If I had a hammer...

Liam's Grandpa and Grandma Hall gave him a hammer and ball set for Christmas. It's a great wooden toy, but I thought to myself that there is no way Liam will be able to use it in the near future because it takes a lot of force to get the balls through the holes.

But then Liam watched Caleb playing with it on Monday and gladly helped him restock the top with the balls over and over again. When Caleb left, Liam scooped up the hammer and proceeded to knock those balls through all on his own. He's been doing it pretty much non-stop ever since.

So, here's a video to gladly prove me wrong. You must watch it with this tune in your head since it's been ringing through mine:

"If I had a hammer, I'd hammer in the morning. I'd hammer in the evening. All over this land. I'd hammer out danger. I'd hammer out a warning. I'd hammer out love between my brothers and my sisters. All over this land"

lots of love to give

We spent the Easter weekend camping at Roaring River with Crystal, Micah, and Simone.

Simone seemed to have the best time, digging in the dirt, eating the dirt, digging in some more dirt, and giving Liam kisses.
She was pretty aggressive about it. Relentless. Liam had about all the loving he could take for the day.

For more of our camping adventure, head on over to my blog.

Easter camping

We spent the holiday weekend camping just across the state line at Roaring River State Park in Missouri. Gabriel's coworkers had really talked it up, and although it was nestled in the Ozarks, it's real appeal is to campers of the satellite-equipped RV variety. We were the only tent campers in sight. And we didn't come armed with fishing poles. They must have all thought we were a bit loony.

Liam and I picked Gabriel up after work on Friday, a cold drizzly day. The night's weather didn't improve any, and ended up with freezing temperatures. We bundled Liam up for bed: warm pajamas, a sleep sack, a hat, and mittens, all beneath his fuzzy blanket and heavy quilt from Grandma. He seemed tobe warm enough, although he spent the wee hours of the morning snuggled in the sleeping bag with us.

When we woke up Saturday morning, it was still quite cold, and the grass was more than damp, but within a few hours the sun was up and so was the temperature. The Grays joined us just before lunch, and we all enjoyed a hike in the surrounding woods.

Liam's model shot

Simone loved the flowers. So sweet.
The proud papas

So cool in his shades

Family photo

The Grays (somehow, this is the only picture of Crystal I ended up with...)

Coveting the fly fishermen at the river down below... Getting ready for dinner.

Hobo cobbler. Micah's specialty, and yes, it was as good as it looks!

Early Sunday morning, the rain started and didn't let up. We packed our gear in the rain: Micah in wet shoes left out the night before, and Crystal in chacos and soaked socks. It was kind of miserable. We left the camp ASAP, and stopped at Mimi's for breakfast. All of the other diners were in their Easter frocks. We were in wet camping gear. And hadn't brushed our teeth yet. But the food was good.

An Easter adventure to remember...

wriggly worms

Caleb and Owen spent the day with us again today (it'll be a twice a week thing over the next month or so). We had a fun day. The highlight for all three boys was the afternoon spent digging in the dirt in our backyard.

Barefoot toes + dirt and a shovel = lots of fun

Worms! This was the best part. Owen was braver than Caleb when it came to picking them up.

But Caleb warmed up to it...

I had to bribe them with chocolate chip cookies (dairy and egg-free, of course) to get them to come inside. It almost wasn't convincing enough. Almost.

Baby legs

Now that Liam is finally mobile, we have the problem of keeping his legs both warm and unencumbered. Some of his pants are just so bulky that he has a hard time maneuvering around them.
Solution? Leg warmers. Made from Daddy's socks.

now he's ready for trouble (headed for the stairs...)

Easter Candy

My Grandparents sent Liam an Easter package full of candy...and I let him dip into it.

His first chocolate and caramel egg:

another cold snap and maple walnut biscotti

Saturday was the perfect return to normalcy:

• A breakfast of pastries and coffee at the Little Bread Company with Crystal, Micah, and Simone


• The first Fayetteville Farmer's Market of the season, where I purchased some early onions and a fig tree


• Some browsing in Terra Tots


• Shopping at Ozark Natural Foods, where we were filmed in the bulk section for an ONF commercial :-)


• All in 70 degrees weather!

Sunday was a big step back into winter. Grey skies. Freezing temperatures. And it's supposed to freeze again tonight.

Once again, our peach and plum trees are covered in fruit, all of which is likely to shrivel and die. This is the 3rd year in a row that this has happened. At least I haven't planted any tender vegetables yet.

As a move of desperation, Gabriel and I mummy-wrapped the plum tree and select branches of the much larger peach tree. It looks comical and a bit frightening, but if it saves any of the fruit it will be worth it.

So now we wait inside our heated house, hoping and praying for our fruit trees.

I console myself with a cup of coffee and some freshly-made biscotti. The recipe is from the Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites.

Maple Walnut Biscotti

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cornmeal
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchent paper or lightly grease with baking spray
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. Lightly beat the eggs and add them to the flour mixture. Stir in the maple syrup, vanilla, and walnuts, mixing just until smooth.
4. Using a rubber spatula and well-floured hands, scoop half of the dough out of the bowl and onto one side of the baking sheet. Shape the dough into a 15-inch log (about 3/4 inch thick). Repeat with the other half of the dough, spacing them about 6 inches apart.
5. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the top of each biscotti log is firm. Cool on the pan for 10 minutes. Cut each log on a severe diagonal into about fifteen 1/2-inch thick slices and place them cut side down on the baking sheet.
6. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees and bake for an additional 15 minutes. Hot from the oven, the biscotti may still be soft in the center, but they will harden as they cool. Allow to cool completely. Stored in a tightly closed container they will keep for several weeks.