Grandma

Waffles!

"...and in the morning, I'll cook waffles!" (Donkey, in Shrek)
This was a very fun cultural moment... We got a waffle maker at the local consignment store. Discovered that waffles are not the crunchy, sugary things that come out of a packet from the freezer that you put in the toaster, that are hard to spread because they have those lumps and bumps. Waffles are like a pancake, with a grid design in them... cooked hot and steaming, with maple syrup and defrosted strawberries. I have grand plans for banana waffles...and just more waffles, really.
And the joy of saying "Waffles" just like Eddie Murphy.

Halloween in the shops

I know I already blabbered about how Halloween seemed a bit more cultural, and less of a spending spree. I obviously don't spend enough time at the shops... Today, finalising cold weather gear (yay! we're going to be warm!), I finally realised just how much junk you could buy, including a whole aisle of Halloween cards. I honestly don't know why you'd bother with the cards. I'm hoping to learn why in the coming week.

Fall Soccer

Fall soccer is over, and we have received into the family the first 'participation' trophy. On one hand, the kids love it (Mr 5 is asking about whether he can try to save it if there is a fire), and on the other hand, I can see the negatives, esp in terms of accumulating junk that eventually you don't know what to do with!  I think I will miss the chilly practice afternoons and game time mornings, standing on the sidelines, trying to remember not to yell about tackling (because it is taken as AFL tackles, not soccer tackles...).

Beautiful Autumn Leaves!

We have a little bit of Shenandoah outside our front door - this tree has been progressively getting redder and redder. I think it is about ready to shed leaves properly now (our gutter is already awash, but there's always room for more!).

Air Drying Clothes

Well, I know it is the end of summer and the start of colder weather, as drying clothes on the airer inside isn't working so well. All summer I have had my airer up by the kitchen window, and gotten about a load a day dry, but now, we're going to have to start using the dryer for more urgent things!
Most american back yards (or atleast, the ones around here) are completely clothesline free. Washing machines and dryers are sold as a set of two, and the dryers are big and business like. There just doesn't seem to be a culture of  hanging clothes out, even in summer.

Pumpkin overload

It is getting ridiculous, the number of special 'seasonal' (ie, pumpkin spice or pumpkin based) items being released right now. Here is a list of what was in the latest Trader Joe's catalogue:

1. Pumpkin bread mix
2. Pumpkin spice coffee
3. Pumpkin O's (cheerio sort of cereal)
4. Pumpkin pancake and waffle mix
5. Pumpkin rolls with pumpkin spice icing
6. Pumpkin ice cream
7. Pumpkin cream cheese muffins (I've had one of these, they are actually nice)
8. Pumpkin spiced pumpkin seeds
9. Mini Pumpkin pies
10. Gluten Free Pumpkin pancake mix
11. Pumpkin Greek yoghurt
12. Pumpkin spice granola (toasted museli)
13. Pumpkin waffles
14. Pumpkin croissants (travesty, say I)
15. Pumpkin bagels
16. Pumpkin cream cheese
17. Pumpkin spice chai (sort of ironic, because if you think about what the 'pumpkin spices' are, chai should already have it?!)
18. Dark Chocolate Pumpkin spice salted caramels
19. Pumpkin bread Pudding
20. Honey roasted Pumpkin ravioli
21. Pumpkin seed brittle
22. Iced pumpkin scone cookies
23. Pumpkin macarons
24. Pumpkin cheese cake
25. Pumpkin cranberry crisps
26. Pumpkin pie spice (yes, instead of mixing your own, you buy it in containers)
27. Pumpkin croutons
28. Pumpkin cornbread mix
29. Pumpkin butter
30. Organic Pumpkin toaster pastries
31. Pumpkin body butter
32. Pecan pumpkin instant oatmeal

After typing pumpkin so many times, I need to go have a lie down.

Regularity of posting

Now for some housekeeping... You may have noticed I'm not managing a daily post anymore. I did wonder how long I would keep that up. Sad but true, there is nothing much interesting that happens on the three days a week that I go to work, so while that happens, I'm not going to expect to post on those days... Just thought I'd let you know, in case you were counting. I will try to keep on with the little posts, because I think they're the easiest to write, and read, for busy people!
Thank you for keeping up with us in this way. I hope it is enjoyable.

Corporate Bathroom!

One of the less tangible benefits of returning to the workplace, and specifically an engineering firm: bathrooms that are clean and shiny, empty, with doors that close, and that are cleaned regularly by someone else. (And that aren't involved in toilet training or frequented by small boys...)
Just look at it, isn't it lovely?!

Best work shoes ever

Normally, I buy my shoes, then fiddle with bandaids and heel grips, and blisters and all sorts of things, while my wide foot stretches the not so wide bits, and my heels get tough in the new spot where the back rubs, and the list goes on. The frustrating thing was, I was buying the widest, most sensible, clumpy shoes I could find.
These shoes, deserve a mention, because I have worn them three days in the office with nary a pain in the heel, or squish of the toes. The company write up says they are based on a clog design that an American couple found in the Netherlands and started exporting to America. Whatever they are based on, they are great.
Brand = Dansko. From what I've been told, they sell a lot of their clogs to nurses and teachers (people who are on their feet all day!).

S'mores

I only ever read about these in The Babysitters Club books - and here I am, eating them. Life is very surprising!
Take two Graham Crackers (taste a touch like a milk arrowroot biscuit, only a bit less biscuity? but they're not like proper crackers either)
Take some Hersheys chocolate and lay it on the crackers
Take a couple of marshmallows, and toast
When marshmallow is toasted, slide off on top of chocolate, press crackers together (like sandwich of chocolate and melted marshmallow).
If using microwave, place cracker, chocolate and marshmallow in microwave until marshmallow 'puffs' (?!).
I think the idea is that the hot marshmallow melts the chocolate a little, and it all becomes sticky and beautiful. It certainly is sweet.
I prefer just plain toasted marshmallows, without the biscuit or the chocolate.
Do not attempt this without paper towel/wet wipes/something to wipe sticky children with.

Going to the farm

Organised by MOPs (Mothers of Preschoolers) - a visit to a farm. I'm using farm in a loose sense of the word, but it contained everything that a farm experience should contain - a field of pumpkins, a corn maze, various farm produce (pumpkins, squash, corn, apple cider, cherry cider, chrysanthemums, bales of straw) for sale, a 'hay ride' - in a trailer behind a tractor, and an interesting addition, for a morning visit - a campfire. Imagine 15 or so 5 and unders trying to toast marshmallows and hot dogs over an open fire?! I suspect there are better farms out there, but this was the right size for a first visit, and for our young children (ie, maze only took about 2 mins to get through...). It is a seasonal thing here, to visit a farm and pick a pumpkin to carve for Halloween/Thanksgiving. Sometimes, I have been told, the hayrides are longer, and presumably, could end in the evening with a campfire consisting of pumpkin, cider, apples, corn, and some meat. And s'mores of course. I think it is a tradition borne out of the whole "yay, the harvest is over/in" party. (And, last fun before a cold, cold winter...)

This is how I know we're in America

We had one of those moments - those 'only in America' moments - when my work (yes, started casual work!) sent me a welcome pack of peanut butter/chocolate coated potato chips (pictured), and a 12 inch diameter, prob about 1.5cm thick, chocolate pizza (ie, disk of chocolate with decorations in white chocolate on the top). The chips were suprisingly enjoyable - the potato chips weren't salted (I don't think, anyway) and came through as a sort of wafer texture, and the peanut butter chocolate was better because the peanut butter was real, not a fake flavour. I have not started the pizza yet!

'Mums and pumpkins

I thought it might just be around our place, but I have realised it is everywhere - people putting pumpkins and chrysanthemums on their front door steps. Even in the country, people put them at their gates/mailboxes. Quite intriguing really.

Shenandoah in the Fall

We were repeatedly encouraged to go see Shenandoah in the fall, to admire the Autumn colours. We weren't going to, but then we sort of did. It turned into a little mid-week getaway, in order to get accommodation for the whole family, and it turned out that the two days and one night that we were there it was raining, but we figured it would be ok.
Turns out, raining meant torrential down pours. Timely reminder that I have been meaning to get a new rain jacket since probably just after my first child was born, also, that the same first child used to have a rain coat, but he has grown out of it this year, and the baby now claims that raincoat as his own...So we bought the only XS rain jacket in the shop on the way to the mountains, which turned out to be the best $30 we ever spent.
We made sure we wouldn't die wondering by going on a morning walk around Big Meadows Lodge for a couple of hours, long enough for me to get almost completely wet and the baby to get cold. The other members of the family escaped with wet patches (hubby even had dry feet!). Back to our room in time to change and check out, lunch of hot chips and other comfort food at a Wayside, then home.
We agreed we had fun, but would have preferred it not to be pouring most of the time. We agreed we'd have to try again next year, and that even though this years colours seemed almost over, they were pretty spectacular.

American Football (College Level) Navy vs VMI

Ahh, the lights of the stadium, the beat of the pump up music, the roar of the slightly cold crowd, who are finding their evening well spent because their team is winning. Add to that, the tailgating outside, (BBQ's run out of the back of your car in the carpark of the stadium before a game), and the weird antics of the Navy Midshipmen, who (as was explained to us eventually, had to do 7 pushups on the endzone for every touch down (cumulatively, ie, 7 for one, 14 for the second, etc)), and we had a really enjoyable evening.
Final score - 51 (Navy) to 14.
Key differences to the baseball:
Less crowd movement for food/toilet/random errands.
More seats were in a good location, because game wasn't played in one corner of the field
Alcohol only in certain areas (not in the stadium)
The mood of the crowd was less relaxed? We not only had the manliness of football, but the added manliness of navy football... Don't ask me, but the defence force seems to draw around itself that super duper manly man sort of atmosphere?
And I found the game moved more than other matches that I've watched - the team with the ball has to move 10 yards with the ball in four tackles, or they lose the ball.
Very enjoyable, pity that the season is so short!

Fifteen minutes per day...

This is a good example of how to progress on a hobby/chore doing only 15 mins per day.
We started taking the skuut (pedal-less bike) out to the bus stop to meet our school boy. At first we would make royal progress and have to run to meet the bus (I would run with bike in one hand and small excited boy in other). But now, we get to the bus stop with enough time to balance on a rather high section of landscaping wall, and ride the bike down the hill and around the corner over all the interesting bumps at the bus stop, several times (turns out we are a bit of a dare devil on things that go fast, sigh). And, our progress is back up at my normal walking speed.
So, everyone, pick something, and do fifteen minutes per day!

Pumpkin Pie

In the grand  (and thoughtless) tradition of serving something for visitors before you've had a chance to iron out wrinkles in the cooking - I made pumpkin pie for a visitor from Japan. Pastry was slightly better than the blueberry pie, and the middle was solid, and it tasted ok! Kids tried it but didn't like it, which was bonus - more for us!

Manufacturer's Coupons

When we first moved here, people kept on asking us if we had any other coupons at the end of a sale - in department stores, supermarkets, shoe stores, you name it. We felt distinctly nervous to reply 'no'... Now, of course, being seasoned expats, and having had access to cable TV for the first couple of months, we know what coupons are all about. Namely, manufacturer's discounts (and some times store discounts) extra on top of whatever the thing has cost, but you need to have clipped (cut out) the coupon. You get books of coupons in the Sunday papers (which we happen to get). There are also coupons for our supermarket in their weekly specials leaflet, and often, there are additional % off in department store leaflets. I also get mailed coupons from a fabric/haberdashery store (which are actually quite useful), and if you sign up by email to stores, there are all sorts of special deals emailed (extra % off, 'flash' sales, previews of sales, etc). It is quite a machine, and not being organised, or having time to rush off to 10 different stores for various specials, we are doing the best we can to take advantage, without changing spending habits.
So, I clip what I think we're going to use, and occasionally am able to claim an extra 20% off at Gymboree because I have turned up to do kids clothes shopping on the right day. So, it hasn't changed our lives heaps, but we are learning not to buy stuff full price, because there are always sales on at some time or other (ALWAYS), and secondly, to keep an eye on the coupons, because we might be able to get 2 for 1 or something.
Extreme couponing is when people have a stockpile in their basement - basically a mini supermarket, because they get their hands on lots of coupons, then look up the specials in the supermarket leaflets, then buy an entire shelf full of an item at a deeply discounted price. ie - if a handwash was on special at .99c, and you had a coupon for $1 off two, I think that would mean it would cost .98c for two, then if you were to buy 50 at that price which would require 25 coupons (not sure how you would get that many coupons, but people do), you could stash them on your shelf and use as you needed and not need to buy hand wash for the next three months. This takes a lot of time in organisation and clipping of the coupons. But people are really clever, just watch the show Extreme Couponing... Some also coupon and donate to shelters etc, so it would be just an activity in that case. But there are people who manage only to spend $50 per week on groceries for a family of 6 which allows them to make an extra mortgage payment.

Wonderful Corning Ware

Many months ago, I was in a second hand shop at the right time (half price on homewares) and found this set - two little, one medium, one large, with lids, and have not regretted the $12.50 I spent for a minute. Here are steamed veggies and chocolate pudding, just to name a few uses! Better than pyrex - less chipping, and can go in the oven.

Double Fudge Brownie Mix

We bought a cake mix from a bakery nearby that we have recently become acquainted with. They grind their own flour, and the mix contained basic ingredients that I would have in my cupboard. We added 4 eggs and 2 sticks of melted butter (8oz), and put in the oven. It was sort of a relief not to be trying to cook something that required lots of measurements, esp with my small executive chef looking on (and waving a packet of brown sugar hopefully).
The mixture was gritty with sugar...and 2 sticks of butter is a lot of butter... but oh boy, what lovely sweet moist brownies (sugar, cocoa AND choc chips).
I think I should do more investigating with brownie recipes, so I have full appreciation of the culture...

Special pram bag

This sat in the cupboard a bit, but I think I have it now...It fits really nicely. I'm not sure it will work in winter, but it worked really well this morning for biblestudy, and it was lovely not to be carting around a backpack.

Milestones

We finally had to pull the side off the cot for the baby, after he got it together and started climbing over and out regularly. I have lost a form of restraint for tantrums, and a way to put him 'down' even when he didn't think he was tired. We'll have to work it a bit more co-operative now!
Postscript, he is starting to drop his day time nap as of taking the side off the cot, which means he collapses into an exhausted sleep wherever he drops at about 4.30pm after making our lives miserable for the afternoon.

More seasonal M&Ms

These ones are yellow, red, dark red and brown. They taste like normal M&Ms. We're using them to encourage dry pants, but they could be used as party food too :)

Maryland Renaissance Festival

Today we went to the Renaissance Festival in Crownsville. It is a Renaissance themed festival in Revel Grove, a sort of village (permanent set up, only used for Ren Fest) in a farmers paddock, about 15 mins out of Annapolis. It is only on weekends, from late August to mid-October.
There were various places to watch shows, buy food, buy loosely olde english stuff, and a surprising amount of celtic-esque sort of culture. Perhaps every man in his heart is looking for an excuse to clump around in doc martins and a kilt? Oh, and there are kilts with cargo pockets now...
Certainly there were plenty of people fulfilling some sort of deep seated need to dress up. It was most enjoyable to simply admire the effort that was going into some of the costumes.
We watched an archery show, the tail end of a maypole activity, bubble blowing, the more adventurous child had a pony ride, and a birds of prey show. Also, a scottish rock group that used drums and bagpipes. (Cu Dubh - described as Tribal warrior music at its best)I really enjoyed all of it.

Aunty Penny

Its been hard to think of merrily telling everyone about my life in the USA this last week. Back in Australia, a very precious person was waiting for God to call her to her ultimate home.
I would like to designate today hug a grandparent/great aunt or uncle day.