glimpses

Recent shots of each of us Pecks:

Me and Nico in a sling I made.


Nico and Leo at bathtime. Yes bathtime. On a hot summer day this sometimes means putting bath soap in the kiddy pool.

Little man testing out his biking skills.

Not so little man charming the camera-girl.

Steve-O acting like a BBQ hot-shot on the 4th of July.

and now.

Since I've always been one to freely admit my moderation problems with the Internet, I'm quite thrilled to be announcing that Steven and I decided to get rid of our lovely, fast, efficient DSL. We are going internet free; the signal will be dropping from our house in 3-5 business days!

Now the legions of fans I have may find my assembled FAQ to be of some help to you:

Q: Does this mean we'll never see you again?
A: No dearies, we'll still be alive. And even online occasionally.

Q: But HOW?
A: There is a Starbuck with free Wi-Fi two blocks from us. We have a laptop.

Q: But your blog is so titillating, how can I manage not knowing the details of your life?
A: Well, you could try writing a snail mail letter; I ALWAYS write back.

Q: Eww... how old fashioned!
A: Indeed.

Q: But seriously, the blog?
A: I suppose I can manage posting pics or pertinent updates on occasion. Monthly?

Q: Netflix?
A: We currently have about 160 movies on our queue... that should hold us over for some time before we need to update it.

Q: Online banking and bill paying?
A: While Starbucks isn't my FAVORITE coffee place, it'll do in a pinch.

Q: Will you still be checking your e-mail?
A: I imagine weekly or so. I still prefer e-mail communication over the phone most of the time.

Q: But what WILL you do without it?
A: Hopefully engage more in the 3D world here... laundry, dishes, walks, music, beaches.

Q: But Ellie, we know you... how will you live without instant access to your homeschooling forums and your Catholic forums and your amazon.com and facebook and the Drudge?!?
A: Someone once told me that God will reward us anytime we choose a greater good. I truly believe not having internet in our home will be a greater good, even if those things weren't "bad" to begin with.

Q: Okay fine, but you can't tell me Steve feels this way too?!
A: There are depths to that man that many people don't often see or take the time to discover. You'd be surprised.

Q: So are you saying the rest of us with internet are bad people? How judgemental!
A: Of course not. The pope has internet, I'm quite fond of him. It's simply what seems to be the right choice for us at this particular time in our lives.

Q: Well FINE, but I bet it won't last!
A: It may not, we aren't totally dogmatic about this. We figured it was a good way to save money, to simplify our lives, and to focus more on the family. If our joy somehow DECREASES because of this, we may be online again soon. But while technology has done fabulous work in increasing human entertainment and pleasure, it has done almost nothing to add to human joy.

another first

my favorite company

I get a lot of unsolicited catalogs. Shopping mail order or online does that for you... they sell your name etc., etc., and pretty soon Steve is getting American Girl Doll Catalogs and I'm getting Northern Tool Company catalogs.

As it is, I recently received yet another toy or education catalog that I was just about to recycle before I opened it up.

Oh. My. Word.

Mindware is THE BEST catalog I have now! I love EVERYTHING! It is amazing! I could plan almost our ENTIRE homeschooling curriculum JUST from this catalog for years! Fun. Educational. Clever. Quality. What more could anyone possibly want?!

My kids would love this stuff! More importantly... so would Steve and I!!! Ha, ha, ha. We just spend close to an hour together browsing this catalog. Go check it out, you won't be disappointed.

family portrait

Okay so I know you're all needing a laugh and I'm willing to oblige since I'm short on sleep and avoiding my sewing machine that needs me at the moment.

This is the photo we tried to enter into a Dream Vacation contest. It had the caption of "Well, we're dreaming big of our family cruise, but for some reason we can't seem to make it out of port." Anyway, there was a bug with the website's entry form and I tried, and tried and tried. I even wrote to their Tech Support but they didn't help me. So I concluded, maybe erroneously, that the whole contest was rigged or just a crock.

So I'm left with this fantastic portrait for your viewing amusement. If Dominic's face had been a little more "engaged" I think it would have been in the running for the $10,000 vacation.

the month of May

What a month! Got knee-deep into my sewing craze, had my brother up for a week, went to Lacey to visit a shrine, planted flowers in the garden, went to Vancouver for a week, hikes were taken, trips to the city pool, Steve graduated from Firefighter Academy, and tonight our priest is coming to celebrate Mass in our home and to consecrate our family to the Sacred Heart of Jesus (Happy Feast Day!) So without further ado, the specs:

Steve's graduation ceremony: It was pretty nice! I learned that Island County co-leads the state (along with Bates College) with firefighting accreditations they offer. We are very lucky that not only did he receive his Firefighter I status from the state, he got paid to do so! He wants to go on and get his EMT certification this winter (here on the island also) and set himself up for a full-time career some day. Steve was singled out that evening to receive a plaque and "Chief's Choice" award for most outstanding recruit of the whole north battalion! That's the man I married... puts his heart and ethic into all his work. "If something's worth doing, it's worth doing right!"

These are the recruits for the city of Oak Harbor (they has had South Island and North Island county recruits), and who's that handsome one there on the left??? (Click on the photos for a bigger image)

... receiving his certificate from Senator Haugen who was the key speaker for the ceremony.

... all squared away with his new badge!

*Giggle* Steve stands a little bit straighter when he wears that uniform... I'm so proud of him.

And here we have now the mandatory playground pics of the kiddos...

I just love this next picture of the three boys:

playing in the bubbles with Uncle Nate. and cousin Delion:

And now we have the Hazel Dell Parade. Boy do the Pecks know how to do parades! Check out their sweet setup for the 95 degree heat, complete with a cooler for cold drinks and something like a 50 pound bag of sunflower seeds! My father-in-law gets out there hours before the parade starts to set up in the choicest spot along the street, and they meet up with some family friends and just have a great time! I think I can officially say that this is my favorite tradition on Steve's side of the family and I'm thankful to be a part of it. (We just need to live closer to family so we can do this every year!)

Ha, ha! Writing this out in front of our "post" got most of the bands to march a little crisper and play a tune! School-aged kids will believe anything... :o)

Dominic has a ball and a lap... what else could he possibly want?!

The boys got loads of candy!

Aunt Mandy put beads on Nico and is about to teach him Blackjack... ha-ha!!

Here's the water fountain at Esther Short Park in Vancouver. Dominic took a bit to warm up to the idea:

And if this isn't the sweetest photo of the brothers I've seen in a LONG time!

... the boys looking through photo albums.

... my attempts to turn my thumb green. The kids had fun in the dirt at least!

... and finally, the sweet signs of summer around the corner!

turkey meatloaf?

I'm just posting this because I heard rave reviews about it and then went to the Food Network site to get it only to find a statement saying it would only be available for a limited time. So... UNTIL I have time to try it out... here it is being saved:


Ina Garten's Meatloaf

3 cups chopped yellow onions (2 large onions)
2 tablespoons good olive oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (1/2 teaspoon dried)
1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup chicken stock
1 1/2 teaspoons tomato paste
5 pounds ground turkey breast
1 1/2 cups plain dry bread crumbs
3 extra-large eggs, beaten
3/4 cup ketchup

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a medium saute pan, over medium-low heat, cook the onions, olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme until translucent, but not browned, approximately 15 minutes. Add the Worcestershire sauce, chicken stock, and tomato paste and mix well. Allow to cool to room temperature.
Combine the ground turkey, bread crumbs, eggs, and onion mixture in a large bowl. Mix well and shape into a rectangular loaf on an ungreased sheet pan. Spread the ketchup evenly on top. Bake for 1 1/2 hours until the internal temperature is 160 degrees F. and the meatloaf is cooked through. (A pan of hot water in the oven under the meatloaf will keep the top from cracking.) Serve hot, at room temperature, or cold in a sandwich.