Rock To Wind A String Around

• You spend your days playing with your children, tending your garden, working outside of the home, starting a business — not walking miles to your only water source
• Your children go to school every day, instead of walking miles to their only water source
• You have no threat of water borne diseases, such as cholera, typhoid, bacillary dysentery, polio, meningitis and hepatitis A
• You don’t have to worry that people up river are using your only water source as their only sanitation source
• You will not lose your child to diarrhea, which is the leading cause of death of children in countries with high mortality rates.  And you will not worry that even if your child survives diarrhea, he or she will fail to thrive and become vulnerable to other infections

I know that before my trip to Ethiopia I took water for granted.  I had heard about the issues people in developing countries face regarding water, but had never really thought about it.  Now I think every day about what my daughter’s life would be like if she lived somewhere that did not have access to safe, clean water.  I cry when I read posts about the 5 million children who die every year from diarrhea.  My heart aches when I think about the women who cannot start a business, or work in a farm to support their families, because they spend so much time each day walking to and from their water sources- which are often times infected with bacteria.

Please consider donating to EOR’s water first program.  You can do so here.  Our $10,000 pledged donation will literally provide clean water to an entire village.   We can do this, but we need your help.

posted to the EOR blog by  my brilliant friend Shawn

In Astrid Meklit’s case, half a watermelon should suffice.  Honestly, I couldn’t cut it fast enough (probably because I snapped a million shots when I wasn’t wielding the knife).

Thank you warm weather, for making my girl so happy!  May this be the first of many watermelon feasts this year.

2007

2010

When Astrid Meklit’s angry, the proof is written all over her face…

So I may have mentioned (a time or two) how incredible Mary P’s yard is.  The people who owned the house last were amazing landscapers–there is balance, 4 season color, and a measure of restraint (there is also a surprising lack of spring bulbs–odd!).  The yard is, well,   daunting.  Our primary goal the first summer was not to kill anything.  We added a few trees, but mostly worked to keep things alive and fairly tamed.  Last year, we were eager to add our own stamp to the yard, but we also thought we were moving.  We again focused on plant preservation, replaced a few dead items and enjoyed the R family’s efforts.

This year we’re staying put so we’ve been more aggressive in our efforts.  We’ve added trees and bushes, ripped out plants ill-suited for their space (pleased to note that even the most experienced gardeners don’t always get it right) AND in a fit of brilliance or madness, found an out-of-the-way spot in the yard to put in two raised garden beds.  We’ve wanted a vegetable garden since we moved in, but the yard is so beautiful, it seemed like adding a toilet planter to Longwood Gardens.

Yesterday, a landscaping company dumped a load of soil and a load of mulch on the driveway.  Heavy crazy rain was predicted for the weekend and into the week but yesterday morning dawned fairly clear, although cloudy.  Albert & Elliott returned from the fencing lesson around lunchtime and the work began–lunch forgotten, nap time forgotten–we worked with a fervor I didn’t know we possessed.  By the time I brought Astrid in around 6:30, I had loaded and unloaded more than 55 wheelbarrows of mulch, enough to cover every bed in the front yard.  Albert and Elliott had one raised bed built and the other staked and Elliott managed to mow the lawn.  Astrid Meklit did her part by playing happily and shoveling a fair bit of mulch and dirt herself (although I can’t say much for her aim).  By the time we staggered inside, we had blisters on our blisters and all sorts of muscles registered complaints.  The heavy rain began to fall (dramatically) as Albert hung the last tool on its hook…

This morning, I was hoping the rain would continue–I was so sore, I thought I’d work on the tasks throughout the week.  Instead, there was sun, SUN to be reckoned with.  A hasty breakfast was finished by mid morning and we were back at it–the first bed is complete, the second is built, and I loaded a ton of dirt and mulch again.  Oy!  As unpleasant as it was to think we might not get around to everything this weekend (the next two are jammed with activities, including a trip to Portland), I’m glad the rain held off long enough to get some real work accomplished.  Mary P is sweeter than a spoonful of sugar, but she is a pretty high-maintenance gal.

The best thing about the arrival of new dishes?

According to Astrid Meklit, it is the miles of bubble wrap that enveloped each dish.    It’s been a noisy sort of heaven for the small girl today.

A small laundry list for you to peruse:

This is the prettiest spring I’ve ever witnessed in the midwest.  Everything is in bloom, plants I gave up for dead are springing to life after 2 years of dormancy, etc.  I’ve mentioned the yard of Mary Poppins many times before, usually in conjunction with the major amount of upkeep it entails, but really, it is stunning–I’m SO glad we live here.

Elliott’s bff/future wife was here for the weekend from West Virginia.  The goddaughter of our friends, Scott & Jim, we met E last summer when she was here for a few weeks.  Bored with the antics of the three year olds at S & J’s, she began to spend hours here–she and Elliott are thick as thieves.  A Columbus Day weekend visit was scuttled, resulting in an 8 month separation.  Her family was here for the weekend, and lucky us, we wrangled a sleepover so E squared had lots of time together.  A summer week is in the planning stages and it can’t come too soon.  I can’t imagine that they’ll enjoy one another’s company this much for much longer, but at this stage, they are totally simpatico.

My birthday party was mentioned, but not discussed.  Sweet Elliott decided to surprise me with a party on my birthday.  An Enkutatash meeting was already scheduled for the 7th, so I wasn’t sure what he could cook up, but he managed to:  a.  ask people to bring dinner, including another Edible Arrangement  b.  invite people not on the planning committee to the event  c.  order flowers and decorate for the party and d.  keep the whole thing more or less secret.  He even managed to bake a gf birthday cake, although I knew he was doing that.  It was all very sweet and thoughtful, if a bit chaotic.  He now thinks he might be a party planner when he becomes an adult.

Astrid Meklit, loquacious and charming, has been VERY funny lately.  She has the vocabulary of a much older child, but the pronunciation skills of a three year old which adds to the mirth.

I did her hair in braids with big ballies on the end this week, and she made up a joke about it:

“Why do I have duck hair?”

Um, I don’t know, why do you have duck hair?

“Because when I walk my hair goes quack-quack.” (the ballies clack-clack when they bang together)

We were talking about clothes the other day, who has pants in our family, who has sweaters, who has skirts, etc.  AM is the only family member with dog underpants, but not the only one in the family with a tutu.  Apparently, daddy has a tutu around his leg and on his arm.  Others might call it a tattoo, but whatever…

The other night, Elliott allowed Astrid Meklit to help with the dishes (oh, the joy!).  Elliott asked if she liked that idea, and she yelled, “cool beets!”  Elliott tried to convince her  (loudly) that the expression is “cool beans” which made her yell “cool beets” that much louder.  It was funnier than it sounds in print.  Really.

I’m off to weed and weed, and maybe….weed.    Cool beets!

This poor neglected blog!  I’ve committed to NaPoBloMo for the month of April at the EOR blog, and well, it seems to mean that I never blog here.   All manner of things to chat about–my birthday surprise from the boy, the boy’s fencing tournament, etc. but for now, a repost will have to do.  Sorry!

So, I’ve begun (along with a fabulous team) to plan the Dead of Winter costume gala for March of 2011.  We have a million things to do, and a million different ideas about how to make this the best fundraiser/event ever.  I’d like to ask for help though.

Many of you?  Most of you?  have attended multiple fundraisers in your lifetime.  I’d like you to cull through your various experiences to help me  plan this event.

This is a typical silent auction item.  It is cute, thematically-appropriate, and thoughtfully put together.  I’d like to put together baskets that are just as good, if not better (e.g.  more likely to bring in larger donations of cash).  This is where you come in…tell me about amazing baskets you’ve created.  Tell me about the great items you won at the Cystic Fibrosis silent auction.  Remember (with a mixture of nostalgia and embarrassment) the great bucket put together for your own elementary school fundraiser.  Think back to the silliest item that fetched the most cash.   Do all of these things, and please share them with me!

After all of that, think about the elegant chow served at these various affairs.  Was there a shrimp dish that wowed you?  An appetizer that looked good on paper, but was too messy to eat? Is there some fabulous food served in some region of the country that I’ve missed?  Seriously, if you know a great dish–well… dish!  I have a few ideas, so does the team, but we are eager to hear from YOU!

Ideas about food/beverage/auction items/decor, etc– all will be gratefully received.  As an added incentive, I’ll throw in my  2 cents (x 100) for each comment shared.  12 good ideas will add up to a 24.00 donation to EOR,  100 good ideas will add  up to an amazing event AND an awfully big donation to EOR.

Don’t say no right away–you DO have knowledge to share.  Sleep on it, and tell me in the morning–I really want to know!