen she flew.
No matter how many times he leaned on that horn,
she wouldn't return. So he went inside,
found her decapitating strawberries with scorn.

"Katie, what's wrong with that automobile?
All my life I've wanted something sporty."
He stood there wearing his Montgomery Ward
brown suit and saddle shoes. His face was warty.

She wiped her hands along her apron,
said words that cut like a band saw:
"What ails you? They'll think you've turned fool!
All our friends are dying like flies-all!

You can't drive that thing in a funeral procession."
He knew she was right. He gave her one baleful
look, left, and returned in possession
of a four-door Dodge, black, practical as nails.

Grandfather hated that car until the day he died.

Summer Heat

Poor Lily is still terribly under the weather, running a fever of almost 102. We were both up half the night trying to get her more comfortable. I'm concerned and want to run her to the doctor but like most stubborn teenagers, she won't hear of it. So I'm waiting and watching and hoping that she feels better soon or else I'll be loading her in the car against her will. I hate Mommy worries, and they never lessen. When they are sick, 17 is the same as 7 months, they're your baby and need to be nursed and cared for as only Moms can do.

So, instead of going on a little day-long business trip with Beren, I am home today, puttering around the house, catching up on chores and hovering around my sick little one. Lily is watching movies, sipping orange juice and wishing she could be at the beach like she was in the above picture.

(Wasn't she just the cutest little thing? She still is.)