Haven: Day 5

I love Fridays! I love the fact that we get to have Dh home for two days, I love that we have a standing playdate with Pk's friend V and her mummy, who is my friend and I always do the grocery shopping on Fridays, a job that I usually enjoy (I know, I'm weird). Of course, when I am at my job, I love Fridays even more! The forecast here for today was rain, rain and rain, another reason to have a Haven kind of day!

The "special" breakfast was defeating me a bit this morning. I wanted something healthy and something that Pk would eat... she won't eat eggs which rules out French toast and all kinds of yummy eggs (although I had poached eggs with my breakfast, my favourite way to have eggs). I finally settled on toast and fruit salad. Since it's grocery day and I needed to clear out the fridge, it was perfect timing. I find that Dh and I have a bad habit of throwing out food, especially produce and leftovers so this fit the bill perfectly. Pk was a bit skeptical when I told her she was eating fruit salad but she ate it very happily when I put it in front of her. She also had toast with homemade jam. I love having homemade preserves in the house. They are a lot of work and since jam is pretty cheap, they probably aren't even all that frugal but for some reason, the sight of a full pantry makes me happy. We usually do strawberry, strawberry rhubarb and gooseberry jam, pickles and barbecue relish (last year, we tried pickled beans, too, but I didn't like how they turned out). Pk loves strawberry jam and how much more fun when she knows that we picked the berries.
Once I got Baby Bean to sleep, I had a big surprise for Pk that I had been saving all week. We don't let her on the computer very often and when we do, it's very controlled. This week, the new Veggietales site launched and there is no bigger VT fan than Pk! She was SO excited! We started with the stories read aloud section, which was also great for me since it meant that I could tidy the rec room as she could run the stories herself. I can't wait to try some games with her this weekend.
I was taking photos and just thought I would throw these in, since I photographed them today. I love to knit and while I usually have a larger project on the go (right now, I am making Baby Bean another blanket to match the one that he always uses - he will be able to take that with him to the homedaycare he attends and we won't have to worry about his "lovey" blanket being left behind. I like to have a little project under way, as well and right now, the passion is dishcloths. They work up quickly and can be quite fun. I also get a bit of a Proverbs 31 rush out of having things in the house that I have made with my own hands, even if they are things that could have been bought. I found the patterns for these dishcloths online and thought they would be fun for Valentines Day. The patterns are here and here (thank you Kathy Waldie and Kris Patay for the lovely patterns). The woman who designed the one on the left has a set of patterns for wonderful Easter ones as well and I think I might just have to buy the patterns since there are some lovely spring colours in the yarn I use. She also has free patterns on her blog for a mother's day and a father's day one that I might have to try. My friend M is a knitter too and she suggested doing a handknit cloth with a bar of nice soap in the middle wrapped in ribbon. That has a lot of potential!
Our Friday playdate was a V's house today and it was good. With a just-shy-of three and a three-and-a-half-year old, we often have to work as referees a bit but overall, it went well. I took our gift of tea biscuits and M (V's mum) had a lovely loaf of homemade raisin bread for us in return (Dh and I are looking forward to some as a snack tonight). Lunch was homemade pizza and the girls had a blast putting their own pizzas together. Baby Bean was determined he was going to try mine and I broke down and let him have some. He is a big pizza fan!
By the time we left for grocery shopping after our naps, the rain had arrived in earnest. Pk was thrilled. If she had to list her favourite possessions, this umbrella would be top of the list (not bad for $4.99 at Walmart!) I am not as much of a fan ... my father walks with a walking stick when his arthritis is really bothering him and Pk likes to be "just like Momis". I was terrified that someone at the grocery store was going to be wounded by the flying umbrella.
Since this was a haven day, I decided that it really was time to eat at the dining room table, which we haven't done in a while. I was rather proud of myself - as I said earlier, we are trying to be better stewards of the food we buy. I had some peppers in the fridge that weren't off yet but were getting soft and though of this pasta recipe that we loved when I made it before. I had lost the recipe so I did some searching and found it again. It was a great meal and there are leftovers for lunch tomorrow - even better!
The kidlets ended their day with a bath together and as the tub filled, they engaged in the family band - Baby Bean loves to play percussion using whatever has has at hand and Pk wanted to join in. I love these little moments - they are already such good friends and it means so much to me. I feel so blessed.
I have a big outing with Pk tomorrow and I can't wait. Dh and Baby Bean are going to have some daddy time and I get a mum-daughter date. I can't wait!

Before I go, Monica asked us to reflect on what stood out to us this week about the Haven challenge. For me, I think it was just about being more deliberate about doing the things I already do. I would have cooked and cleaned and done things with the children but this week, I felt like I was doing something special. I need to remember that when the daily grind is getting to me. Thank you, Monica, for hosting us this week!