Kaboom! Building a Playground in under 6 hours

Kaboom! is a national non-profit whose goal is to provide a safe place to play for every child in America. For the last few years, Adobe has been partnering with Kaboom! to help build playgrounds in the Bay Area. And on Thursday, I was privileged enough to be one of the volunteers helping to build a playground at Cesar Chavez school!

Cesar Chavez school creed:

I believe in myself and my ability.
I will do my best today.
For this day will not come again.
I will listen.
I will think.
I will be me and act respectfully.
I will read.
I will write.
I will take another step towards my destiny.
I will soar like a proud eagle
with one purpose in mind,
to do my very best.
For this day will not come again!

Previously, the kids at Cesar Chavez would have to walk for 20 minutes to reach a playground at a neighbouring school where they could play and hold phys ed classes. That there is now a playground on their grounds gives them back 30 minutes of instructional time every day.

We (Adobe and SAP volunteers) arrived on site at 8am to a very cheerful atmosphere with breakfast (homemade tamales!) and loud, upbeat music. We got started right away, getting organized into teams (based on which sticker you had on your name tag). Some teams were painting, some were building benches and picnic tables, some were mixing concrete, moving mulch, or building play structures. I was on the team that built a slide and two swing sets.

BEFORE – about 9am. The holes were thankfully pre-dug for us by another group of volunteers the day before.

My team for the day!

So. much. bubble wrap.

Not only were there over 100 volunteers from Adobe and SAP, there were also volunteers from the community of East Palo Alto who chipped in to provide food, drinks, and helping hands.

Mid-way…around 11am.

Lunchtime! Lunch was provided by the community, and the food was AMAZING.

Delicious posole, beans & rice, and some sort of tortilla stuffed with meat & rice & beans.

Painting a mural.

Pouring cement into pre-dug holes.

Mixing 80lb bags of cement.

Painting checkerboards for the picnic tables.

While I always feel inspired and rewarded when volunteering, this experience was really special because the kids at the school were just so darned sweet. They kept sneaking out of class to come say thank you and wave at the volunteers, the younger ones couldn’t seem to believe that the playground was for them (they kept asking: who is that for? is that ours?), and one of my teammates was even asked if we were being paid to do this (she said “I’m being paid in my heart”).

Done! – at 2:30pm. Totally amazing that this was finished in less than 6 hours!

I hope to be able to volunteer with Kaboom! again next year, and I’m so thankful that Adobe supports initiatives like these and really encourages their employees to give back to the community. Thanks, Adobe and Kaboom!

Click here for more photos (not taken by me).

Giving Thanks

Today is our second Thanksgiving away from Canada. Last year we had only been living here for six weeks and we just had a quiet roasted chicken dinner. This year, we offered to host a dinner for some of our Canadian friends living here in the Bay Area, and it was a blast!! We had 11 people share their evening with us (including four very well-behaved guests under the age of 11) and we ourselves had a great time hosting.

I especially had fun cooking up a storm – my first time making a whole roasted turkey! Everything was delicious and I am posting the recipes I used so that I can find them again next year.

What am I thankful for? Well, I’m thankful every day of the year for my wonderful husband, family, and friends. I’m thankful for my mental and physical health. I’m thankful for my challenging, engaging, and crazy job, and being able to work with incredibly smart and cool people every day. I also feel very blessed that we’ve made fast friends here in amazing California with some incredibly genuine and wonderful people. And today in particular, I’m thankful for our fridge full of leftovers, and for the scientists at Pfizer who created this wonderful day-after headache-killing invention called Advil!!

Recipes from others:

• Turkey brine: http://savorysweetlife.com/2010/11/how-to-brine-a-turkey/ (I didn’t change a thing and it turned out wonderfully!)
• Turkey roasting instructions: http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-cook-a-turkey-the-simplest-easiest-method-160905 (I didn’t pour broth in the bottom of the roasting pan, but rather used 2 cups of broth to baste throughout the roasting time)
• Mashed Potatoes: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/11/delicious_creamy_mashed_potatoes/  (these were SO good – I did make a small change and used milk instead of half&half)
• Green Bean Casserole: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/green-bean-casserole-recipe/index.html  (I tripled the number of green beans and doubled the mushrooms, and sprinkled the crispy onions on top of the cheese instead of incorporating into the casserole)
• Pumpkin Cheesecake: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/pumpkin-cheesecake-recipe/index.html  (added a sour cream/sugar/vanilla topping to hide a crack, but that’s the only change I made)
• Apple Tart: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2007/11/simplest-apple-tart/  (DELICIOUS. Will absolutely make anytime I have extra apples or pears hanging around begging to be used up)

My recipes:

• Gravy from pan drippings: make a roux by melting some butter in a pan and adding flour until you have a smooth paste. Add the roux to the pan drippings (still in the roasting pan) and whisk over low heat until you reach the desired consistency. Add broth or water, and perhaps a little more roux, if the gravy is too salty. Add water or broth if the gravy is too thick.
• Mom’s Stuffing: secret family recipe which has been passed down through the generations and doesn’t live online.