by Sarah | Aug 30, 2011 | All About Family, All About Home, All of Us
[flickr id=”6097566204″ thumbnail=”small” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”left”]Used to daydream in that small town. Another born romantic that’s me. But I’ve seen it all in a small town. Had myself a ball in a small town. ~John Mellencamp
I used to hate it.
I couldn’t go anywhere without seeing someone I knew.
The grocery store. The library. The doctors office.
Everywhere.
It was annoying. Invasive. Like the whole world was spying on me (the adults at least…they all knew my parents).
Now it’s 20 (*gulp*) years later. I have left the state (living in 3 other states over 5 years) & returned. I now live 2 towns away from where I went to high school.
Once again I can’t go anywhere without seeing someone I know.
Driving down the road. The gas station. The drug store. The grocery store. The park.
Just today Angel & I went to the park and I ran into someone I knew. Haven’t seen her in over five years – she’s since been married & had a child. We worked together for a brief time.
The other day I went to the grocery store & saw Riley’s teacher & an old neighbor all in the same visit.
The other week I went to the drug store and ran into my favorite high school teacher.
Now I love it.
I appreciate it.
Knowing that even 20 years later you can see familiar faces. You can look people in the eye and smile and know them.
I like that my kids will grow up here.
That they will have the same love/hate relationship with it that I have.
by Sarah | Aug 11, 2011 | All About Denver, All About Family, All About Home, All About Kennedy, All About Molly, Random
[flickr id=”6032618823″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”left”]
(L – top to bottom. Cheese cutouts, Peanut Butter w/ banana strips. R – top to bottom. Peanut butter w/ orange marmalade folds, PB & grape jelly rolls, Nutella rolls.
Even my teen will make his own version of this for himself. Riley, the pickiest eater of them all, cleans her plate when I make this kid-friendly sushi. Since it was requested on twitter…I thought I’d post how I make them. And it’s super simple…and to be honest I got the idea from Pinterest and ran with it.
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First, the supplies. Bread (1 slice makes 4 mini-rolls), a rolling pin, whatever fillings/toppings you want.
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Cut off the crust (I keep mine to feed the birds) and roll the bread flat, or cut into strips.
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Get your toppings on your bread. For fun I used a mini cookie cutter to cut the banana for some of the strips, and for others I just cut it in half and length-wise. I used my leftovers for a bowl of cereal 😉
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Roll them. I rolled some in spirals. I’ve read that you should roll these tight, but w/ the jelly I actually roll loose otherwise all of the jelly is squished out. For the orange marmalade I rolled in both sides and then folded to the middle (securing with a small strip of peanut butter between the two edges).
[flickr id=”6032618591″ thumbnail=”small” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”left”]
Last but not least for a little extra fun I used some little cutters I had lying around to cut out shapes in cheese (I nibbled on the scraps).
Usually I make less sushi and include some small strips of carrots for a well rounded meal. My kids totally scarf these down faster than you can blink.
Some other ideas I have yet to try, but plan to…
- Butter & cucumbers rolled
- Jam w/ sweetened whipped cream cheese strips or folds
- Herbed whipped cream cheese with cucumbers strips
- Carrot peel & herbed whipped cream cheese rolls
- Nutella and Strawberry strips or rolls
- Whipped cream cheese (sweetened) w/ blueberries
These do not take me a ton of time (Well, this one did but I was taking pics and making more than I usually do)…and the kids love them. They are SO worth a shot!! Try them!!
by Sarah | Jul 16, 2011 | All About Family, All of Us
[flickr id=”5941417182″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”left”]A year and a half ago we went.
Hopping in a car my three kids & I went to Virginia. To meet my best friend, Jess.
Within ten minutes of arrival friendships were formed. For the 5 days we were there the boys were inseparable.
A year and a half later, Jess turned the tables. She has come here.
Though they haven’t talked much.
Time and distance (and groundings) have limited their chances to communicate.
It was like no time had passed at all.
Thick as thieves.
Running and playing.
Chess & the Wii.
Friends.
by Sarah | Jun 16, 2011 | All About Family, All About Home, All of Us, Community, Random
Last week I got a last second request to go to my brothers house to babysit my two youngest nephews. I left my riot-act at home and hightailed it over to his place. His house is about 2.5 times bigger than ours. Open, spacious, uncluttered.
By the time I got there one nephew was in bed. Two hours later the other went down.
The house was quiet.
It was a Friday night, 9PM.
I stepped out onto their front porch to relax in some of the beautiful night air…
And silence.
No kids running around screaming.
No neighbors calling hello.
Going to each others houses.
Sharing a drink.
A laugh.
Conversation.
Silence.
I thought about my neighborhood and how at about that time all the neighbors would be out doing all of those things. The kids would be playing, racing bikes, running and screaming.
And once again I remembered.
How lucky I am.
Our house is too small.
Overcrowded.
Definitely over-cluttered.
But our neighborhood.
It’s special.
And there’s no place else I would rather be.
by Sarah | Mar 21, 2011 | All About Family
We fought like cats and dogs.
He loved sports.
I loved dance.
There was no middle ground.
I was a tomboy, but I would wear a dress every day if you let me.
I didn’t understand him.
He got frustrated with me.
Mom said we fought because we were so alike. I thought she might be a little bit crazy. Dad and I were nothing alike. In my mind he didn’t support my dancing, he thought it was frivolous…not like sports. He got angry at me for getting straight A’s & B’s – while my brother barely brought home C’s. For some reason it was never good enough…it was always, “Well, this 95 is good, but why wasn’t it 100??”
It took way too many years.
A happenstance turn of events that left it so that it was just us.
Me & my Dad.
For 2 months while Mom tried to sell our house in Buffalo I lived here alone with my Dad. Went to school. Made dinner. We watched TV, made s’mores in the microwave.
Talked.
There was a shift during that two months. My older brother wasn’t around (it was his senior year, he finished it in Buffalo & then stayed there). My Mom, usually the mediator, wasn’t there.
We got close.
From that point on the fighting lessened. It didn’t disappear…I mean, Dad and I are both hot-heads. Blow ups are bound to happen…but things eased up. He took me to the theater. He was great around my friends – even taking us camping on several occasions.
He’s my Dad.
Now he’s turning 62.
In the past few years he’s been battling illness, and fighting to get time with his family. For his grandkids to see their Papa as the strong, smart and stubborn man that my brother and I knew growing up. I know that some days are harder than others.
I don’t think I’ve told him enough how much I admire him for all he did RIGHT when we were growing up. Or thanked him for trying to push me to work harder (just because it didn’t work doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate the effort).
Happy Birthday to my Dad.
The impossible, stubborn, bull-headed, strong, smart, hard-working, hunting, playful, supportive Dad that both frustrated me and held me up in an esteem I didn’t realize soon enough.
I love you Dad.
by Sarah | Jan 26, 2011 | All About Family, All About Marriage, Crap
(Clean) Laundry piling up.
School issues arising.
The husband in the depths of darkness (another post for another day).
And Angel running around w/ my bra on her head.
At least Riley has started eating again.
*Might or my not be typed by my nose as I was in a straight jacket on my way to the looney bin.
**Okay, not really. But could you blame me?
***I’m pretending I’m not insanely jealous of my friends heading to Blissdom
****Is it February yet?
