Berry Hunting

Spring in Houston just wouldn't be the same without a few key activities.

 #1 starting the garden, check. 

#2 spring break getaway to Camp Tejas, check. 

#3 strawberry picking at Froberg's, check.

Our recent visit to Froberg's in Alvin has completed our spring agenda :) While the boys were in a serious race to fill their buckets with delicious strawberries, Austin and I strolled along the rows slowly. Austin was not quite sure what he was supposed to be doing so he was happy to follow his brothers and step in a few mud puddles along the way.

He finally figured out what he was supposed to do with those berries after all.

But the boys were most entertained by the little snake that made it's way around the rows. I know that made their day to see a snake up close and personal. I, however, stood back, and...took pictures.

So now we are left trying to think of all the things we can do with these fresh strawberries. We froze some, made smoothies, ate them cut up, and I thought about a yummy strawberry pie.

So tomorrow for breakfast we get...can you guess it...strawberry muffins!

A Book Project

Reading is important. Loving reading is even more important. I didn't LOVE reading growing up. But I do now...whenever I get a chance to. I like to encourage my boys to read as much as possible. We borrow books from the library constantly, I stock their bookshelf with authors they love to read from and reading is incorporated into our bedtime routine.

This week, we took the opportunity to be creative with the book Jacob is currently reading, The Little House on the Prairie. There's lots of ways to be creative with the story you're reading. Sometimes we act it out, use puppets and make a play or make comic strip drawings. This time, my plan was to help them make wagons and a few paper dolls for the characters. Little did I know HOW creative the boys would get. They made a whole Little House on the Prairie scene, complete with Jack the dog, hay for the horses and a creek!

So have fun with your kids and what you're reading!

Mending a broken heart...

For those of you who followed me last year, you'll remember my original post about my very first garden. What you may not remember is any other posts about it. As a newbie blogger, I felt compelled to only blog the good stuff. (Not realizing the bad/real stuff should be included in this real life blog) And so what you never knew was what became of that promising garden.

NOTHING

The rains came and flooded it. And what was left, the bugs came and devoured it, all in 24 hours. Needless to say, after all that sweat and hard work, I was one sad gardener. I swore to never garden again. My heart broken and defeated.

After stewing over it through the winter, I realized there were a few things I could have done to prevent that catastrophe last year. For one thing, better drainage. The rain had no where to go last year. Trying to avoid pesticides, I now know there are bug deterring plants you can use in a garden like marigolds and cilantro.

So with courage and commitment about me, I restructured and started again. When you fall off the bicycle...get up again, right?

Flowering sugar snap peas...mmmmm. From my new garden!

Maybe we'll have home-grown tomatoes in our salads this year!

I hope, I hope, I hope!

What Brothers Are For

Brothers are for company on a fishing adventure

It's important to know you won't be alone...

They help you keep your concentration...

They watch your back...

Unless, they're too busy chasing their shadow...

Cowboys and a Cowgirl...

Every year in March, the big to-do in Houston is the Houston Livestock and Rodeo show. There are parades, concerts, carnivals, cook-offs and of course rodeo competitions. For a whole month, the whole city turns it's center of attention to all things cowboy!

We went to the rodeo they very first year we moved to Houston. We were excited to see what the big deal was about. After spending a million dollars in tickets and rides, shoving our way through endless crowds and spending overnight in our car trying to leave the parking lot, we promised NEVER to go to the rodeo again! (Our first mistake was planning to go on a Friday night.) The only thing we knew we would be missing were those ridiculous fried Twinkie's!

All that changed this year when we received FREE tickets and found friends that were able to go during the weekday. After some encouragement from friends to skip the over-priced carnival rides and head for the livestock show, we were skeptical but optimistic.

I'm glad to say, we found a much better way to enjoy the rodeo!

We got to see cows and their day old calves...

Big fat pigs and their piglets...

The kids got to plant sunflower seeds and take them home to germinate...

Pet fluffy little rabbits...

Patiently wait and watch for cows to be milked (frankly I'm surprised they still drink it after that demonstration)...

And because we're the meanest mom's in the world and wouldn't pay $20 for a ride at the carnival, their favorite ride of the day was the...

ESCALATOR!!!!

Crazy Thing

About a month ago, I brought in new mulch bags for the landscape in the backyard. It's springtime here so we've been fixing up the back yard and helping prepare for the new growth.

Well as things go around here, I didn't immediately get to those bags of mulch. They laid in the grass for quite some time until I was able to get around to them.

When I moved the bags to where they were intended to go, I notice a funky looking thing growing under the bags. I could only assume it was some kind of weed or even worse fungus growing in that dark wet spot. Eewwww I thought. I don't want to touch whatever that is, so I'll get Ian to take it out for me.

Well as things go around here, Ian didn't get around to it...ever.

So today I decided to brave whatever diseased, fungal growth it was and get rid of it myself. I pulled up half of it and realized these were no ordinary weeds. There were seeds at the roots of the plant. Confused, I tried to recall what seeds had been laid there because I don't ever remember planting anything in that patch of grass.

Then it came to me.

There was this....

And then this...

That's right. Some good, clean, pumpkin smashing in December. Well...I had to break them down for the compost, they boys were happy to oblige.

Anyways, back to the story. We have pumpkins. Pumpkins growing in our grass! Jacob can't wait for the harvest so I can make him some fresh pumpkin bread.

Panning Submission

Tonight is my photography class so I thought I'd post my submissions.  Our challenge was to take pictures with a low and high aperture and to create a panning (motion in background and subject in focus) shot.

Low Aperture

High Aperture

Panning (this is hilarious to me because we were playing kickball with 8 year olds!)

Spring Break

We live in the third largest city in the U.S with over 5 million people around us. So it goes without saying that one of our favorite things to do is to escape to the country and enjoy God's creation in nature.  There's no better way to do it than to go to Camp Tejas with friends! Camp Tejas is a Christian retreat center with incredible facilities. Not only are the accommodations cozy, but the views are gorgeous and the grounds are extensive. There's so much to do but none of it involves computers, TV or video games. Woo-hoo.

Some of the things we like to do there are...

Tree climbing...

Canoe tag around the ponds...

Friendly games of kickball, volleyball, soccer, basketball or tennis. 

Or...not so friendly in Ian's case!

Taking walks on the trails...

Hanging out with friends...

And perhaps the boys most favorite activity...going down the zip-line...

No matter where you are, conquering your fears always makes for an adventure. This year, for the first time, our 5 year old was able to tackle the zip-line. His only regret was that he didn't want to jump off but had to sit down to start. Still, he did GREAT!

Playing with F-stops

*Disclaimer: I am not a photographer. I do not consider myself a photographer just because I have a nice camera...but we all have to start somewhere right?


A friend of mine and I have been taking a photography class together at the Houston Photography Center. In class it was brought to my attention how utterly foolish it is to have such a sophisticated camera and always set it to auto settings. Our challenge was to start shooting in manual.
 :/


"What? You mean I can't point and shoot with my DSLR?" I guess technically, I can, but I shouldn't.


So we learned about all things white balance, shutter speed and f-stops/apertures. Our challenge this week was to shoot something in a low f-stop and a high f-stop. Lastly, there is a prize to win a Starbuck's gift card (not that I'm interested in that because I only drink Antigua coffee) for whoever can create the most interesting panning shot (subject in focus while area around is blurred from movement). The first two assignments are proving to be easy enough, the latter however, is not as easy. Although it isn't for lack of moving things in my world to shoot =)


So here's my first attempt at low f-stop shot at 5.6

And here's my version of a high f-stop, shot at 18

For the grand finale, not really, my panning shot. This was created spontaneously and was not my original idea. It still needs work though. This will probably not be my submission.

I like that he's in motion and has that strange look on his face but you can't really tell he's up jumping. He could almost be standing for all you know. I'm not sure this qualifies as a "panning" shot but I'll keep trying.

Thoughts? Suggestions?

Papet Vaudois

I've never heard of it. Never tried it. On our brave journey we made our way to Switzerland.

 Ian and I have actually been there...

but we never had this dish. When we visited, a friend tried to teach me the language (a similar version of German), it did not stick with me. Still, we enjoyed the skiing, fresh bread and cheese and the AMAZING views.

Some dishes just remind you of places. I remember the warm hospitality I felt when a friend made us 40 garlic clove chicken. I feel the romance shared over a pot of fondue at the Melting Pot. I cherish memories with sweet friends over Tim's pie.

Food has a way of reminding us of memories. So I am continuing my attempt to help my children remember European geography through their stomachs. Papet Vaudois is prepared with potatoes, leeks, smoked sausage and whipping cream. It was a tasty dish and this is JJ's response to our digestive trip through Switzerland...

I can't quite tell if it's delight or disgust...but memorable none-the-less.

Our visit to Germany...

Part two of my attempt to cook our way through geography seems to be successful. This time, we visited a country we hold very dear. A country we lived in for three years and where our first son was born...Germany. There are so many cuisines I remember from this place and it was difficult to choose just one. I ended up serving one of the most recognized German meals...bratwurst. I remember when we first moved there, it took us a while to recover from the jet lag and settle in. There was so much we had to do in order to setup our home. Once we got unpacked, we headed to Wurzburg to visit Ian's brother Philip and wife Leilani who were also stationed in Germany. We ate at a little resteraunt downtown. I was so excited to be there. So excited to get a real bratwurst! So that's what I ordered. When the plate came out, I realized my idea of the bratwurst was not authentic. My American version involved a grill and a bun. What I was served must have been boiled and alone on the plate. Confused, I asked for a bun and was served a roll. I stopped trying to get my version and embraced the real Germany. So this is what I served this week. The real Germany. Bratwurst with apples, onions and sauerkraut, WARM German potato salad, pumpernickel bread and a cucumber salad with dill yogurt.

Guten Appetit!

The boy who didn't want to be born on Valentine's Day...

There once was a sweet baby waiting to be born. His mother, father and brother couldn't wait to hold him and kiss him. The anticipation for his birth was almost tangible. On the day he was supposed to be born, it became apparent that he did not want to be born on Valentine's Day (because he is a boy and who wants pink, hearts and flowers for your birthday decorations?). So he waited until February 15th and was finally forced into the world.  He was beautiful, sweet and soft. His mother, father and brother couldn't stop holding him and kissing him.  The little boy grew to be 5 years old. He became an adorable, incredibly thoughtful, kind hearted, sweet and tender little boy. His mother, father and brother still can't stop holding and kissing him! We love you Nathan...HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

The Emptiness

Since we got rid of the massive TV and the chest that housed it, we've had a huge blank wall smack dab in the middle of our living room. It's the space you see when you come in and visit us, it's the space we sit in every Thursday evening for our small group, it's the snuggle up spot when we're tired or sick. And there it is...the huge emptiness. We've looked  for months for a piece of art that fits in with the room and our personality but could never find one...that we could afford! My only legitimate suggestion was to use the tall open wall to create an indoor rock climbing wall. How cool would that be for our three growing boys? Alas, my only creative solution was shot down by he who has the final say in our house. Defeated and uninspired, I turned to a dear friend for a suggestion. After many good ideas to go on...


this is what I decided on...

So, there it is. The beginning of my black and white collection. Maybe I'll get good enough with my Rebel to make my own additions to the wall. For now, if you'd like to contribute your best black and white photo to our wall...email me at mrsjorgensen@hotmail.com

Let's learn some geography

The boys have been working their way through European geography this year. This has made for some exciting conversations as my oldest was born in Germany. I can show him pictures of when we visited Barcelona or talk to him about touring the church where Martin Luther was tried in Worms. This week, the countries we are identifying have some particularly tasty cuisines and I decided the best way to a man's heart (or possibly his education) is through his stomach! I am attempting to cook my way through some of Europe.

One of the countries we're location on a map is Austria. Known for many culinary contributions but I choose the most famous, Wiener Schnitzel and Krautfleckerln (Cabbage and Noodles). I'm familiar with making schnitzel as I learned to make it from a sweet German friend when we lived in Mannheim but the noodle dish was new to me (although very simple to make) 

Pretty Yummy!

C. Collodi

"I saw from the sincerity of your grief that you had a good heart; and when boys have good hearts, even if they are scamps and have bad habits, there is always something to hope for: that is, there is always hope that they will turn to better ways."