I finally got to ride the trolley car!

We have visited San Fran half a dozen times since moving to California but I've never been able to ride on the trolley, although I've always wanted to give it a try. This past weekend while my family was "stranded" in California, we took a trip up there and I finally got my chance to hang off the side as we went up and down the hills of the big city. It was everything I hoped it would be...especially hearing Allie shout "Wow!" sporadically throughout the ride. We also go to enjoy such delights as Ghiredelli Square, Fisherman's Wharf, bread bowls at Boudin (okay -we went to Boudin about 6 times in this one weekend...I really like their bread!), took a bay cruise, visited Union Square, Alcatraz, went over the Golden Gate Bridge (we drove this time; much easier but not nearly as breathtaking!), and took a first trip into Sausilito. It was a fabulous weekend with fabulous company! Thanks family for a wonderul visit and a lot of fun! Can't wait until next time! ...my poor family may quite possibly never take a road trip to see me again. They were supposed to get home Sunday night and didn't get home until Thursday! Their truck first broke down here in Fresno, then again on their return trip home in Las Vegas where they were again stranded over night. It was a tough week for them but we were glad to have spent the time with them, for better or worse. My mom and brother brought with them a friend from France who has been staying with them for the summer. It was so fun to have boys in the house for Adam to be a boy with and we all loved hearing them rattle off in french all day! Enchante Adam et Bon Chance!

Kindergarten!

Today was the big first day! Alexis was SO excited for school and all that she would learn. She tried on several outfits (she had one picked out before but nothing looked quite right today) and packed her backpack (with everything that the list she picked up at the store suggested; including boxes of tissues for the class, etc. I convinced her that there would be a class set of markers and crayons and we should keep ours at home for homework so she emptied out a few things). Her teacher was sick today so she had a substitute on the first day! All in all though, things went great. I even benefitted from the misfourtune of my family, who came to visit last week and is stuck here with a broken down truck. This allowed me to go to figure out the school pick-up / drop-off routine without toting the younger two along. That was a huge help today! It was pretty great to have Grandma along for the first day too! And so Alexis' journey through school begins... (we were thrilled to learn last night that she has plans to go to two colleges like her daddy did!) As I lay in my bed the other night thinking about Lexi starting school today, I thought of this poem I'd read years ago. It is so true. We could all benefit from a reminder of the things we learned in kindergarten.


All I Really Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten
by Robert Fulghum

ALL I REALLY NEED TO KNOW about how to live and what to do
and how to be I learned in kindergarten. Wisdom was not
at the top of the graduate-school mountain, but there in the
sandpile at Sunday School. These are the things I learned:

Share everything.
Play fair.
Don't hit people.
Put things back where you found them.
Clean up your own mess.
Don't take things that aren't yours.
Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody.
Wash your hands before you eat.
Flush.
Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
Live a balanced life - learn some and think some
and draw and paint and sing and dance and play
and work every day some.
Take a nap every afternoon.
When you go out into the world, watch out for traffic,
hold hands, and stick together.
Be aware of wonder.

Remember the little seed in the styrofoam cup:
The roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody
really knows how or why, but we are all like that.

Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even
the little seed in the Styrofoam cup - they all die.
So do we.

And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books
and the first word you learned - the biggest
word of all - LOOK.

Everything you need to know is in there somewhere.
The Golden Rule and love and basic sanitation.
Ecology and politics and equality and sane living.

Take any of those items and extrapolate it into
sophisticated adult terms and apply it to your
family life or your work or your government or
your world and it holds true and clear and firm.
Think what a better world it would be if
all - the whole world - had cookies and milk about
three o'clock every afternoon and then lay down with
our blankies for a nap. Or if all governments
had a basic policy to always put thing back where
they found them and to clean up their own mess.

And it is still true, no matter how old you
are - when you go out into the world, it is best
to hold hands and stick together.

Happy Birthday Mom!

Sending our best birthday wishes!

FRNDS 4 EVR!

This past weekend was wonderful with a visit from my dear friend Jenn and her fantastic husband, Ryan. We had such a great time with them! We went out on a double date to a fabulous chinese restaurant in town, ate frozen yougurt in the beautiful evening weather, and attempted to play tennis. Later on we played cards, went to the pool, did a little shopping ;) and movie watching, spent an afternoon at the park, and of course, what visit with the A.Wahls would be complete without a trip to See's Chocolates! Thanks for a great weekend guys! Can't wait until you hit the road to come see us again.

Since my camera is STILL out for the count, here are some photos courtesy of Jenn and Ryan:

previously this summer...

I was thinking back on the fun we've had this summer and realized I'd never posted all the pictures from our trip home. So here are quite a few of them. Good times indeed!

Ode to Summer

As I put the little ones to bed the other night, I noticed that it was a touch darker than usual and thought perhaps we were getting to bed later than I thought. Nope, not the case. Instead, I realized that the days are starting to get shorter; summer is coming to an end. My camera is in the shop again (it evidentally wasn't repaired properly during it's previous fix up and I'm now left without my memory preserver for another couple of weeks!) so to entertain you, I have will post a bit of bad poetry for you.

Ode to Summer

Oh dear summer, how did your days pass by so quickly?
Is your end really drawing near?

We spent your days at the swimming pool,
splishing and splashing away most afternoons.

We enjoyed the peach pies and cobblers; ice cream cones a plenty;
fresh fruits and BBQs,
slushies, smores and corn on the cob.

We read books, grew a garden,
went on trips, enjoyed friends.
We slept in, stayed up late,
went to movies, even had a date!

Must this season come to an end?
Must we really hang up our towels?

Oh, summer we love you. We can't wait 'till you come 'round again!

Looking for more recipes to try

I'd love to try some of your favorite recipes. E-mail me at alyssa_wahlquist@hotmail.com Thanks!

New Favorite Recipes

I want to share my two new favorite recipes from the summer (not that they are "summer recipes," just things I've made this summer).

The first is for Spanish Rice, which I love but don't usually ever make because the mixes for it are SO high in sodium. This is not only better for you, but it SO tasty and SO easy! Another thanks to Danina for this great find!

Spanish Rice:

saute:
2 TBSP oil
2 TBSP chopped onion
add:
1 1/2 cups uncooked rice (NOT minute rice)
Cook until lightly browned.
add:
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup of your favorite salsa
...and I like to add 1 or 2 chopped tomatoes from our garden

Stir to a boil. Cover and cook on low 20 min.


My next new favorite recipe is for Oatmeal White Chocolate and Cranberry Cookies.
(Anyone who knows my taste buds must be surprised that these are on my fav. list since they sound all fancy. I questioned them in name only but LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to eat them.) Trust me, they are amazing! Thank you to Jenn for my new cookie obsession.
Jenn's mom has an awesome website filled with such delights as these at: www.barbarabakes.blogspot.com. I recommed checking this site out if you are looking for something fun to make.

Oatmeal White Chocolate and Cranberry Cookies

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup softened butter
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 cups flour (or 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour)
1 1/4 cups oats
1 cup craisins
1 cup white chocolate chips (Jenn suggest Nestle brand are the best)

Cream butter and sugars. Mix in egg and vanilla. In a separate bowl whisk together dry ingredients (except oats). Slowly add to wet ingredients. Add oats, craisins and white chocolate. Bake at 375 for 8-12 minutes. Makes 2 dozen.

Key Lime Pie

My cousin Danina challenged me to bake a Key Lime Pie with her, and so I did. Here is the result:



It was SO delicious! We ate it too fast to take a picture!
(Adam even liked it and he's not the biggest fan of key lime.)

Here's the recipe for any else who is up to the challenge:

Ingredients:
14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk
3 egg yolks
2/3 cup toasted coconut (optional)
1/3 cup key lime juice* (the girls loved helping me juice the tiny limes)
2 1/2 teaspoons key lime zest
9 inch round graham cracker crust

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300. In a large mixing bowl, using your electric mixer, beat the egg yolks, lime juice and zest until the eggs are creamy. Slowly add condensed milk and toasted coconut and mix until well combined. Pour into crust and bake 15 minutes or until the pie is "set" and no longer feels liquid to the touch. Cool on wire rack, refrigerate.

How to toast coconut: (We didn't use coconut and it was still great.)
Preheat oven to 350. Arrange shredded/flaked coconut on a single layer on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until light golden brown. Stir and check frequently to prevent burning. Remove from oven and allow to cool before using.


CRUST: (This crust was SO yummy!)
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, melted
Cooking spray


To prepare crust, combine first 3 ingredients, and stir well with a whisk. Add melted butter; toss until moist. Press the remaining mixture into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch pie plate coated with cooking spray; lightly coat crust with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes, and remove from oven

***For visual appeal, I added a few drops of neon green food coloring before we baked it and then served it topped with whipped cream and sprinkled with key lime zest. It looked so pretty...I still can't believe I didn't get a picture!