Labor Day & First Day...

     We had a great day at Tyler Arboretum exploring the fairy/tree houses.

The fairy dresses up and poses...

Daddy & John try to be patient!

Peek!

 

 

Hey down there...

Whew, this is high!

Finally a rest.

Cheep cheep cheep...

1st day of first grade.  

Big sis off to school, why did I have to get up so early?

Happy (Ecclesiastical) New Year!

Happy (Ecclesiastical) New Year!

Time to start new, as we begin the New Year in the church. Time for renewal, get started by reading, fasting, praying, contemplating...

It should be noted that to the present day, the Church has always celebrated the beginning of the New Year on September 1. This was the custom in Constantinople until its fall in 1453 and in Russia until the reign of Peter I. September 1 is still festively celebrated as the New Year at the Patriarchate of Constantinople; among the Jews also the New Year, although reckoned according to a moveable calendar, usually falls in September. The service of the Menaion for January 1 is for our Lord's Circumcision and for the memorial of Saint Basil the Great, without any mention of its being the beginning of a new year.

Apolytikion in the Second Tone

Creator of the universe, setting times and seasons by Your sole authority, bless the cycle of the year of Your grace, O Lord, guarding our rulers and Your nation in peace, at the intercession of the Theotokos, and save us.

Kontakion in the Fourth Tone

You who created all things in Your infinite wisdom, and set the times by Your own authority, grant Your Christian people victories. Blessing our comings and goings throughout this year, guide our works according to Your divine will.

Reading courtesy of Narthex Press

Apolytikion courtesy of Narthex Press

Kontakion courtesy of Narthex Press

John is on full tilt toddler...

Well John is better then new. Being a full tilt toddler is his game lately. Refusing naps, going to bed late, getting up early~being extra picky about eating... I would say we have a true toddler on our hands now. (Yuck!) Meanwhile~Juliana had a great time with my parents at the Reading Museum while she was visiting them last week.

Here are the (current) cute photos:

Isn't my new hat COOL?

Cheese...

My new Chinese dress, I'm six now~by the way...

Dress up at the Reading Museum

Walk like an Egyptian...

Under the willow tree at the Museum...

Dr. Patrick Okolo is the man...

Dr. Patrick Okolo is the man...

John is home and the stent has been removed. He's resting/sleeping after feeling sick in the car. Looks like we do NOT need any further procedures or surgeries at the present time.

We are so happy!

Will let you all know how the little guy is doing tomorrow. He hasn't eaten since yesterday, so that should be interesting. 

Thanks for all your prayers, they obviously worked.

The Enchanted Woods at Winterthur ~ Juliana's 6th b-day.

 

The Birthday Butterfly Fairy in action...

 

View from the tram car tour...

The troll bridge...

 The Fairy Cottage

Woodland Sprite & Butterfly Fairy inside the cottage.

Making our picnic lunch w/ a bit of fairy dust...

A proper fairy picnic...

Fairy cakes & Cucumber cream cheese sandwiches.

Pink lemon icing w/ lavender blossoms...

Woodland Sprite prefers Yogurt...

Giant bird nest...

Fairy ring...

Disappearing into the Enchanted Woods...

Peeking into a fairy house door...

Happy 6th Birthday!!!

The Violin~my big birthday gift!

The Family...Sunday Brunch...

Here we are in one of our favorite Vietnamese restaurants in Philly. 

 

Mmm, Cheerios and Juice. 

Can You say O's?

I can!

Home~made Greek Yogurt...

    This is by far the best Greek yogurt I've ever eaten! Those fresh blackberries from our backyard aren't bad either. Ok, recipe for the best home-made Greek yogurt EVER!

Home~made, Greek Yogurt

3 Liters Whole Milk

8 oz. (2% or whole) Greek Yogurt (from store)

Heat milk over medium in a large pot or Chinese crock (see photo) until milk is steaming. About 170*F. Do not scorch milk or boil. Meanwhile, turn the oven on to 170* then turn it off as soon as it reaches170*F. This will create a warm environment to culture your yogurt. Take milk off of the heat as soon as it begins to steam.

Partially cover pot with clean cotton dishcloth and let milk cool to room temperature. You should be able to touch the sides of the container and a skin will have formed on the top of the milk.

When the milk is room temp., mix the 8 oz. of commercial yogurt w/ a spoon and then add to the pot of milk. Combine well. 

Cover pot w/cotton cloth and place in the warmed oven for 8~12 hours. Overnight is good. Do not disturb. Keep door shut. Let your yogurt sleep. Zzz...

In the morning you will have regular yogurt. Now you want to double that protein content and thicken your yogurt by draining out the whey. 

Take the cloth that you used to cover the pot and lay it in a strainer over another large bowl or pot. Carefully put your yogurt into the cloth lined strainer. I twist and tie the cloth to a large wooden spoon and lay the spoon across the top of the bowl. Let the yogurt drain, in the refrigerator, for about 5~6 hrs (or more if needed). Empty the whey from the bowl every couple of hours.

When the yogurt is finished draining, you will have Greek yogurt. Yum!

John's Back!

John's back!!!

It wasn't the way we wanted to go about getting our ERCP w/Dr. Patrick Okolo at Johns Hopkins, but it is finished. John had a pancreatic attack Mother's Day wkd and we went to AI Du pont children's hospital Monday. Spent the next 2 weeks getting John better so that he could have his ERCP.
Dr. Okolo removed some fibrosis in John's common bile duct and placed a stent that will be removed in about 6 wks. John had about 2-3 hrs of discomfort after the procedure from the air that needed to be blown into the area. (Bad gas) He slept through the night and was better then new the next morning. They discharged us in the afternoon.

We are so happy to have John back!  Starting to add his regular foods back into his diet today. Wish us luck!!!

#1 & #2

SSo, the lastest is that I'm doing #1 & #2 on the potty w/Mom's help when she asks me to try.She thinks I don't know what's going on, but I'm humoring her. It's fun to hear the tinkle sound in the potty. And Mom's cheering and high fives are pretty cool too. I guess I'll keep trying for a while, till I get bored... Then I'll tell her NO like I do with all the other things I don't want to try right now.

Meanwhile, you can see big sister and I have been keeping Mommy very busy. The pictures are blurry because we kept moving.We went to Brandywine Zoo together to see the opening of the new mural there. Mom forgot the camera, so no pictures of that!

I just LOVE my big sister Juliana!!!

S Se
I'm drooling in this picture because 
I have been getting lots of teeth. I forget to swallow it sometimes.Oh well. 

Have a great day everybody,I'll catch up with you soon!