Ready, set, summer!

Growing like a weed.

The kids, that is. Not Uncle Dave's wheat crop. Well, OK. Maybe both.

Top 10 Questions Asked on the 1st Grade Field Trip to the Sedgwick County Zoo.

10. Can we eat lunch?
9. Can I have a drink?
8. Why is that monkey's butt red?
7. Can I get a snow cone?
6. Can we feed the fish? Geese? Giraffes? Gorillas?
5. Will you hold my jacket? Map? Snow cone money? Water bottle?
4. Can I have a snack?
3. What time is the bus coming? (Usually followed by "what time is it?")
2. Can we sit down?
1. My feet hurt, will you carry me?

I volunteered to go on Gus' First Grade field trip to the zoo on Friday. Usually, a 3-hour visit to the zoo on a sunny day in May can be so delightful. However, we were there for 5 hours, and it was really HOT. Despite all the whining, the kids had a great time. And I did too (when I wasn't feeling like a pack mule - jackets, lunch boxes, hats, sunscreen, camera, backpack, etc.)

I am my mother's daughter.

It's Mother's Day, and I wouldn't be half the mom I am today, without my own mother - Jeanette Weishaar. She taught me everything I needed to know about how to raise happy, healthy, well-adjusted kids. She should know, she raised seven of them.

Not only that, but when my youngest brother was only a year old, she started a career of raising other people's children. For 26 years, she had a daycare in her home and helped nurture and care for over 70 children in Colby. (A few years back we tried to count them all, but lost track.)

If ever there's a mother that exemplifies strength, humor, patience, faith and love - it's Jeanette.

Thanks mom, Happy Mother's Day.

Cinco de Mayo Dessert-o

Fresh from the Denneler Panaderia (that's spanish for "bakery"): 

Taco Cookies

We're having a little Cinco de Mayo feast at work today, so I baked some sugar cookie tacos. To make the shells, I folded the cookie dough over wedges of tin foil and then baked them. The sugary mexican toppings include: 

Ground Beef = crushed Oreos, icing & melted chocolate chips

Sour Cream = buttercream icing

Lettuce & cheese = green and yellow coconut flakes

Tomatoes = cherry sours

Mucho delicioso!

You're invited.

I love a good party. Maybe that's why I've always enjoyed doing party invitations. Here are two freelance invites that I did recently for a baby shower and a graduation.

I'm not familiar with a "Sip & See," but apparently that's what they do in the south. Or east? Or northeast? (I'm not really sure where it originated. Just not in the midwest.) I guess you drop by, take a gander at the new baby and have a sip of your favorite beverage. What a great idea.

And I know it's cliché, but for this Doctor of Optometry graduation invite, I created a slightly altered eye chart. It worked so perfectly, it felt wrong to do it any other way.

I always say that the invitation sets the mood for the party you're planning, so make it fun!

"Hey mom, art rhymes with fart!"

Yes Gus, you're right.

While he might not be a poet, Gus is turning out to be quite the artist these days. He's been taking classes at the Monart School of Art - just a few blocks from our house. He really loves it and has brought home some fine stuff for the Kenmore Gallery (our fridge.) I think as long as he's having fun, we'll keep going. Especially since I don't see him suddenly becoming interested in soccer or basketball. Team sports have never appealed to Gus - but Playdoh, paint and markers, you bet.

A Tranquil Mobile

Some friends of ours are having a baby any day now, and I volunteered Eric to build them something special for their new arrival. (Nice of me, I know. I do it all the time. It makes us both look good.)

The item they desired, was a very unbaby-like mobile – three large, abstract rainforest leaves made of cherry wood veneer.

It looked pretty simple and easy to construct, but you would be surprised at the level of complexity this piece proved to be. You have to understand, Eric's used to building furniture - pieces that are solid and heavy and built to be used, not just looked at. Everything about this mobile was so delicate – the thin pieces of veneer, the hairline-hinged assembly, and the fine piece of fishing line that connects it all together. Plus, it had to balance JUST RIGHT, or it's not much of a mobile, is it?

But I never had a doubt that Eric couldn't make it. And it turned out just splendid. We hope it brings many tranquil moments to the new baby and the new parents. Congrats Lindemans!

Easter 2009

Who doesn't love Easter? Coloring eggs, more chocolate than any one human being should possibly consume, and a good old-fashioned egg hunt. My kids are no exception. I tried to put their Easter baskets away today, and there was an instant protest from Gus and Bea.

OK. OK. We'll keep them out a little longer. Now where did I hide that last Reese's Peanut Butter Egg?

You're never too old to hug a giant rabbit.

Last weekend was time for a favorite Easter tradition at the Denneler House: Cero's Candies. I think I've taken Gus and Bea to see the Easter bunny there every year since they were born. Although, I could only find a few of the photos from years past (that weird transition time between "humm... should I use my film camera or digital camera?")

This year though, Gus had to go solo because Bea's been sick with a terrible flu bug. And nobody wants to see a rabbit get vomited on, especially not me, so we left her at home.

We always pick out a few chocolate treats for our baskets and give the big ol' bunny a hug.

Fireside Chat - Part 1

One of Eric's winter projects was to build this custom fireplace and mantle for our friends Lathi and Paul. Eric and Paul have discussed building this thing for probably four years now, but finally managed to make it happen this year. And last Sunday, during the Birthday Blowout Party for Lathi and Paul, Eric installed this monstrous piece in their master bedroom. (There was lots of cutting, trim work and miscellaneous assembly that had to happen on-site.)

There's an electric fireplace insert that slides into place, once Paul gets it primed and painted. I'll do a follow-up post to show it in all it's painted glory. In the mean time, I think Lathi needs to start shoppin' for a nice bearskin rug, don't you?

A Birthday Blowout.

Our good friends, Lathi & Paul, have birthdays on March 29th and 30th. So they always get to celebrate together - awwww....how fricken' cute is that? And they invited the whole Denneler clan over for fantastic BBQ ribs on Sunday. Of course, I brought dessert.

I'd found these silly animal candles months ago at one of my favorite stores, Frank & Margaret's (which is now closing, dagnabit! sigh....) So I've been saving them for a special cake where they could all be used together. 

Happy Birthday Lathi & Paul!

Pistachios + Raspberries = Scrumpdillylicious

Pardon me while I stuff my face full of these delicious cupcakes. Holy cow. I think I've eaten ten of them. In my book, a cupcake is a sugary treat with lots of frosting. But in the February issue of Martha Stewart Living, I found this recipe for Pistachio Cupcakes with Raspberries, and there is no frosting. In fact, they're more like muffins because of all the nuts and berries. I don't care what you call them, I just call them yummy.

Here's the recipe if you're interested. Super simple, and practically healthy (if it wasn't for all the butter, eggs and sugar.) Oh yeah, I guess that's what makes them a cupcake. Silly me.

PISTACHIO CUPCAKES WITH RASPBERRIES

Bea's Hideout.

Whenever we can't find Bea, we just look in the play kitchen fridge, and there she is - just chillin'. I had to take these pictures of her, because sooner than I can imagine, she'll be too big to fit inside her hideout.

Stay small, Bea.

The Angry Baker.

It happens. Sometimes, things in my kitchen go wrong. And that's when I become an angry baker. (Eric would argue that this happens every time I got to bake something, but it's not true.)

This week, I had one, simple baking task I needed to tackle while I was on Spring Break with the kids. A friend of mine is hosting a 75th Birthday party for her aunt, and I volunteered to make some party favors - candy buttons in a personalized package. I found these great, antique button molds online and thought "Oh, this will be so simple. No problem."

Wrong. Wrong-O. Wrong to the nth degree.

After three days and countless hours, I had managed to only make 20 little bags of these stupid things. (I needed 100). They wouldn't come out of the molds, and every time I tried to pry them out with a pin or something, they'd crack and crumble. So, I moved on to Plan B.
Plan B was button-shaped cookies. Which would have been a great idea, except that my quadruple-batch of purple-colored cookie dough (to match the party theme) turned into a lovely, brown tone once it was baked. Not so good. Plus, the recipe I used made them as hard as a rock. OK. Moving on to Plan C.
Plan C was purple M&Ms. I packed up the kids, headed to Mr. Bulky's in the mall, and bought 12 pounds of purple and white assorted M&Ms. I stuffed them in the bags today, and attached the personalized tags, and I'm calling it good. It'll have to do, because I'm completely out of ideas and time at this point. Ugh. So you see, not everything coming out of my kitchen is a success. And chances are, Eric's had to hear me say "I'm never, ever going to bake, never, ever again." Again.