Watcha Doin' Gramma?

I am always sure to plan ahead for Fridays.  There's no time to design a gameplan in the middle of the huddle.  Thursday evening, I prepared my Apple French Toast Strata and since Grampa was in China, I went off to a wine tasting.  I slept so well without Grampa's snoring, that I didn't wake up in time to put my strata in the oven.  When I finally looked at the clock, I went flying downstairs with Rebecca'scat chasing me; excited that he was going to get his breakfast, early.  I turned the oven on and threw the strata in.  Then I fed the cat and headed back upstairs to put my wonder woman suit on. 

I hurried back downstairs and brought in the high chairs, set the table and set up toys for the boys.  I noticed that the kitchen was smelling like smoke.  I wondered what Grampa had cooked and spilled in the oven that was now smoking.  I poured milk, juice, heated the syrup and set out the bibs.  When I looked up at the kitchen ceiling I realized that the whole kitchen was filled with smoke.  I had turned the strata up an extra 25 degrees, since I was running late.  I checked the strata to see if it might be burning on top.  No sign of anything burning.  I checked the front door to see if they was any sign of my boys.  When I returned to the kitchen it was even smokier.  OH NO!  I had turned the griddle on instead of the oven.  And Terry had bought a cutting board to put over the griddle.  I had been baking the wood, which was now burned and close to starting on fire. 

Okay, turn on the real oven and go for plan B.  I don't like to use he microwave, but there are still times I think it can save a meal.  The boys arrived, with Nathan running through the hall looking for Gramma.  Who cares about breakfast? 

I found Gramma's hose.



She said it's really important to point it down.  When I don't she gets all excited and tries to take her turn.

Auntie Stina came across the country to read and sing to me. 

I bought the boys a swing and have looked for a year for a place to hang it.  We don't have a tree that will work.  I begged Grampa to hang it from the ceiling.  He told me it wasn't the swing he was going to hang.  I don't go into Grampa's workroom any more than I have to and I don't stay any longer than I have to.  When I was bringing him some lightbulbs for his workroom, I noticed he had a perfect beam to hang a swing.  Nathan is thrilled I finally found a spot for it.  He will swing for over an hour, if someone will push him.  He directs how he would like to be pushed and doesn't mind the ambience in the room.  He noticed Grampa's spare garden hose and knows it is important to hang on.  Andrew is not so thrilled with swings which works out perfectly, because Nathan is not fond of sharing it. 

When I was a child I used to like to swing, too.  Up until just before I threw up.  Perhaps Andrew has my motion sickness.  Our swing hung from a willow tree that grew at the edge of a cliff.  When you would swing you would go out over the cliff.  I wish I could take the boys back there to try it.

Gramma's Apple French Toast Strata Recipe

 Ingredients
• 1 (1 pound) loaf bread, cubed   (I usually use my homemade bread)

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, diced

• 1 cup diced peeled apples  and 1 tsp. cinnamon

• 8 eggs

•  1 cup kefir  (I make my own) and 1 1/2 cups organic milk or cream
• 6 tablespoons butter, melted

• 1/4 cup real maple syrup

Directions

1. Coat a 9x13 inch baking dish with butter or grapeseed oil. Arrange 1/2 of the cubed bread in the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle the cream cheese evenly over the bread, and top with the apples. If you like, you can add raisins. Top with remaining bread.

2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs with the kefir, milk, butter, and maple syrup. Pour over the bread mixture. Cover with plastic wrap, and press down so that all bread pieces are soaked. Refrigerate at least 2 hours.

3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).

4. Bake 45 minutes in the preheated oven. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

A Goedken/Lynch/Froehle/Heiderscheit Tradition

I remember eating Dippin' Eggs as a child.  They're soft-boiled eggs with the top chopped off, so you can dip your "little soldiers" into the yolk.  The little soldiers are made from toast that's been cut in half and then into half inch slices to fit into the hole at the top of the egg.  I hated eggs, but loved these, because of the experience.  Our eggs were placed into wooden egg cups that had faces painted on them.  When I had my children, Uncle David brought us back glass egg cups from Denmark.   My children loved them.  Even Rebecca, who also didn't like eggs.  Nathan doesn't care for eggs, either, so we thought it was time to try Dippin' Eggs.  We have a convert!  We're celebrating a rite of passage to the fifth generation. 

It takes special technique to dip deep enough to cover your little soldier, and not go so deep the yolk starts to ooze out of the top.

I think we actually digest a slice of self-satisfaction along with the egg.  Andrew enjoyed eating the white part of the egg, and Nathan was happy to give his away to his brother, without tasting it.  The boys have learned to be very suspicious of the food put before them.  I don't know what their parents are trying to feed them, but the boys are always on the lookout for a parental plot.  This will prepare them for dealing with the government.

Andrew keeps reminding me that he doesn't like broccoli, even if I'm offering him a banana.  I always tell him, as I did his father, "Not, yet?  Well tastes change.  Perhaps someday."  Ryan Joseph used to try something every time it was served, just checking if his tastes had changed.  Andrew isn't going to fall for that.  But I do think Ryan Joseph eventually learned that I was right.  Who knew you might have to get old before it happens.  (Your tastes to change and for your children to find out you may have been right.)

Andrew is working on his sense of style.  He enjoys dress up as much as Gramma.  He is at the cutting edge of fashion mixing his prints.

Andrew and Grampa have a face to face...

Which always ends with a huge smile.

Andrew's still big into silly faces., especially at the table.  He gets this talent from Uncle Matt.  Anyday, he will be hanging a spoon from his nose.  If he can get away from Matt.

Nathan is very, very interested in anything to do with violins.  He brings them up many times during the day.  It could all end quickly if Gramma ever pulls out her violin and plays for him.

A Lesson from Winnie the Pooh

The boys have learned a new way to wrap Gramma and Grampa around their fingers.  Nathan came into the room and said, "Gramma, I need to see whatcha doing, Honey."  Grampa told me Andrew said, "Grampa, come up here Honey."  I asked if he went and he said, "of course!"  Gramma and Grampa are eating up the "Honeys."  Winnie the Pooh would love them.  The boys learned this from their mother and I hope it never stops.  Who could turn down a request like, "Gramma, could I have one more TCOOKIE, Honey?"  (Nathan is still workig on his K sounds.)  Soon they're going to learn their "Honeys" will get them whatever they want.  My grandmother told me, "You attract more flies with honey than with vinegar."  She was the smartest woman that ever lived.

I found Andrew totally engrossed in this computer game with all kinds of little beeping sounds.  I didn't rememer that we had any small games that he could have found.  When I looked closer, I realized he had my alarm clock.  I relied on Grampa to fix it, and suggested if he needed help he could check with Andrew.  I'm learning to think in military time now.

Nathan is applying lip gloss.  He knows to rub his lips together and make a smacking sound after applying it. 

Is that my chip clip on my schiflera?  I was wondering why it had started to drop so many leaves.  I don't know who to give credit to for this one.  But I suspect Andrew.  He knows his way around a chip clip and has always had a bit of a grudge against my schiflera.  The plant is huge and reaches out to grab little boys.



Grammpa shows the boys a magic trick that  makes money appear.  They see Daddy's money and know they want some.  Andrew wants Grampa to do the trick again and again.  Gramma wants Grampa to do the trick for her, too.

The Goedken Boys and Their Hoses

I called, "We'll go outside as soon as you get new diapers on.."  Nathan hit the deck immediately.  He loves the outside and would spend the whole day outside if he could.

This is a Goedken tradition being passed on to the next generation.  We all remember Terry's father watering his flowers.  He used to love standing there and talking to the neighbors. 

Andrew found the spot where two hoses were joined, which naturally leaks.  He can lean over and drink from the small trickle that comes out there.  His faher was fantastic at the splits, too.  I always thought it was from his karate training.  Perhaps it's genetic.  On second thought, I've never seen Terry do anything close to that.  He does love the hose though.

Nathan is pretty good with the hose, but you have to be sure not to attract his attention.  He doesn't exactly have the instant release down yet. The rules are not to squirt people, but if the people you're spraying stand there yelling, you tend to stay focused on them; hose and all.

Gramma and Grampa now have a couch in their garage.  Auntie Becca moved her furniture home and the couch wouldn't fit through the door.  It was decided that it would be great for resting on after the twins' wagon rides.  The twins approved.  They try to get Gramma off the couch in time for lunch.

It's nap time and Gramma can't find where the boys went.  How can they take a nap, if Gramma can't find them?  They were just ahead of her, when she came upstairs.  Listen, can you hear it; "Don't cry for me Argentina."  They love Auntie Becca's balcony.  It's a great place to check on what Grampa is doing.

There's a blueberry snatcher in our midst.  Andrew can eat a pint of blueberries all by himself and he has the diapers to prove it.

Who Let the Monkeys Out?

This is a book of our trip to the zoo, so the boys will be able to see all the animals they didn't see at the zoo.  They were too busy checking out the machines, the water, the sea gulls (which at least are animals), the food and the street musicians (including a violinist who only played Happy Birthday). 

And we're off.  Chicago, here we come.  Gramma and Auntie Becca are taking us to the zoo.



 

Auntie Becca's got an elevator in her apartment building.  In case it falls, it's best to lay on the floor.  And you can feel the vibrations of this little room better, if you lay down.

You can see the lake from Auntie Becca's window.  The people look really small on the sidewalk.  If we lived with Auntie Becca we would be looking out the window all day long.  Her kitty sings a funny song whenever we get close to him.  I guess he doesn't want to go to the zoo with us.

It didn't take long to find a parking spot and Gramma is still the best at parallel parking.  When we get to be sixteen, we're going to have her show us how she does it.  But  these two women were hopeless at getting the stroller unfolded.  I was worried I would have to see the entire zoo lying down.  It took two phone calls to engineers, which were pointless, followed by research on the internet to get it figured out.  Good thing Auntie Becca's smart phone is actually connected.  If this looks like a disaster, closing the stroller was much more challenging.  The car waiting for our choice spot, nearly missed their first half hour at the zoo waiting for Gramma and Auntie Becca to get the stroller to fit back into the trunk of the car.  Perhaps they have some spatial challenges.  We would have been happy to have helped out, but who listens to a two-year-old?

Where is he hiding his feet and arms?

Do you think he's looking for something down there? 

How can we help him get out of there?  I think he wants to come home with us.  He followed us up here.

My brother, Nathan, wanted to experience life at the zoo from the animals' perspective.  He seemed to find himself on the wrong sides of the bars more than once.

This is my new friend, Jasmine.  She likes chasing seagulls, too.

Nathan, Auntie Becca says they don't allow little boys on that side of the bars.  After Auntie Becca and Gramma removed us the men came and moved the bars closer together.  Maybe they were worried about someone escaping from the zoo.

See, I do belong here!  I found the perfect spot for me.

If my brother belongs here, I do, too.  We're sticking together. 

Gramma said this is a girl lion.  She said the boy lions look more like Beethoven with really wild hair.

I can understand how much these monkeys enjoy climbing.  I feel the same way.

It's nice to see that many different kinds of monkeys can get along together so well.  It gives me hope for people.

This mama likes to keep her baby close to her.  Monkeys are very similar to people.

Long arms are really handy for a monkey.  Little boys can swing with any size arms.

Why do monkeys want to sit at the top of the tree?  It seems like the others will be in your way if you want to come back down.

Grampa needs to build us one of these.

Five little monkeys sitting on a limb, one fell off and bumped his head...

Does that monkey look fmiliar?  Has anyone seen Nathan recently?

I really have to keep an eye on Auntie Becca.  She could get lost among all these monkeys so easily.

I'm going to keep a close eye out for the other marsupials.  My beanie baby kangaroo is very interested in them.

It's a good thing we got these first class seats for our trip to the zoo, where snacks are icluded in your ticket price.  We might have to eat the animals' food for snack, otherwise.

There are plenty of benches to rest on at the zoo.

"Water, water!  I love the water.  What swan?"

Gramma says the zebra reminds her of the piano; just black and white.

This was Nathan's favorite musician.  He only played one song over and over, but "Happy Birthday" is one of his favorites.

Gramma said this one looks like Grampa.  We couldn't hear, but I think he must have been snoring.

I may want to do this when I grow up.  He can play fast and faster.

I really appreciate the interface, but I think you need money to get the full effect.

Whatcha lookin' at?

Auntie Becca, you'd never leave me here would you?

I think he was singing a protest song.  I could tell from his music that he felt very strongly about it.

I tried to tell him I thought it would be better if he strummed with both hands.  

I love the world of art with these sculptures designed to be experienced.

If it's a running board, why do you just stand on it?  I think it may be older than Grampa's car.  I'm pretty sure it's not a Lexus.

Auntie Becca needs my help pushing Nathan in the stroller.  She just doesn't know she does.

It's not so hard to climb a tree this way.





I wouldn't want to live in a tree, but it's sure fun to play in one.  Wouldn't it be cool if Grampa could make us a tree house?

I love the water.  Yikes, is that a bear next to me?

That bear is making it difficult to see my water.

Excuse me, Mr. Bear, I NEED to see my water.

Gramma said he' a grizzly bear.  I guess he needs a shave.

The absolute best part of the zoo is the seagulls.  They love playing with little boys.  Grmma says she needs to take us to St. Mark's in Venice.  Daddy and Uncle Matt had a really good time with the pigeons there in 1997.



This is how fast I move at the zoo.  I'm part cheetah and part road-runner.

It was exhausting taking care of Auntie Becca and Gramma at the zoo.  But if they need me, I could do it again.