The Annual "Greening of the Downtown Canal" Event.
Of course, we would never miss it! It's way too FUN.
And, a cure for the March blahs.
Of course, we would never miss it! It's way too FUN.
And, a cure for the March blahs.
Showing posts with label St. Patrick's Day. Show all posts
Showing posts with label St. Patrick's Day. Show all posts
Friday, March 16, 2012
Monday, March 21, 2011
Shamrock Shakes!
To some people, it's just March 17. To other people (me), it's a great way to have a little fun and focus on something other than the March blahs! We always love meeting Kevin for lunch and walking along the canal, which they dye green. We also always play a "hide the shamrock" game, where the kids take turns finding the hidden shamrock. It keeps them entertained all day!
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Reality
Kevin wore a green tie on St. Pat’s. Someone asked him if he had a court hearing that day (i.e., the reason for the tie). He said, “No, I just did it for my wife.” Then he was asked if his wife has Irish heritage. He said “No, she’s just into whatever holiday it happens to be.” Ha! This is so true. I love an excuse to do something out of the ordinary.
So, here’s what our St. Patrick’s Day REALLY looked like.
1. The morning was rushed. It always takes much longer to get out the door than I plan for. I did manage to dye the kids’ milk green, just for fun. Meredith and Clara are so different. I told them the milk came from a green cow. Meredith just stared at the milk, full of skepticism. Clara’s attitude was like, “Cool. I love green cows! Let me try it!!”
2. It’s 9:30 a.m. By no small miracle, all kids are buckled in the car, the corned beef made it into the slow cooker, and we will be able to make library class on time.
3. Car battery is dead. Four different neighbors are called for help. We all have the same problem—the jumper cables are in our husbands’ cars, far away. I make a mental note to buy an extra set of jumper cables.
3. We miss library class.
4. My dear, dear friend (she is the best!) loads her baby in the car and drives from her house in a nearby subdivision to jump start my car.
5. Sophia wakes up and is hungry. I had planned to feed her at library class. So, I sit on the garage steps to breastfeed my child and wait for my friend to arrive. The kids pull out all their bikes and toys.
6. The car is working again! The baby is fed. A diaper is changed. The toys are put back in the garage. The kids are all re-buckled.
7. We head to Destination #2, McDonald’s. We get our food but the Shamrock Shake machine is broken. Meredith is very disappointed. I promise to get her one after the parade.
8. We have a good conversation about how a man plans his way, but God directs his steps. It’s remarkable how little we actually have control over. Scratch that. We control nothing.
9. We arrive downtown. Clara tells me she has to pee. All four of us, including the stroller, squeeze into the downtown Jimmy John’s bathroom. Clara touches everything gross. (We need to buy stock in the hand sanitizer company. I never go anywhere without hand sanitizer.)
10. We meet up with daddy. Yay! Seeing Kevin walk toward me is always the best part of my day.
11. We make the parade. We even manage to find a sunny spot to stand in. That’s when we realize it will be impossible to eat our food standing up in a crowd, while helping our children see the parade.
12. The parade is over. We sit on a curb to eat cold French fries. The girls get a thrill out of feeding numerous birds their French fries.
13. Sophia is hungry again. I feed her a bottle while pushing her stroller through downtown streets, to the parking garage.
14. We conquer the Green Canal. We had to walk far, but it was fun.
15. I make good on my promise to get a Shamrock Shake for the girls. Clara has fallen asleep in the car, however.
16. We manage to play a few rounds of hide-the-Shamrock at home. Meredith also creates an impromptu green centerpiece for the table, made out of a Styrofoam cup and pine needles she found on the side of the canal.
17. Dinner is ready. Kevin got stuck at the office. The girls and I eat without him. He comes home, I pass off the torch, and I head to book club.
“A man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” Proverbs 16:9
So, here’s what our St. Patrick’s Day REALLY looked like.
1. The morning was rushed. It always takes much longer to get out the door than I plan for. I did manage to dye the kids’ milk green, just for fun. Meredith and Clara are so different. I told them the milk came from a green cow. Meredith just stared at the milk, full of skepticism. Clara’s attitude was like, “Cool. I love green cows! Let me try it!!”
2. It’s 9:30 a.m. By no small miracle, all kids are buckled in the car, the corned beef made it into the slow cooker, and we will be able to make library class on time.
3. Car battery is dead. Four different neighbors are called for help. We all have the same problem—the jumper cables are in our husbands’ cars, far away. I make a mental note to buy an extra set of jumper cables.
3. We miss library class.
4. My dear, dear friend (she is the best!) loads her baby in the car and drives from her house in a nearby subdivision to jump start my car.
5. Sophia wakes up and is hungry. I had planned to feed her at library class. So, I sit on the garage steps to breastfeed my child and wait for my friend to arrive. The kids pull out all their bikes and toys.
6. The car is working again! The baby is fed. A diaper is changed. The toys are put back in the garage. The kids are all re-buckled.
7. We head to Destination #2, McDonald’s. We get our food but the Shamrock Shake machine is broken. Meredith is very disappointed. I promise to get her one after the parade.
8. We have a good conversation about how a man plans his way, but God directs his steps. It’s remarkable how little we actually have control over. Scratch that. We control nothing.
9. We arrive downtown. Clara tells me she has to pee. All four of us, including the stroller, squeeze into the downtown Jimmy John’s bathroom. Clara touches everything gross. (We need to buy stock in the hand sanitizer company. I never go anywhere without hand sanitizer.)
10. We meet up with daddy. Yay! Seeing Kevin walk toward me is always the best part of my day.
11. We make the parade. We even manage to find a sunny spot to stand in. That’s when we realize it will be impossible to eat our food standing up in a crowd, while helping our children see the parade.
12. The parade is over. We sit on a curb to eat cold French fries. The girls get a thrill out of feeding numerous birds their French fries.
13. Sophia is hungry again. I feed her a bottle while pushing her stroller through downtown streets, to the parking garage.
14. We conquer the Green Canal. We had to walk far, but it was fun.
15. I make good on my promise to get a Shamrock Shake for the girls. Clara has fallen asleep in the car, however.
16. We manage to play a few rounds of hide-the-Shamrock at home. Meredith also creates an impromptu green centerpiece for the table, made out of a Styrofoam cup and pine needles she found on the side of the canal.
17. Dinner is ready. Kevin got stuck at the office. The girls and I eat without him. He comes home, I pass off the torch, and I head to book club.
“A man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” Proverbs 16:9
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
St. Patrick's To-Do List
I'm tired of making to-do lists and not being able to accomplish anything. So I just wrote out a St. Patrick's Day to-do list and I plan to ignore my other to-do lists and accomplish EVERYTHING tomorrow. St. Patty's To-Do
1. Wear green
2. Put corned beef in slow cooker
3. Take kids to library class
4. Go to McDonald's drive-thru and get lunch and Shamrock Shakes
5. Go to St. Patrick's Day Parade downtown, meet up with Kevin and eat lunch while watching parade
6. Take kids to see the green water at the canal downtown
7. Play "hide-the-Shamrock" with the kids
8. Eat a simple Irish dinner with the family
-------------
9. Oh yes, and go to book club. I actually signed up last fall to lead the discussion for this time around. We will be discussing The Picture of Dorian Gray and I still have 40 pages to read tonight. Life is always exciting.
Monday, March 30, 2009
A Leprechaun and a Ballerina
I realize that St. Patrick’s Day was forever ago—we’ve been enjoying the great outdoors and I haven’t been on the computer much—but I thought I’d still post a picture of my little leprechaun, Clara.
And then here’s a picture of the authentic Irish Soda bread we ate with our corned beef, potatoes, and cabbage on St. Patrick’s Day. At the last minute I realized I hadn’t really thought about the table centerpiece. Then I remembered I had a ton of limes that I just bought at Costco that would do the job!
And here is my little ballerina, Meredith, before her lesson last week. She takes ballet very seriously and even practices at home. It’s cute to watch.
And then here’s a picture of the authentic Irish Soda bread we ate with our corned beef, potatoes, and cabbage on St. Patrick’s Day. At the last minute I realized I hadn’t really thought about the table centerpiece. Then I remembered I had a ton of limes that I just bought at Costco that would do the job!
And here is my little ballerina, Meredith, before her lesson last week. She takes ballet very seriously and even practices at home. It’s cute to watch.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
