Garden Update

It hasn't even been a week since I first took photos of the garden, and already so many goodies are sprouting! I'm definitely the instant gratification type, so I am excited to already see little rows of veggies.

The radishes are flourishing and look like they need to be thinned already.

The baby kohlrabi are making an appearance.

Even the spinach is bursting through, even though I'm not sure our soil is a great home for it.


Today it's 80 degrees with about an 80 mph wind. I made sure to give everything a nice drink to help keep it from getting parched. I may just be getting the hang of this green thumb thing. Well, though, I must confess that my baby basil is in a sad state thanks to being left on the deck in the sun/wind. Oops.

Worm Farmin'

Dade bought a worm farm with his allowance money. He's wanted one for awhile, and we figured if he gives up on it we can always dump it it the garden. No harm no foul.

He needed to prepare by letting the worm water sit out overnight.

Then added the water to the dirt with a little help from his friends.


Next was the fun part: adding the worms. Gavin almost touched one. Almost.


Finally, we put some ice packs on the top of the dirt to keep the wormies cool and set the farm in the garage.


Let us know if you need some night crawlers.

Summer Reading II

The nice weather brings with it the opportunity for me to do some reading while the kids play in the yard. I just finished The Autobiography of an Execution by David R. Dow. Dow works for a non-profit organization that defends death row inmates in Texas, and he has fought for well over one hundred inmates. Texas is not exactly a great place to be fighting the death penalty, but Dow and his colleagues fight tooth and nail Texas style not only to save clients from death but also to reveal the injustices associated with killing prisoners.

Texas is well known for its use of the death penalty. Dow has seen first hand what most of us will never see: the inside of a death chamber. He witnessed Texas execute men who are textbook mentally retarded, men who are so mentally ill that they cannot possibly understand what is happening, and men who are innocent. Dow defends men who have in most cases never had anyone stand up for them, men who should've been taken from abusive homes as children. Dow does not defend the actions of his guilty clients and does not use their pasts as an excuse for murder; he merely points out that we need to face the hard truth that many murderers are the way they are because society turned its back on them and that a defendant's poverty and race are a huge factor in whether he will be executed.

The book gives fantastic insight into the ins and outs of death penalty litigation. It's also a very quick read, so if you have the extra time check it out from your local library.

Soren and Her Undies

Evelyn must have been a fluke. When it comes to potty training, anyway. She pretty much trained herself right before she turned two. Potty training the boys was a constant struggle, so I thought hey, girls must just be easier.

Soren is proving me wrong. Don't misunderstand me, though. She goes poop in the potty really consistently for which I am grateful. Tinkling, however, is a different story. She doesn't care if she pees in her Pull Up. Hell, that Pull Up could weigh 15 lbs from all the pee, and Soren would keep on playing. I am tired of using so many training diapers, so I bought some of those super absorbent undies. Good news: she loves to wear them and will choose them over a Pull Up. Bad news: she's peed through four of them today before nap. Even after she pees in her pants, she'll still have pee for the potty. She just doesn't hold her bladder at all and doesn't recognize she has to go until it's too late. She pees every 15 minutes. No joke. If there is one drop in that bladder of hers, she'll drain it, by golly.

I know she isn't quite ready to be potty trained. I'm glad that she is choosing to wear undies now. I hope that she learns to hold it for more than 15 minutes. Everyone say a pee pee prayer for the Vescapades home.

And just a sidenote: onions and radishes are sprouting in the garden. What a great feeling!

Try This

Salsa is one of my favorite condiments. It comes in so many different varieties and levels of heat. It's also pretty easy to make from scratch.

The new salsa we tried this evening was by far my favorite. I like it even better than homemade. It's Archer Farms organic Cilantro salso, and I think you can only buy it at Target. I'm not a big fan of cilantro, but this salsa is good enough to eat all by itself. I mixed some into my mashed avocado dip.

This may sound a little too much like Reading Rainbow, but if you like salsa as much as I do, then this salsa is definitely worth a try. Ba damp bamp.

Spring Planting

April's showers have been coming down off and on here for the last 4 days or so and are expected to continue through the weekend. Thank goodness Colby was able to finish putting in all the garden plants in time for them to soak up the Spring rain.


We've added a few different items to the garden this year, including white radishes, jalapeno peppers, spinach, carrots, and onions. We didn't plant any green peppers or pumpkins, and we switched to all yellow pear tomatoes. Colby built a little wall to separate the herb garden from the veggies. The oregano is spreading like crazy, and the little starter herb garden Dede gave me for my birthday will be ready to make the move out of the pot and into the garden in short order.


On the advice of a coworker, Colby built a little cage for the cucumbers. We'll see if this helps keep them a bit more contained considering our small garden space.


I also planted some marigold seeds in a tea cup flower pot on the deck. It appears to be making strides, as well.



We have also added another vine to the fence in the dog kennel. It is the same type we had growing all over our fence in Norfolk, so I know it will grow despite my kiss of death when it comes to plants.

Heathy Body Challenge Update

It has been awhile since I've commented on my weight loss. I tried to weigh myself this morning, and the scale is on the fritz. It's battery-powered, so either it needs new batteries or it's just given up after being beaten on by children. Not sure. I will change the batteries later on and see if that helps.

The last time I weighed myself was sometime last week. I was 159.6 lbs. I haven't been in the 150s for a looooooong time, so it was nice to see. My biggest goal is to continue exercising, which will probably be difficult once t-ball/baseball season arrives. I continue to eat healthy, but I splurge more often than I should. I am holding fast to Michael Pllan's rule that you can eat all the junk food you want as long as it's homemade (although I don't suppose homemade apple pie from the cafe down the road counts, nor does Ivanna Cone's homemade ice cream).

I am receiving many compliments about how good I look, which is unbelievably motivating. On Tuesday night Colby cam home from work, wrapped his arms around me, and said, "You're getting too skinny." I think he was just trying to get me into bed.

Must Be Nice

This is a photo of Evelyn still asleep at 8:15 am.

Must be nice.

Birthday Partay!

The annual Green Gateau Birthday Party was in full effect this weekend. As was the case last year, we all ate good food, drank a lot of wine, and exchanged crazy gifts. There were some new attendees to this year's festivities, but my friends Jim and Jessica sadly couldn't make it. I guess you can't have it all.




After our lovely meal at Green Gateau, we all headed back to the Vescapades house for booze and darts. A great combination, huh? My two good friends who shall remain nameless barfed in various locations around the outside of my house, including on my brand new patio furniture. I won't complain, though, because the inside of the house remained puke-free.

I can't wait until next year's fiesta. I'm pretty sure a few of this year's partiers won't be drinking wine anytime soon.

The Fort Part 2

The play fort is up and running. The only things missing are the tarp roof and some trellis along the sandbox to block the sun. It is already quickly becoming the neighborhood hot spot.
Along with the fort, we also purchased some new patio furniture. I've already spent many hours attempting to read on the deck while watching the kids play.



The dogs have resumed their usual summer occupation of the sandbox.

No Words

Two of the children in this photo died this morning in a house fire. Their mother Jolene saved their two little sisters but couldn't save them. A mother watched helplessly as her children died.

The little red-haired girl with the purple coat and blond boy in the gray sweatshirt are Sierra and Devynne. They lived across the street from us in Norfolk, along with their mom Jolene, their dad, and their little sisters. They were at our house what seemed like every day. Jolene was a very close friend, although time and miles have kept us apart but in contact.

Sierra was 10. Her brother only eight.

No words can express my pain right now. Thank you, Sierra and Devynne, for your presence in our lives if only for awhile. Your mommy thought the world of you, and I know she will think about you every day.

Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!

There was a Jerry Springer moment at the Vescapades house on Saturday. A crazy lady stood on my porch, called me everything that you can put "fucking" in front of while her arms flailed, threatened to "kick my fucking ass", and then sped off with her drunk-driving boyfriend and two kids in the car.

I will spare you all the details, but let's just say the cops came, my neighbors feel horrible that they weren't home and their guest accosted me in my home, and Brody is scared of every single black SUV he sees parked on our street since this incident.

Note to self: crazy drunk people do not like it when you point out that they are acting crazy and drunk.

Shame On You, Legislature

The bill that bans all abortions after 20 weeks gestation has passed the second round and will be signed by Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman. The logic of this law is that fetuses feel pain at 20 weeks. (Side note: how the fuck do old white men know what a fetus feels?)

I am deeply saddened by this development for many reasons, but the primary reason is it's blatant disregard for the pain felt by severely disabled children and their families. You think a fetus feels pain? Even if I give you that argument, it is never okay to choose the pain felt by a fetus, A FETUS, over the pain of a living, breathing, suffering child and his/her family. Ever. The legislature attempted to make this bill more palatable by leaving in a clause that allows abortion after 20 weeks if the woman is near death or faces irreversible bodily harm. Gosh, that doesn't sound wishy-washy at all. PATHETIC.

This bill is a blatant attempt by politicians (yes you, Mike Flood) to look good to a pro-life constituency without really examining the consequences and impact on Nebraska families. I am not only saddened by this bill but also deeply ashamed. Nebraska's legislature has officially lost all of its heart, all of its connection to the living, struggling, and suffering Nebraskans. They have also completely disregarded the the pain and suffering of severely disabled babies, and the needs of mentally ill women to choose abortion. Oh yes. Mentally ill women will now also be forced to have babies because this law takes out the current stipulation that allows them to have a second trimester abortion more easily.

For those pro-lifers out their who champion this bill as a victory: shame on you, too. Put your name on a list right now to care for the severely disabled children born because of this bill. They are your responsibility now.

I don't think I have been this mad in a loooooong time. The passage of this bill makes me never want to have another child. My biggest regret is that I couldn't have done more to prevent this bill's passage, the pain it will cause, and the impact it will have on my own daughters someday.

Nice Day for a Hot Dog

Walk the dogs: check. Play in the sandbox: check. Grill hot dogs: check. Lunch on the deck: check.

After a rough start to the day (kids pulled all the books out of the shelf and then jumped in the pile which made me decide to move the whole shelf downstairs), we all went outside for a little exercise. We took the dogs for a walk and returned home to have some yummy grilled hot dogs on the deck. I don't care who you are, grilled hot dogs are irresistible. The kids ended up consuming the following: 7 hot dogs, 3 buns, 6 Simply Gogurts, a carton of blueberry Yoplait, 4 bananas, one pear, and some baby carrots. They washed it all down with chocolate milk.

I think we have some lucky little kids (who are hopefully full).

I have to add one side note to today's post: Glen Beck is a heartless douche. Find that quote in the Bible you selfish ass.

Sowing the Seeds Update

Well, the cat grass has really sprouted and is serving its purpose.

The lavender sadly succumbed to the vicious Nebraska wind. And maybe I shouldn't have left it outside (ahem, twice) since I had it planted in an egg carton. Egg cartons are a great, eco-friendly way to start seeds, but you can't really leave them out in the wind. Duh.

My friend Dede bought me a little herb garden for my birthday, and we are anxiously awaiting little sprouts. I can't wait to get the garden planted. We are so looking forward to heading to the green house for seedlings.

In Healthy Body Challenge news, I continue to go to the gym at least 4 times a week. I am stuck at the same weight which is frustrating. I guess adding Ivanna Cone to the diet isn't helping. I also continue to reduce the amount of processed foods in the house. I'm not sure that I could ever give up the animal crackers, Nila Wafers, and other treats that the kids love so much. I could surely replace them with natural snacks, but I think I'll let them live a little. I send a little bag of baked chips with Dade in his lunch. I let Brody eat school lunch every day. Hey, I'm not perfect. Just better.

Happy Easter!

What a beautiful day it was to hunt eggs! After an entire week of endless wind, our unpredictable Nebraska weather cooperated for one day so that friends and family could enjoy a lovely Spring holiday. As is tradition at the Vescapades house, all the kids got chocolate bunnies in their baskets.

We had a lovely lunch at my dad and step-mom's house in Seward where Dade had spent the weekend. The kids hunted eggs and then ate every piece of candy in sight along with ice cream cake. I made a from scratch, no canned cream of mushroom soup in sight broccoli, cheese, and rice casserole as part of my continuing commitment to eat less processed foods. It was really tasty and was even better reheated as leftovers. Sorry, Campbell's Soup, but homemade is way better.

The Fort

Colby finally started the fort over the sandbox that he has been meaning to build since last year. It has definitely been a big undertaking but one he is determined to finish. He says it's pretty much like building a deck, and he's happy that since it's just a fort perfection is optional. Since beginning the project on Saturday, Colby has imparted the help of both our children and our friend Jon. The fort is definitely impressive, but I'm hoping it's safe and holds up to six (or more) rambunctious kids.

Happy 31st Birthday to Me!

Go shorty, it's your birthday!!

I love my birthday. I love all the great cards and gifts. I love that for one day everyone smiles and pays attention to me. Honestly though, I get a lot of attention every day. I am so blessed with lots of friends and a fabulous husband. I don't think I've ever had so many close friends, and I'm so happy to have them all. But birthdays are special because everyone is extra nice and buys you things. Who doesn't like presents?

Colby surprised me two times today. I woke up to find a Barbie and the Rockers doll on the kitchen table with a cute little note from Colby. I had the same Barbie as a child, and I pointed it out to Colby one day at the store. Of course, the girls want so badly to open it, but I'm content to just look at it for awhile and remember all the fun I had as a little girl. The second surprise came just after lunch when Colby showed up home from work early with a great Democrat donkey cake. How thoughtful and unique!




Later on we headed to Menards to shop for patio furniture and stuff for the fort Colby is building for the kids. We had supper at Matzalan II. I gorged on chicken nachos and margaritas. What a great birthday supper!!

I am now officially in my thirties. I don't think I've ever been happier than I am at this point in my life. Sure, I'd love a bigger house, but I have enough friends and family to fill this one up like a can of sardines. Who could ask for more?

So, to all my friends and family out there reading this: I love you all very much no matter how far away you are. You have helped make my 31 years so fantastic. I can't thank you all enough.

Sowing the Seeds

We are so anxious for Spring's warm temperatures to stick around. In an effort to hopefully speed the process, I have gone out on a limb and started a whole bunch of seeds with the help of the children. The daycare group and I planted some cat grass and lavender today as the wind howled. So, here is day one.



I also planted some pretty perrenials in the front yard. I don't remember what they're called, but they kind of look like orange and yellow Gerbera daisies. I think they're sunburst something or other. We already have some like it up front, and they grow like crazy even with me around.

I received an herb garden kit for my birthday from my friend Dede, so the girls and I are awaiting the sprouts of parsley, basil, and chives.

Come on Spring! Do your thing!