Cucina di Becca

Summer is over????

So, the first half of this post is to convince you that, YES, summer in Colorado is indeed over. Check out that snow!

We headed up to our favorite yurts in Poudre Valley this weekend. There are two huts that are close to each other, so each family can have their space. We went up with one of our favorite families: the Human/Cruger clan (Katy, Gregg, Miles and Macy)

The boys are setting up the rocket - we got three successful launches and recoveries this time.

I am standing at our yurt and taking this picture looking at the other yurt. Just a cute little pathway in between for the boys to run back and forth.

So, here comes the part of the post that relates somewhat to cooking, although you might argue that it is really just about gardening(whatever happened to the intention of my blog???) and is also intended to convince you that NO, summer is not over in Colorado.

Finally! I have discovered after many years of trying, how to grow basil in Colorado such that it produces these huge beautiful leaves! This is in a pot (with lemon basil which I also love), I feed and water it regularly AND I pinch the heck out of it. Really...I pinch it and pinch it. I thought I would kill it, but Organic Gardening convinced me that I wouldn't.

And the monster tomato plants. I really have some knack with tomatoes. I dug out this piece of dirt on the deck because the dogs peed and pooped there all winter. I filled it back in with lots of mushroom compost mixed with topsoil. Happy happy plants.

So, I guess I am not ready to declare it Fall yet...even though Luca has completed nearly one week of school and I am starting work on Monday. We are still jamming in runs to the pool and hiking/creek/mud play after school. Maybe I will be singing a different tune next week.

I couldn't bring myself to cut the hair before school started. Can you believe that? Just totally gorgeous. If he can't make it at school, maybe we should just try to find an agent and make some money marketing Luca's hair.

And some summer fun for Mimi: spraying the charcoal grill with a water gun after we have finished cooking. She should model these unbelievable Italian clothes. There you go...we'll just move to LA and make our kids work instead of us. Oh. I just pictured Luca in a long photo shoot. Maybe not.

Checking in

I officially ended my cleanse today -- day 9. I also sent my son to his first day of Kindergarten. No wonder I feel like a total mess tonight.

We survived the cleanse and the drop-off. Life is good.

And Mimi's new thing is to walk around the house with running commentary on herself in the third person:

"What's Mimi doing? She is throwing her fishy down the stairs.....what's Mimi doing? She is going down the stairs to find fishy...what's Mimi doing?..."

Catching up with the pics...

feeling like I need to catch up ... hope you like the photo montage...

Trip #2 -- Estes Park with CCC

We started with a visit from our longtime friends, Tanya and Sriram and their children Nandini, 8, and Nishanth (Nishu) 9. Luca and Mimi were in heaven.

Then, we journeyed up to Estes Park, the site of the 2008 Couples Coaching Couples Convention that our circle organized. Luca and I did a great hike around Bear Lake with the Sadagopans, Larkins and Malaviyas.

Here is the group -- 42 couples and 31 kids -- at our bonfire. Not everyone made it to the photo.

The greatest picture of Tammy and Adrian....

Our quartet couple from Columbus -- Nancy and Karen. They were awesome to hang with.

Mike and Chris leading an unbelievable session on World Class Couple.

3 girls and one boy....me, Col, Christine and Rhen.

Umm...some promised pictures from post- convention partying...So, I spent my birthday in Estes Park with the group, and we partied into the night with champagne and card playing. In fact, we did 3 nights of card playing which was so fun that we decided to continue getting together for card nights. We set up one for last Thursday, and Michael baked an organic chocolate cake and he made organic vanilla ice cream. I had no problems with extending my birthday...well, Michael was pretty disappointed with the dryness of the cake from an organic cake mix. I didn't even notice because I was so excited about having someone else make me a cake...and the ice cream was amazing. So, after lots of drinks, we started messing around with the leftover cake as shown below...

and then we posed with poor Adam who was feeling sick. In our defense, we just wanted him to feel included...

Trip #3 -- Canoeing trip in Escalante and Dominguez Canyons

We canoed into the canyon and spent two nights at the most spectacular campground - with the rushing river nearby and a waterfall to shower in. This was our campsite the first night which, while private, was not a good location. We were in the desert, and there was no breeze coming through this site.

In the morning, we got up early and hiked with a guide and part of the group. In the picture above, we are standing at the top of a 40 ft waterfall. We hiked down and got in, as shown below. This took some courage for me - I am not great with water. It is hard to tell, but the water was coming down HARD. It felt awesome though, as it was probably already in the 80's at 7 AM.

We saw some amazing petroglyphs on this hike...

A little self-timer pic while Bill was floating down the river.

This is the waterfall that was literally in our campsite. It is a bit hard to see that it is around the corner... since it was so hot, we would cool off there fully clothed and be dry in a short time.

So, that's it. Our first major trip away from the kids. Successful. Fun. Relaxing. And we won't go to the desert in July next time.

:)

One post at a time

I have to start slow... or I will post thirty pictures from last month.

So, first, let's take a moment of silence to ponder this next line.

Luca ate lettuce.

Another brilliant cooking moment in the kitchen. I don't share too many of the failures, but you can rest assured that there is one about every day when it comes to veggies. Tuesday, I made lettuce wraps. Luca had a mixture of chicken, carrots and snap peas cooked with a sauce. He rolled it up in a lettuce leaf like a burrito, and loved it. Of course, I expected him to reject it, so there was no pressure to eat it. That helps.

Here is a funny moment from the other child....

 

Bill was home from work, so he stayed with Mimi while Luca and I biked to school. When I got back, I discovered Mimi asleep on the stairs. She looked pretty stable but I was worried that she would startle herself when she woke up and roll down the stairs. I decided to wake her up...and that is not blood on her face. I gave her a chocolate before I left to bike.

A few pictures from trip #1 - Contemplative Canoeing at Shambala Mountain Center.

 

This is the first lake that we went to - at the top of Cameron Pass. I can't remember the name of the lake. It was stunning...we had the lake to ourselves, so we canoed all around it, stopping for lunch and meditation. It was windy, so at times the canoeing was a bit of a challenge. We switched off who was in the back, and therefore directing the path of the canoe. It was interesting that it was much  easier for me to be present and in a meditative state when I was in the front. When I was in the back, I was worried about making mistakes, about upsetting Gayle (my partner below), about how I looked to others...Very interesting that Gayle had the opposite experience. In the front, she would daydream and her mind would drift. In the back, she paid attention to what she was doing, and was able to be very present.

 

This was my partner for the weekend - Gayle. She is a massage therapist from Tucson. She chose me - which was awesome.

 

This was the second lake in the middle of town. It was a very different experience - much calmer - and we had no place to get. So, we just meandered around the lake. I noticed that it was harder for me to be present when I was "meandering". I like to have purpose, to know where I am going. It settles my mind. I thought a lot about how I parent given this realization.

 

A couple more thoughts -- I noticed how easy it was to meditate at the shrine. I used to pray/meditate when things were rough during my year abroad; I would go downtown to the Duomo, a beautiful old church. Something about beauty, quiet and the purposeful environment of a sacred place really brings me to the present moment. So, I am left wondering where that is in Boulder. I have been to Shambala, and haven't quite experienced the same feelings.

 

Lastly, I have noticed since my trip that I am choosing more moments to meditate and breathe, rather than waiting for my chosen time to meditate. My overall sense of peace is greater...

I guess I didn't mention that this was my first solo trip since having kids. It was really hard to get out of town; Jen kept me from turning around and going home. As she talked, I just kept the car pointing north and trusted her words. Then she told me to put the phone down, turn on some awesome music and just enjoy myself. Wonderful words of wisdom -- the rest of the drive was spectacular. Especially a moment in the gas station about halfway there. I went to the bathroom and then headed back to my car. On the way, my eye caught a rack of summer hats. I stopped and tried on every hat. Yes, about 30 hats. I was just mesmerized that no one knew where I was, no one was waiting for me to come back to the car or get home....I felt so free.

Here is Bill, about five minutes after I arrived home...

 

Stay tuned -- trip #2 in Estes Park coming soon.

Mayfest

Oats and beans and barley grow,

Oats and beans and barley grow,

Can you or I or anyone know,

How oats and beans and barley grow?

(Luca is dancing with his friend Shahar to the song above)

Luca's preschool, Blossom, has the best festivals. I had to decide between soccer and Mayfest....not a hard decision. After the initial struggle (well...maybe I should call it a screaming meltdown where everyone was staring at us until my lovely friend Noga stepped in to help out), we had a lovely time singing, dancing, eating Maycake and listening to stories.

I have some wonderful and amazing new recipes to share...and no motivation to type them out. I have an early riser everyday this month, so deep sleep deprivation is setting in. Posting pictures of the kids is much more fun right now.

A spring shower brought many worms...

Our plants are ready to go in the ground...

And dresses abound....I actually counted them....we have 17 for the summer...I didn't buy any of them...my sister made the yellow one.

Yes, playing in a dress is difficult, but Mimi pulls it off. I love this butterfly dress from Italy; I am going to ask for one in my size.

I thought up a recipe that I could share with miminal effort...we made pizza for friends on Friday night, and I made a mushroom pizza that was so yummy. You saute the mushrooms with butter, garlic and sage. Use a red sauce (I just simmer 2 cloves garlic in 2 tbsp olive oil and then add one big can of tomatoes, pureed) and top with fontina cheese and a little bit of parmesan cheese. Gluten full and casein full. Yummy. I plan on getting to my Friday night pizza experimentation, so I will send out the dough recipe.

I have been meaning to share the card that I pulled on Mother's Day. It was a bit shocking how perfect it was. I just can't put it away because it is so amazing. The picture on the front shows a sweet child in underwear standing in the middle of a flower. I have been in a major mothering slump lately, and this one pulled me out temporarily. The sexy dress that Bill got me helped too.

              Thank you for your

                  SWEETNESS

              Believe that you are

              appreciated for all

              you give."

Food frustrations

Wow. I used to look at food just through the lens of healthy vs. non-healthy. I felt sorry for those with food allergies who had to add a second or third lens. Well, I am now peering through those three lenses every minute that Luca puts food in his mouth.

It is exhausting.

A couple of friends helped me re-examine what I am feeling intuitively about his diet. I feel that he truly does not have any food allergies. No leaky gut. Yes, like any human being, his body does better with some foods rather than others. He may have more extreme reactions to sugar. So, at some point last week, I decided -- the hell with it. If he asks me for a piece of bread, or a slice of cheese, then he can have it. I just can't keep telling him that he can't have the most basic of foods. Foods that I use to consider healthy. It is just causing so much stress in our relationship. It doesn't help my marriage when Bill gives him something "illegal" , when gluten and casein free muffins are on the counter.

Today, we had ham roll-ups for lunch. I was reaching for the cheese, and remembered that I had bought almond "cheddar style" cheese. Feeling like giving it another chance, we rolled our ham around this pretend cheese and added a little mustard. It tasted pretty good! Then, I start to think about how much this "cheese" was processed, and flip the package over to read the ingredients. First two ingredients: almond & water. Third ingredient:....casein. (added as a binder, no doubt)

I could have screamed and thrown this cheese food stuff across the lawn. Thanks to the grounding energy of this Taurean new moon, I just laughed. Then breathed and thought, "Enough." Just like the guy in "Love, always" who makes a last ploy for the girl (remember? With the signs and the music while the husband watches TV?) He walks away, and then says, "Enough now." That is exactly how I felt.

We will continue with our alternative flours (75% brown rice flour + 25% coconut flour + xanthum gum) for baking because I can't argue for white flour. We will stay low-sugar because it feels good too. And I will move back to that intuitive place of trusting what feels good for us to eat. I don't know...maybe a more committed mom would be able to stick this out for the three months that Luca's teacher advised. I do feel guilty at times that I am giving up after she advised me. It isn't really my style; usually I am the one who sticks to the bitter end and finds a way to succeed. This time, it seems like I am fighting upstream for no apparent good reason. Guess I might explore a different way of approaching life...a calmer and more peaceful one. I think my family might thank me.

Next installment -- a fabulous granola recipe and smoothie recipes for the summer. Come and visit!

Visiting the desert in April

It was a great trip...everyone should leave Colorado in early spring and go somewhere warm. We left in the middle of a mild snowstorm, so we just kept peeling off the layers all day long. We started on the bus to the airport... (Bill drove by himself to Phoenix) Mimi is sitting on Luca's lap in the green coat with a sheep backpack on...

and then after an exciting trip through security and on the train to Concourse B, we celebrated at Becca's favorite airport restaurant - Pour La France. They have super coffee, a great smoked salmon lunch plate, and turns out they have a great kid's toy...check it out...

Yeah, Luca is the only one who takes pictures of me anymore. Not the most flattering picture...

Then, our flight was delayed, which messed up my perfect plan of getting Mimi to take a nap on the plane. However, Luca got to enjoy playing games on the moving walkway...

and then they enjoyed sharing a seat on the plane and watching a movie together with their headphones.

The next day, we celebrated Mimi's birthday. Grandma and Grandpa Ciancanelli made a strawberry shortcake birthday cake which was SO perfect!! Mimi loves strawberries, and we loved the gluten-free cake!

She got lots of great presents; Cookie Monster and Big Bird are now her most valued friends. We take them on every car ride, every trip to the park...she is always looking for them..."Ig bird and Cooie oster!!"

Can you believe that adorable dress???

I spent the afternoon shopping at IKEA, all by myself. It is amazing what a treat that is. I feel like I am never alone anymore! I also hooked up with Kimberly and went to tour her naturopathic school. I wish I had taken a picture -- she looks fabulous.

We still had one more day before the BIG race. Bill was madly preparing but took a moment out to launch a rocket. We tried to find a secluded spot...

This is a great time to be in the desert, as the plants haven't been fried to a crisp yet...

The launch of the rocket was successful, as you can see below, and we had our first recovery of a rocket so that we could launch multiple times!

Mimi preferred to nap with her friends instead...

Sunday - Race Day

We left the house at 4:15 AM. Yes, I am such a supportive wife. :)
It is truly amazing how many details one has to manage to compete in a triathalon of this length (2.4 mile swim, 115 mile bike ride, 26.2 mile run). Bill had to organize all his gear into different drop bags that would be delivered to him at different spots on the course. He was amazingly calm and prepared.

Check out this video of the start of the race...

The energy was just amazing. We went to an athlete's meeting on Friday night, and everyone was so pumped up that I almost started thinking about training for one of these...but I managed to catch myself.

I was able to see Bill get out of the water, around 68 minutes, and transition to his bike. I headed home and tracked his progress on the website. We all headed down to see him run the marathon. We managed to cheer him on at three different spots...

It was ... 95 DEGREES ... and people were running. Bill was running. Unbelievable. Lots of people were walking. We were cooling off with the sprayer.

Bill finished in 10:54:00, which put him in the top 10% of his age group (40-44 yrs old) This is an astonishing accomplishment - given the windy bike ride and scorching marathon heat. He was very happy with his race; he gave it his all and made no mental mistakes. As with his other Ironman race, he wasn't even sore the next day! I swear, you wouldn't have even known that he had run this incredible race. He is an amazing athlete -- I am so inspired by him.

The kids had a fabulous time and can't wait to go back to Grandma and Grandpa's house in Phoenix. I will finish up with pictures of Luca making fires with Grandpa in the backyard (his second favorite activity was collecting grapefruits from the grapefruit tree!)

Trying to get back in the groove

I really really really shouldn't be posting right now. I have at least another hour of studying to get in tonight, but I miss my blog. I am afraid that I might have lost the three people who read my blog.

:)

That's ok. I'll just post for me.

I am planning a nice post for our trip to Phoenix, Bill's race and Mimi's 2nd birthday. It will happen soon...maybe once my classes end next week. For now, I will update on the transformation of our house into a junglegym.

Yes, we will be charging now for our playgroups. Gymnastics classes are about $10 each right? I found out about this equipment when I was researching the GFCF diet and ADHD. A woman posted links to IKEA, so on my recent shopping trip in Phoenix, I grabbed a swing and hand rings. They interchange easily, which is so fun. We also have two trampolines from Luca's birthday.

It is amazing -- Luca pops on the swing several times a day just to get out his extra energy. He loves it! When we turn on a video, he swings while watching. Multitasking already...

"The challenge of mindful parenting is to find ways to nourish our children and ourselves, to remain true to the quest, the hero's journey that is a human life lived in awareness, across our entire life span, and so to grow into who we all are and can become for each other, for ourselves and for the world."

-- Jon Kabat-Zinn

Thanks for popping by today and hanging with the kids, Helen! It made a huge difference in my day...

Party Palooza

My Irish grandmother used to pride herself on the number of birthday celebrations she could have...hence the number of days she could stretch out her birthday. Her record was at least three... 

I think that Luca outdid her this year...

Celebration #1 - Blossom Preschool

Luca was crowned and donned a cape. Then, he entered the room followed by his friends under a silk that Louis (his friend shown above) and I waved up in the air. Then he sat at the table of honor while a story was told about a little blond boy who danced with the angels, and then spied his perfect parents. So he asked his guardian angel if he could go live with them...

We celebrated each year of his life with a picture and story, followed by lighting a candle. At the end, he got to snuff all 5 candles. This is, by far, his favorite activity at Blossom.

Can you believe that beautiful crown? And then she made him a star baby out of wool. So creative. We had a nice snack and sang to him.

Celebration #2 - North Fork Hut trip

We hiked in to the North Fork hut, about 1.1 miles, by moonlight. Just the three of us -- Mimi stayed with Grandma. Luca fell asleep in the car, but woke up quickly as we told him that his present was waiting outside the car (new sled that he spotted at McGuckins).

Bill did an amazing job navigating the hike...I was definitely hiding my fear that we would get lost in the middle of the night. We bundled up good - it was about 16 degrees outside. We got to the hut around 11:30 PM and crashed. Luca was awake to go sledding at the crack of dawn -- thank you Bill for letting me lie in a bed a little longer!

Yes, we had a great sledding hill right outside the hut. After a big breakfast, we headed back out for more sledding and to shoot off the rocket. We had the most amazing weather - the perfect crisp Colorado day.

We had to hike up the hill to find the rocket...

So, this is the hike back out. Bill tied Luca and the sled around his waist with speaker wire, AND he carried pretty much all of our supplies on his back. He is in incredible shape!

I was huffing and puffing to keep up with him...carrying my teeny pack...

It was...the best trip ever. I think I want a hut trip for my birthday from now on.

Celebration #3 -- Family and cake and presents

No pictures here - only videos. You should stop by - we have great videos of blasting off the rocket and sledding down the hill taking the jump at the bottom. So much fun.

Anyways, Mom/Grandma got a GFCF angelfood cake and made frosting with Tofu cream cheese. She also set up a treasure hunt for Luca to find his present -- matching mini trampolines. We are happy. He says, "Mom, I am going to go exercise!" and he jumps away. Happy mom.

Celebration #4 - Concert with friends

Yes, this is over the top. But I found out about this Justin Roberts concert from Jen, and love his music, so I thought maybe a little celebration with friends would be fun.

Here are the three muskateers...

And then a little lunch and another GFCF chocolate cake molded into baseballs and footballs at the Denver condo...

Phew! Lots of fun ... Mom is a bit exhausted. I hope you enjoyed the photo album.