Party, Party, Party!

This past Saturday we had Sig's second birthday party.  He didn't actually turn two until the 27th, but since his birthday was falling so stinking close to Easter, I had the brilliant idea of hosting an Easter egg hunt for his party.  And to add another layer to the party extravaganza, I also prepared a brunch for everyone to partake in.  So, at 10 a.m. Saturday morning, I had seven children aged 4 and under and their parents descend upon my house to feast their way through Easter goodies. 

We had Egg, Sausage, Red Pepper, and Fontina strata, Italian Easter Bread (with homemade candied orange peel because, yes, I am that crazy), fresh fruit, homemade pop tarts (basically pie crust filled with strawberry jam), homemade granola, yogurt, juice and coffee.   My parents got Sig a sand table for his birthday which was the hit of the party.  The weather was so nice that we ate carrot cake cupcakes outside after the egg hunt.  Each kiddo got to go home with a felt bunny Easter basket filled with a coloring book, crayons, and bubbles (thank you Target $1 bins).  All in all, it was a fun morning even though I was exhausted until Monday.

Sunday was Easter and my birthday.  The first and only time this will probably happen in my lifetime.  My dad looked up when Easter would again fall on the 24th, and he said it wouldn't happen again until 2095 when I would be 116 years old.  Longevity does run in my family, but I doubt I'll see 116.  We skedadled down to my parents' house after church for dinner with my family and in-laws.  I was still on overload from the day before and wasn't feeling all that social.  Thank goodness for having to nurse babies!  Best excuse to leave any social gathering and hide out in a bedroom.  I did have a zen experience while preparing the frosting for my birthday cake (look at the pretty swirling egg whites get all glossy and stiff, listen to the whir of the beaters, happy sugar, happy Kristin) and was in a much better mood when opening my presents.  I got two cookbooks, "The Country Cooking of France" and "Charcuterie" which is less of a cookbook and more of a manual on how to prepare meats for storage (confit, sausage, hams, etc.)  I can't wait to get cooking!

First Post

I know, I know.  The title is so inventive.  But, that what it is.  It's my first post.  I'm not exactly sure what I'll be using this blog for.  I've never blogged before.  I had a professor in college who made us turn in a one-page free write at the beginning of every class for he believed that to become a better writer you had to write.  It could be about anything and was not graded but I think we got participation points for them.  I'm not even sure if he read them or not.  I think it was a way for him to make sure you were coming to class, but with less than ten students in the class, it was always apparent who was there and who wasn't.  I always enjoyed those writings.  I remember being specifically pleased with one that I wrote about being smug about my mittens.  So, Professor Bartenen, this blog's for you.

Now on to the nuts and bolts.  I do plan on writing a lot about my kids.  I have two little boys: one almost two and one two months.  I feel like I should try to attempt to give them some level of privacy since they are at the age where they cannot defend themselves from what I might write about them, and even though I am sure this blog will only be read by friends and family, I'll be using their Viking names.  After all, I'm calling myself the Viking momma, I better be raising little Vikings.  Therefore, the two-year-old will be called Sig and the baby will be called Thor.  I also plan on writing about my other interests.  So, you may get anything from what I fixed for dinner last night (I got my hair cut last night so I had black beans in tortillas with lettuce and salsa when I got home), movie and book reviews (current movies I've enjoyed "The Young Victoria" and "The Road Home" - a love story set in  rural 1950's China), and the current state of my home and yard improvements (someday soon I plan on getting the bathroom repainted, just need to go get the paint!).

I'm not sure how often I'll be able to blog.  At the moment, Thor is sleeping in his bassinet and Sig is napping in his room.  I'm using "napping" in the loosest sense of the word.  He's in his room, the lights are off, but I can hear him playing with his toys.  Eventually he may fall asleep among the legos.  I am getting a rare moment of peace that is lasting more than five minutes and I'm not fall-off-my-chair exhausted and can string coherent thoughts together.  At least I hope they're coherent.  Anyway, my goal is to post at least once a week.  I always get inspired when I have no time to write, and then when I get a moment, the inspiration is gone.  I'm hoping that since I've actually started writing that I'll be able to find the time to continue and it won't be so daunting the next time I sit down to write again.

Well, that's what I plan on doing with this blog.  It's been nice to sit down and group my thoughts together.