love us chicks

Lauren

2012-01-22T19:07:00.001-08:00

#7 - Lauren. My second daughter.

She's almost 6, and everyone she meets isn't a stranger, but a friend she hasn't made yet (have I said she's just like my dad in this regard?). Her day isn't complete without drawing at least 12 pictures. Lately she's been enjoying Harold and the Purple Crayon, so last night's drawings were done in purple marker, with scenes from one of her favorite Harold stories.

Lauren loves everyone, and assumes they love her, too. She rarely hears the word 'no.' Even when you say it, she rarely hears it. Her brain seems to translate 'no' into 'just do it quietly so no one knows.' This is actually much more effective than I would like to admit, but dang, she's sneaky. But also, she just rarely hears 'no.' (the exception being at home, and with a handful of people who are not wrapped around her little finger too tightly!) She'll ask so sweetly, with her toothless smile, and few seem able to resist.

She is really bright, and at the beginning of this semester started reading 1st grade books. She loves rainbows and princesses. Tina Cocolina, Queen of the Cupcakes is her favorite book. And she could live off of oatmeal and fluffy - aka scrambled - eggs.

She loves sparkly shoes, feathers and flowers. We rarely go anywhere without her finding at least one 'treasure' that nature left for her to discover.

Aubrey

2012-01-20T08:35:00.001-08:00

#6 Aubrey. My oldest daughter.

Made a mama out of me 9 1/2 years ago. This girl of mine is so creative. And nurturing. She's passionate about the people, things and causes that are dear to her, and has quite a stubborn streak. She is a stickler for the rules, and gets so frustrated when she sees people breaking them.

Aubrey loves reading, creating recipes in the kitchen, Futurama, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and ANYTHING artsy. Also, Garfield and the Far Side (she's enjoying Andy's books of collections of these comics).

She doesn't hesitate to take care of anything Sasha needs, even though Sasha is very good at pushing all of Aubrey's buttons. I love that she lets Sasha take a bath with her. She'll spend her days being annoyed by Lauren, and then practically beg to sleep in Lauren's room with her.

She loves her cat, Biscuit, and he loving tolerates being babied by her. And he swipes at her sisters without provocation. Just solidifying that he is HERS, and no one else's, lest we forget.

She makes me so proud, and I can't believe she's already have way to being an adult!

Mommy

2012-01-11T17:00:00.000-08:00

#5 My mommy. BTW, I still call my mom 'Mommy' and my dad 'Daddy.' Part of me is still 5 years old. :-)

Sheesh, I kinda don't know what to say. My mom is always supportive of whatever I am wanting to do.

She is such a great grandma. She finds the best Christmas and birthday gifts, because she remembers that Lauren loves feathers, and that Aubrey likes to play in the kitchen.

When she visits, she always helps me do something to improve our living space. This week she helped me rearrange some paintings, re-pot some house plants, and bought us another bird feeder. Little things that I would otherwise ignore for a bit longer. :-)

We spent hours sitting at my table, drinking tea, watching the birds at the feeders and watching the Zoe wiggle naked on her sheepskin on the table.

Daddy

2012-01-11T06:37:00.001-08:00

My parents were just here for a week, and we were busy not being on the computer, so I've got to play catch up on my blessings!

#4 I knew on their second day here that my dad would be my next blessing. :-)

Sasha loves being read to, so Buddy Tomm (that's what the girls call him) sat in the recliner and read. And read. And read. Never once did he tell her no.

He always tells me he's proud of me, and that's so nice to hear.

He loves that I stay home with the girls, and to help us do that, he buys my gas.

He has such a positive attitude and outlook, which is amazing considering the way he was treated by his father.

He was a police officer and otherwise involved in law enforcement throughout my childhood. With all the crap he's seen, he is still always smiling and assuming that each person is good unless they've given him reason to think otherwise.

His world is full of friends he hasn't yet made, there are no strangers. (Lauren seems to have inherited this trait, btw.)

(this is what much of their week here looked like, but with Sasha awake)

my sister

2012-01-03T19:11:00.000-08:00

#3 Alison

I am blessed beyond measure to have Alison as my sister. Among other things, she is the best aunt to my girls (she did have some awesome role models, KRISTIN!!!).

She is so creative, so compassionate, so patient, so intentional. Other people will occasionally say that they have the best sister in the world, and I just nod my head and think to myself that they are mistaken. ;-)

She is an art therapist, an artist, a friend to everyone. She may be my younger sister, but she has taught me so much. I want to live next door to her. Not sure that'll ever happen, but I do dream about living closer some day.

Zoe Ruth

2012-01-02T18:57:00.000-08:00

#2 Zoe Ruth. Remember that I was pregnant? Yes, well Zoe was born November 16th. It's been awhile since I've blogged!

She is such a blessing to our entire family. You can read her birth story here, if you want.

I love this picture. My baby, one day old, and Sasha's baby, of indeterminate age. Zoe's onesie is one that the girls and I made (well, decorated - tie-dying with sharpies is awesome!). It's my favorite, and it's too small now.

Sasha

2012-01-01T19:38:00.000-08:00

In an attempt to frequently remind myself that I am so very blessed, I am going to try to note one of my blessings each day. Here goes...

#1 Sasha. What a crazy, loud, silly, beautiful blessing this child is to our family!

Her vocabulary amazes me. And sometimes makes me blush (because I know where she heard *that* word, and it wasn't Daddy!).

She calls her goggles her 'lady gaga' and thinks penguins should be called 'mangoes.' When asked how old she is, she never says '2,' but instead says, 'so big.' I hope she never outgrows these things.

She has striking blue eyes and the coolest hair. I say that not as a biased mama, but as the adult who escorts this child everywhere. People stop us to remark about how beautiful she is.

She loves reading. Pete and PJ is a favorite, as is But Not the Hippopotamus and Pat the Bunny. But really any book will do.

More than reading, she loves singing. You are My Sunshine is kinda 'her song' in this house. Every night when Andy puts her to bed they sing the ABC's and then her sunshine song.

When she's having a rough time, she'll say, "I having a rough time." When she's done crying, she'll say, "I all done crying now." When she has to poop, she'll say, "Have to take a dump." (THAT is all Daddy-O right there, in case there was any question.) She thinks she needs chocolate.

She wants to be just like Lauren, and she loves cuddling with Aubrey. And she adores Zoe, wants to hold her all the time.

She is such a sweet little firecracker, and I am so blessed to be her mama.

Today

2011-10-26T06:59:00.000-07:00

Today I am 35 weeks and 4 days pregnant.

Today I woke up at 4 am feeling really well rested. That'll happen when I fall asleep before 9pm.

Today I have a lunch meeting for church. Woohoo, Chinese buffet!

Today I will clean the house as best I can. It will look like I did nothing, because right now all my best work is going into growing this baby. Seriously. I hurt if I bend down to the floor, and have to work entirely too hard to get up off the floor (where the bulk of our cleaning needs to happen today!). Maybe I can sweep everything into one big pile for people to grab their own crap to put away, then Andy can sweep all the rest into the trash.

Today we had a great morning. Even got to school a few minutes earlier than our usual just-on-time.

Today Lauren has her first dance class at her new dance studio. I am excited, and she is ridiculously excited.

Today Aubrey is planning ways to save the rainforest. That makes me ridiculously proud. I remember sending money to World Wildlife Fund when I was a kid.

Today Sasha came in from outside to tell me she had to poop, then proceeded to run to the toilet. Seriously big news, as this girl loves nature, and doing nature-like things out in nature.

One Kings Lane, anyone?

2011-10-14T09:57:00.000-07:00

Have you been to this website? They have some pretty cool stuff. Some $$$ stuff. And some adorable, affordable stuff. (psst... scroll to the bottom of the page and click on 'downstairs' - that's the bargain basement where I fell in love...) AND RIGHT NOW you can become a member and get a $15 credit. (And if you use this link, when you make a purchase with your credit, I get a $15 credit, just so you know.)

Look at what I just ordered, for $5.95 - that includes shipping. I am in love. This might be a Christmas present for my mom, or a Christmas present for Aubrey, Lauren & Sasha's mom, as I love it that much.

(Feed the birds is what that fancy script says, if you can't make it out. My love of Mary Poppins may have influenced this purchase slightly.)

(Sorry for any spam-ish feel, I just think it's cool that you can 'spend' $15 before opening your wallet!)

Today

2011-10-10T07:07:00.000-07:00

Today I am feeling very pregnant. And I hurt. And I am wishing it was November 10 instead of October 10.

Today there's no school, so we are a house full of laziness.

Today I want to make these. Thank you, pinterest. :-) Perfect timing, as last night Andy used the last dryer sheet.

Today is cloudy and muggy. And the yard is super muddy from all the rain this weekend. I've never been happier to have such a muddy backyard.

Today we are having baked cod for dinner. Whenever we have cod, I think about childhood Christmas Eve's - oyster stew (disgusting!), codfish gravy on baked potatoes (delicious - though it sounds disgusting!), hoska (our family Christmas bread), huge cans of black olives, pickled beets, enchilada casserole, and my Grandma Ruthie and Aunt Ibby.

Today

2011-10-05T17:13:00.000-07:00

One of my friends posted what she did today, and since I'm in a bit of a blogging lull, I thought this might help me get back into things a bit. Thanks, Emily, for this idea that I stole. :-)

Today I stole this blog idea and re-posted my comment left at the scene of the crime as my very own post here.

Today I did NOT visit pinterest (this is news, I tell ya!).

Today I washed and hung one load of laundry out to dry.

Today the weather was gorgeous. GORGEOUS.

Today Sasha and I played in a park with friends.

Today the above-mentioned friends said I look noticeably bigger than a week ago AND that I am beautiful. (Seeing as I'm almost 33 weeks pregnant, both of these made me feel really good!)

Today I got annoyed with crappy grammar on facebook posts.

Today I baked chocolate-chocolate chip friendship bread.

Today I no-baked cookies.

Today dinner was cereal because the hour that I spend in the kitchen before dinner was taken up by emptying the dishwasher while arguing with the girls about helping to clean the living room. (The living room that would've taken about 5 minutes to pick up if we could've skipped the arguing.)

Today I looked at a pile of towels that needs to be folded.

Two birthdays, stitches, and a new school. And some randomness, too. Not in that order.

2011-09-03T19:33:00.000-07:00

Sheesh, two birthdays in this house since I last blogged.... life must be busy! :-)

Aubrey turned 9! (Holy bleep, I do not feel old enough to have a 9 year old.) Poor thing wanted a slumber party birthday party, and so she invited only a handful of friends - only one rsvp'd (that she couldn't come). The other 3 didn't rsvp at all, and didn't show up. Aubrey was crushed. I had a feeling before it happened, so I tried to brace her as best I could. And we (Andy and I) had already decided that it was time to have a kitten in the house, and that a 9 year old is old enough for some responsibility in caring for it, so we let her pick HER kitten. She helped pay for it, she named it, she helps clean up the litterbox... Anyway, I took her looking at kittens the night she was supposed to be partying like a rockstar. And why? Whywhywhy do people not rsvp? Just a quick call. Or text. Or e-mail. Freakin' annoying people.

And also, we decided to switch elementary schools. The old school was okay*, but Aubrey was struggling in some areas, and they were not as helpful as she needed them to be. So when a flyer came about a charter school, we checked it out and decided a switch was necessary. She's having a tough time with homework, but is apparently doing well in class. So we are brainstorming ways to get her to concentrate and focus at home. Lauren is, well, Lauren. Didn't even want me to walk her into the building on her first day. I DID walk her in, but that's not what she wanted. Crazy girl.

*and what I really mean is, I thought the old school was okay. Until I saw her struggling so much with some of the homework she was doing in the 2nd week at the new school - I'm pretty sure they should've held her back or something. Learned that old school doesn't teach phonetics. Isn't phonetics key in learning to read and comprehend? Also, watching Aubrey try to answer some of her homework questions, it appears that they worked really hard at teaching their 3rd graders how to pass the standardized tests last year, and neglected other things as a by-product.

Sasha turned 2 in the middle of all of this. She is an awesome 2 year old, I have to admit. Loves to sing and be sung to - 'You are my Sunshine' is a favorite, along with 'The Itsy-bitsy Spider' and, thanks to our summer camp program at the preschool, an annoying song about a princess sung to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star'. I can no longer sing to her about a twinkling star - she gets mad at me and insists I sing about the princess. Stupid summer camp. She loves to eat. Especially fruit. Pretty sure she'd attempt to eat her weight in bananas (all 19.4 pounds of her) everyday if I'd let her.

She loves playing with baby dolls, and likes to play "Squeezy Pie" - a game where we hug eachother again and again. But Not the Hippopotamus is a favorite book, along with Beautiful Oops (awesome book!!!) and Pat the Bunny.

Oh, and Sasha got stitches. In her chin. From falling from a standing position on the floor while playing with Lauren. This child climbs everything (she's gotten on top of the kitchen counter to turn on the microwave before) and she needs stitches from falling at ground level. Of course. Anyway, she was a trooper. Hated being papoose-d, but it was absolutely necessary to keep her still enough for the doc to stitch her up. She beat Lauren to needing stitches. But I figure Lauren's expensive, holey mouth makes up for it.

(Oh hey, about that expensive mouth... so when she was 3 we had to remove her two front teeth that had been capped when she was 18 months old. Grown up teeth are nowhere near to coming in. While in Colorado, a tooth next to her hole got knocked out. Another capped tooth. With no hopes of fixing it. She's got a 3-tooth wide hole. And, no joke, the most expensive mouth in the house.)

Today I am 28 weeks pregnant. Andy took a picture of me at 26 weeks. I am HUGE! Definitely looked bigger than I felt at that point. But now I kinda feel as big as I look. Bending over, squatting down to get something off the floor is really tough. Getting out of bed is a production. Enough of a production that when I wake up in the middle of the night needing to pee, I weigh how badly I need to pee against the effort necessary to get out of bed. Staying in bed is often the winner.

goggles and ice packs

2011-07-18T11:42:00.000-07:00

Sasha needs goggles, because her big sisters have goggles. She's yet to want to stick her head under water, but she still feels like she needs to wear her goggles. Too cute.

Anyway, this girl who must be just like her big sisters, but who is also entirely independent and free-thinking and unconcerned with the way things should be, has got some silly ideas about how the world works. So when she hurt her foot this afternoon and I held an ice pack on her foot, it didn't take long for her to take the ice pack out of my hands and off of her foot. Her right cheek needed the ice. Doesn't matter where she actually gets hurt, the right cheek always needs the ice. She tried holding the ice pack on both cheeks, but that was not as comforting as the right cheek alone. All this because the first time she used an ice pack, it was on her right cheek. I'm glad it was one of her northern cheeks, and not a southern cheek. And I kinda hope she never outgrows this oddity.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

edited to add: is it difficult for anyone else to type 'goggles'? Google is such a part of my life, I kept typing 'google' and deleting to fix...

baby names

2011-07-14T14:30:00.000-07:00

Oiy, the baby name discussions have begun, and man, oh man, is it tough. We don't like trendy names. Andy has an aversion to old names. I'm with him on some... Bertha ain't ever gonna happen. But some old names? Some old names are just awesome. The man has no respect for the classics, I tell you!

LOVE the name Oscar, but seeing as that was our cat's name, we can't do that. Or I feel like we can't do that, at least. LOVE the name Ruth, but Andy cannot stand it. Ruth is the strongest contender for a girl's middle name, because Ruth is my grandmother's name - but Andy keeps hoping I'll agree to another name from that branch of the family tree...

Anyway, maybe we've found the perfect name. Boy or girl, it wouldn't matter (which is super cool, as each of our girls' names could be boy names. Anyway, this name is super unique, the kid would have an easy enough time learning to spell it, and it's just cute. Super cute. Drum roll, please....

Baby's name will be W. 'Dub' for short. Isn't that awesome? I don't know why we never thought of that before, but we LOVE it!

Hahahahaha. No, we don't love it. At all. But we think it's hilarious, so this kid is currently being called 'Dub.' Oh, and if I am creative and gutsy enough to post something to this effect on fb, please do me a favor and play along like you love it, okay? ;-)

green planting and eating

2011-06-26T18:05:00.001-07:00

I have an old dresser that came from my grandparents' house. Not antique-old, but junky-old, that we used for Sasha for awhile, until it became evident that multiple drawer-openings a day would not work. But I just couldn't toss it. Not because of sentimental reasons, but because there HAD to be another use for this wood, besides taking up space in the landfill.

I held on to this dresser for months, even though Andy wanted me to toss it. I had no plans for it, but I couldn't toss it. Then, a cousin-in-law posted a link on fb about repurposing an old dresser in to a planter. Genius!

Here's the first drawer I've converted. One drawer at a time, baby!

I'm even picturing turning the dresser frame up on it's back and planting potatoes or something similar.

And another thing... have you ever eaten pea tendrils? Holy _____. You must find some and try them. Apparently they are good sauteed or otherwise cooked, but my tendrils never got that far, as we all loved them raw - by themselves or in salad. (Here is someone else's blog post dedicated to pea tendrils, with more information AND pictures!) Suffice it to say, one of my miscellaneous containers will be holding pea tendrils as soon as it's cool enough to plant the little suckers.

Blessings

2011-05-27T18:57:00.000-07:00

Seems like forever ago that I started the 1000 Blessings challenge. It's been so long that I would have to dig too far to link to the original challenge. It's been over a year since I last mentioned any blessings. Oops. Here goes. (and there may be repeats, as it's been 14 months... but a blessing is a blessing, and *for me* the important thing is to remember them... even if I'm repeating)

#67 - my sister

#68 - peach cobbler from Schoepf's BBQ

#69 - Andy's patience with me while I struggle through this rough patch of exhaustion

#70 - the dairy that sells raw milk

#71 - steak ala Andy. That boy can cook, but man oh man, that boy can really grill.

#72 - Aubrey's thoughtfulness

#73 - Lauren's imagination

#74 - Sasha's determination and vocabulary

#75 - my Jaimie. Haven't seen her in almost 2 years, and we can go months without talking, but that doesn't matter. She's my Jaimie. And I'm gonna see her soon!!! :-)

13w6d, tutus and one LONG vent

2011-05-27T18:22:00.000-07:00

I am officially out of my first trimester, and am mostly done with the icky feelings. Still very exhausted, because sleep alludes me even though I am freakin' tired. And still not gaining any weight, but seeing as I was a good 20 lbs overweight, I'm not concerned.

AND, I met my midwife. She is so sweet, so laidback, so my kinda midwife! She owns a birth center, but also attends homebirths. We are leaning towards another homebirth, but I am glad we have another comfortable, safe option if we aren't feeling 'home' (because I KNOW we will not be feeling hospital unless there is a medical reason for it). I was pleasantly surprised, though, that Andy thinks he'd prefer home... since our previous midwife missed Sasha's homebirth, I was thinking of the birthcenter for his sake, mostly.

And, Ali's wedding is in less than a month. Woohoo! Our trip out there begins in just over a week, with a stop in Colorado Springs to spend several days with my Jaimie, and at some point some time with my April (April! We've got to look at schedules... Friday, June 10th, in the evening??? or some time Saturday June 11th, during the day???) Combined, Ali and Daniel have 3 nephews and 5 nieces. Or, 3 nephews and 5 flower fairies. The 3 youngest - Lauren, Kate and Sasha - will be in tutus. (And shirts, my model was naked for the photo shoot - we're lucky she had the tutu on at all, as she was also throwing a tantrum.) I am really happy with how they turned out. Really, really happy. Sometimes I get my craft on and really kick some butt. ;-)

And, on the drama side of things, I am done with drama. Been done for years, but occasionally some sneaks in, and I get to figure out how to deal. So, here's my vent about the situation... feel free to ignore if you want, I just need to get it out.

A year ago Judy and I became friends. Very good friends very quickly. And I observed that her favorite way to deal with conflict was to get pissed at people and not talk about it, but choose to ignore/avoid the person she's mad at. I really didn't think anything of it when she had problems with her neighbor, because she always talked about how her neighbor frustrated her, and *hello* you can't pick your neighbors, so if you need to ignore them, so be it. I really didn't think much about it when a similar situation happened with the wife of her husband's coworker. Again, *hello* sometimes people are in your life whether you want them there or not.

BUT, seeing as we chose to be friends, how she confided an awful lot in me, and I in her, that we have loads in common, when I wanted to talk about an issue between our daughters, this is how the conversation went:

me: Aubrey said that Jax kept touching her during dance class and wouldn't stop, so she asked me to talk to you about it.

J: Well that's not what Jax said happened, but I don't want to talk about it. This isn't the first time this has happened, and I just told Jax to stay away from Aubrey.

me: That's probably a good idea, a break would be good for them.

And that's where the conversation ended because some people can't have an uncomfortable conversation in order to make things better. And the more I thought about it, the angrier I got. I'm left to assume that Judy thinks Aubrey is some evil bully (because I have no idea what Jax's side of the story is) as opposed to two grown ups helping their growing daughters realize that they can talk to eachother and figure out a way to get along, because any rational person knows that what actually happened lies somewhere in the middle of Aubrey's side and Jax side.

(No, this was not the first incident between the girls, but I ignored previous incidents as I've always encouraged Aubrey to use her words and work things out on her own if she can.)

SO, I haven't had a conversation of substance with Judy in over a month, and I am counting down the days until we leave on our trip, as by the time we get back, they will have moved to Connecticut. I know, very mature of me. But I've spent enough energy on this crazy lady when she wasn't implying that she didn't like my kid... I have no more energy to spend on her now. And, honestly, I am the one doing the avoiding, but it all relates to her not knowing how to communicate if there's something other-than-pleasant to talk about.

Thanks, feels good to get that out. :-) BTW, something kinda funny... Andy has always maintained that Judy's crazy. I should know by now to trust his take on people. And not necessarily avoid them, but keep a bit more distance than I kept from Judy.

Oh, she's a crazy smart silly goofy thing

2011-04-27T07:09:00.000-07:00

Sasha LOVES apples, doesn't love apple skin. I rarely give her a peeled apple, as I figure she'll get used to the peel and eventually eat it. (the peel is packed full of good-for-you, I want her to eat it!)

She has learned that the dogs will eat anything she drops. Anything. So, she nibbles her peel off her apple, drops it on the floor, and the dogs swoop in and eat the peel before she has a bite of naked apple in her mouth. This system works for them, and means I'm not picking up apple skin bits, but dangit, eat your peel, Sasha!

Also, she recently taught Andy how to play fetch, with her playing the role of the dog. Hilarious.

9w2d

2011-04-25T18:26:00.000-07:00

So far I am feeling very, very pregnant, but not in an enjoyable way at all. Combine the extreme exhaustion I had with Aubrey, the crazy aversion to real food I had with Lauren, plus the nasty near-24/7 nausea I had with Sasha, and constant mild pain in my lower back, and that sums up my last few weeks.

Suffice it to say, I am a bundle of fun. Less than 3 weeks, if this all ends at the end of my first trimester. For the sake of my marriage and family, I pray it ends then. Please, please, please pray with me that I feel better by mid-May. Pretty please?

And I could go on and on, complaining about things, but I'm going to try not to. I'm going to try really, really hard to focus on how exciting this is. We are going to have a baby! A baby that GOD decided we needed. A little person that the world needs, and we get to raise him/her. How awesome is that? Obviously I love all of my children, but there's a little something extra (not LOVE, just something) about knowing that this was not MY plan, but HIS. I can't get over that. Cannot.

Okay, I gotta go, it's time to puke. ;-)

6w6d

2011-04-08T07:18:00.001-07:00

I'm walking on eggshells, waiting for the icky morning sickness to start. So far, I'm okay unless I don't eat enough, or I eat too much. And I'm fine with this level of sickness, except I'm afraid it's gonna get worse, and I'm waiting for that to happen. Waiting, waiting, waiting. Yuck.

Oh well. In other pregnancy relate news, most people I know are socially aware enough to know that some things are not cool to say to the pregnant lady. But for one girl I work with. Poor thing is seriously lacking in social etiquette. Her initial response to me was, "Oh God." At which point I walked away, using work as an excuse to not stay and chat longer. The next thing she said to me when she came into my classroom several minutes later was, "Uh oh???" To which I replied, "No!" with an edge to my voice implying that she was horribly wrong to think this baby was an 'uh oh.' Really, lady, none of your effing business!!!

And really, I do not mind sharing how this baby came to be (umm, not THOSE details, but the planned vs. unplanned aspect), but when someone is going to take such a rude stance, and NEVER ONCE say "Congrats!" or "How exciting!" or some other positive, encouraging remark, THAT person is not going to get any part of the truth. I will lie to her. Grrrr. She makes me so mad!!!

While I'm venting, I'm gonna let all the biotch out. Pregnancies are not 'uh ohs' or 'mistakes.' If you are having sex, you might get pregnant, even when using protection. Says so right on the box or package or printed material. Pregnancy is an assumable risk of having sex. A pregnancy might be a 'surprise,' but call my baby an 'uh oh' or a 'mistake,' and my fist flying into your face is an assumable risk.

Okay, enough about stupid people. Now for the juice. :-) This baby is God's plan, and our plans are quickly readjusting around God's plan! And we are fine with it. Excited, in fact. Really, really excited. Except for the waiting-to-puke, that is.

I want to not have an ultrasound, and be surprised by baby's sex upon delivery. Andy doesn't like that idea. We'll see what happens. I say an ultrasound is unnecessary, as we specialize in girls. :-)

Oh, and my 'due date' is November 26th. Our children have always been born on someone else's birthday. Well obviously we are all born on someone else's birthday, but I mean someone very important in our lives... Aubrey on her Godmother's birthday, Lauren on my grandmother's birthday, Sasha on Andy's dad's birthday. So, the weeks surrounding November 26th look like this: Andy 11/12, Andy's grandma 11/19, Andy's mom 12/9 (or is it 12/10? crap, it's one of those days). So, what day will it be??? :-)

6w1d

2011-04-01T18:01:00.000-07:00

About a month ago we upgraded vehicles. My much-loved maxima had become the 'golden turd' and was no longer safe for our family. We found an awesome deal on a perfect sequoia (I went suv instead of minivan... too many monstrous trucks in Texas, I wanted to be as safe as possible). And I LOVE it. We were torn between the sequoia or a large sedan, and boy, am I glad we went for the sequoia.

Baby #4 (YIKES!!!) is on the way, due late November. We are really excited. We told everyone on April 1st (hahahaha), and Aubrey wasn't sure she should believe us. I don't blame her, but it took lots of convincing! Our other kiddos are spaced 3.5 years apart, Sasha and Baby will be less than 2.5 years apart... I'm nervous about that, but know it'll work out.

So far, I'm feeling okay - my fingers are crossed that I stay feeling okay! And I'm down 4lbs this week... odd, as I have no puking to attribute it to, but whatever.

hiatus???

2011-02-20T20:19:00.000-08:00

Obviously I'm not blogging much these days. Hopefully I'm taking a break, as I do enjoy it, and want to keep blogging. But these days it's just easier to leave the computer off and do other things, so that's what I'm doing. Other things.

Preschool - day-to-day work, plus planning the summer program, plus the weather + full moon have made the students crazy this week

Call Committee to find our church's new pastor

Chair of our "Commitment 2011" team at church (oops, how did I become Chair? Stinkin' Floating Hand Syndrome strikes again!)

wedding plans for someone dear to me

trying to figure out if Aubrey has a diagnose-able issue (seemingly severe lack of attention at lots of times) (ftr, I don't want her to need a diagnosis, but something is up, and if having a diagnosis will allow her to get some help, let's do it)

trying to pretend like I know how to keep a house sort of clean

planning our garden

house guests tomorrow - for a whole week

family drama caused by stupid relatives

girl scouts (no more cookies, though, thank God!)

dance class

play group - including the one that I'm hosting and need to prepare for

make a menu plan

feel guilty about all the eating out last week (which helps inspire the menu plan)

dramatic 8.5 yo drama, crazy 5 yo drama, 1.5 yo learning and practicing the drama

sleep deprivation due to mind-overload

So, basically, I'm just making my absence official. Because I like to be official. And hopefully I'll be back. Soon.

Today

2011-01-21T07:50:00.000-08:00

It's cold here. Like, don't let the geriatric cat outside 'cause he might die cold. And it's still 40' colder in Wisconsin, so I'm not complaining. Scratch that. My teeth aren't chattering as I complain. ;-)

I'm feeling very write-a-letter-ish lately, so I'm sending Great Aunt Alyce a note, and my cousin Bernard a card, and my girlies are sending notes to some Wisconsin friends.

I'm thinking about starting a blog about things my girlies say and do, for our family and friends. Mostly Lauren, because, well, she gives us the most material to work with, but it wouldn't be exclusively Lauren. And I know I share lots about the girls *when I do blog*, but I'm thinking a place just for the girls. And I'd need to make some rules, like to update it weekly or daily. Hmm, thinking about it.

Hey, I'm working on cookbooks for my niece and nephew (16 and 14), any basic, simple, beginning-cook recipes you'd like to share?

Laundry day today, and turkey dinner tonight. Awesome turkey dinner because I'm not making it. Judy's doing all the cooking, and bringing dinner to us tonight. She and her girls are joining us. Pretty sweet deal.

Sasha's been fighting a fever for a few days now. The worst part of her day is about 1am, when she's almost waking up, crying, can't get comfortable. It lasts for less than 10 minutes, so I'm not medicating her. But also, this short burst in the middle of the night is messing with mama's sleep. I may be napping today.

Yes, I steal blog ideas

2011-01-06T20:35:00.000-08:00

So, Emily, thanks for this idea. :-)

1 What did you do in 2010 that you’d never done before? Road trip TO Wisconsin with THREE girlies.

2 Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I don't think I did (if I could remember my resolutions, I'd tell you for sure), and yes.

3 Did anyone close to you give birth? A bunch of friends had babies.

4 Did anyone close to you die? Yes.

5 What countries did you visit? The good ole US of A.

6 What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010? Patience. And some me-time.

7 What dates from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Easter Sunday - the beginning of the end of the end of an era in my family (follow that? it was the day my Uncle Dick, the last of The Four, was found in his home, he died a few days later)

8 What was your biggest achievement of the year? Wrangling, I mean raising, 3 daughters. Still in process, but so far, so good.

9 What was your biggest failure? House work. I should just flunk out and hire a maid. As soon as my money tree spouts, that's what I'm doing!

10 Did you suffer illness or injury? Luckily, no.

11 What was the best thing you bought? White Mountain Bulgarian Yogurt. LOVE the stuff.

12 Whose behavior merited celebration? Aubrey's, Lauren's and Sasha's.

13 Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Aubrey's, Lauren's and Sasha's. ;-)

14 Where did most of your money go? bills and groceries. raw milk isn't cheap, but oh baby, is it good! (tasty AND good for you!)

15 What did you get really, really, really excited about? roadtrip to Wisconsin, Thanksgiving with the family

16 What song will always remind you of 2010? The House That Built Me by Miranda Lambert

17 Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? happier
b) thinner or fatter? thinner. marginally.
c) richer or poorer? umm, the same?

18 What do you wish you’d done more of? crafting

19 What do you wish you’d done less of? bitching

20 How did you spend Christmas? at home, just us. Christmas Eve we went out for Chinese buffet after church. Christmas day we made a big old turkey dinner.

21 Did you fall in love in 2010? Nope, but confirmed that when I did fall in love, I picked a winner!

22 What was your favorite TV program? The Middle

23 Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Hate is a really strong word. But the answer is no. No one new on my Hate List. ;-)

24 What was the best book you read? The Nicholas Flamel books

25 What was your greatest musical discovery? The Band Perry. "Lord make me a rainbow, I’ll shine down on my mother. She'll know I’m safe with you when she stands under my colors..."

26 What did you want and get? a haircut

27 What did you want and not get? a Sequoia

28 What was your favorite film of this year? Kick Ass

29 What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 30, my parents came to town and Andy made his fish fry.

30 What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? a million dollars

31 How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010? clean, if not wrinkle free

32 What kept you sane? deep breaths

33 Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Ellen

34 What political issue stirred you the most? a local school board thing. btw, Texas sucks in that regard.

35 Who did you miss? my sister, Colleen, Jaimie, Kim and my grandma

36 Who was the best new person you met? Judy. She's my TXBFF

37 Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2010. Sometimes you need to speak up. And I don't like being ignored.

38 Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
She grew up on a side of the road
Where church bells ring and strong love grows
She grew up good
She grew up slow
Like American Honey

Steady as a preacher
Free as a weed
Couldn't wait to get goin'
But wasn't quite ready to leave
So innocent, pure and sweet
American Honey

There's a wild, wild whisper
Blowin' in the wind
Callin' out my name like a long lost friend
Oh I miss those days as the years go by
Oh nothin's sweeter than summertime
And American Honey

Get caught in the race
Of this crazy life
Tryin' to be everything
Can make you lose your mind
I just want to go back in time
To American Honey, yeah

There's a wild, wild whisper
Blowin' in the wind
Callin' out my name like a long lost friend
Oh I miss those days as the years go by
Oh nothin's sweeter than summertime
And American Honey

Gone for so long now
Gotta get back to her somehow
To American Honey

Mmmm yea yea

Oh there's a wild, wild whisper
Blowin' in the wind
Callin' out my name like a long lost friend
Oh I miss those days as the years go by
Oh nothin's sweeter than summertime
And American Honey
(American Honey by Lady Antebellum)

holiday madness

2010-12-07T21:21:00.000-08:00

As soon as I flip the calender to December, the craft-madness begins. I really couldn't care less about black friday and crazy deals all over town on the coolest toys... just make sure Micheal's is open late for those inevitable craft emergencies. :-)

Veronica asked me if I'd be filling my etsy shop with more stars, so here's my answer... if I know you (you've commented here, or I've commented on your blog, or you know me beyond the computer...) I am happy to sell directly to you at a discounted price (cutting out etsy and paypal fees) plus, I'll ship to you for free* because, well, I love you. Send me an e-mail (rek4acre @ gmail DOT com) and we'll work it out.

If we don't have an established relationship, cyber or real life, please contact me through etsy and we'll work out details there.

I have about a dozen stars made right now that you can choose from, but I have to take pictures in the daylight first... lmk if you are interested, and I'll post pictures of my inventory. Also,I can make stars to order - pick your wire color (gold, silver, copper) and your bead color theme (endless possibilities, really).

Sound good? :-)

* I'll ship anywhere in the US, but only one address per order for free shipping.

2010-12-03T20:48:00.000-08:00

Andy's Grandma Dorothy turned 90 on November 19th, and while we couldn't afford to fly all of us out to Seattle, we were able to send me and Sasha. So Sasha LORRAINE got to meet Dorothy LORRAINE, and we had a blast. I got to meet so many of Andy's cousins that I had never met before. Sasha made people fall in love with her left and right. She's got skills, I tell you. I'm already bracing myself for the teenage years.

This is Missy, we've been facebooking for awhile, I was so excited to meet her!

The Birthday Girl loving on the Baby Girl.

My most favorite picture of Sasha. Ever.

All Saints' Day

2010-11-01T21:48:00.000-07:00

Today I was remembering this time last year, and wanted to share with you a beautiful part of my day November 1, 2009.

I sat at m y Grandma Marg's knees, as she lay in her hospital bed, with her in and out of knowing who I was, where she was, the year, or even the decade. I held her hands and, through my tears, I said the following prayer:

Almighty God, you have knit together your elect in one communion and fellowship in the mystical body of your Son Christ our Lord: Give us grace so to follow your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living, that we may come to those ineffable joys that you have prepared for those who truly love you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, in glory everlasting.

When I reached the end we said, "Amen." together, then she looked up and said, "There is a light up there." In all the wandering her mind did, in and out of time and reality, her faith never wavered. How beautiful! To forget who you are, but know that He is there, waiting for you - incredible

One of my favorite days ever. One I'd re-live a thousand times if I could.

coughity cough cough

2010-10-08T13:52:00.000-07:00

We've been coughing in this house since school started. On August 23rd. No longer sick, thankfully, but still coughing. Frustrating!

Oh, we may or may not be moving next summer. Cross-country. Again. Ugh. I'll keep you updated as I get real information, right now there is none.

And, if you've even wondered if a BlackBerry can swim, the answer is no. Sasha wanted to see how my phone would do in the dog water. It wasn't pretty. My service bar, that shows was network I'm in (3G, gsmt, etc.) actually said SOS. I kid you not. Had I not been so freaked out, I would've taken a picture. I'm pretty sure the SOS in this instance stands for Save Our Simcard.

Our family is growing!

2010-10-01T19:54:00.000-07:00

'why aren't you running away from me? how am I supposed to chase you if you don't run away?'

Another canine has been added to the mix I call my zoo! (Did you think I was going to say we were pregnant? Nope, no plans for that in the near future, quite possibly no plans for that ever again. But that's really a different subject altogether!)

JoJo (fka Sophie - it did not fit, and she did not answer to it), a 4 year old female boxer, came to live with us a week ago. She's not as mellow as Dasiy Mae, but Daisy Mae is eerily mellow, and JoJo has a much more dog-like personality. And, she and Daisy Mae have the same coloring. They could be twins. The twins like Arnie and Danny in the movie. Daisy Mae outweighs JoJo by about 20 pounds. And JoJo runs laps around Daisy Mae in the yard. That 20 pound gap will shrink some, I think, as Daisy Mae does some running!

Her previous family had too much going on, and needed to rehome her. I, apparently, don't have quite enough going on, so here we are, 1 mama, 1 daddy, 3 daughters, 3 cats, 2 canines. Oh, and the worms. I have my worms. I don't know how many, though. Maybe I'm a bad worm-mama.

Oh, and according to her previous family, she doesn't like cats. (because of that concern, she came over initially to see how she reacted, if she was not cool with the felines, she would've gone back for them to find a different home) Turns out JoJo and THEIR cat didn't get along. Might be because JoJo would chase their cat, and their cat would run. Mine looked at her like she was a mild annoyance, and mostly ignored her. After a week, she's figured out that it's okay, but her first few days here, she would try to get the cats to look at her, and it drove her crazy that they wouldn't. And the whole not running away from her thing, well that really freaked her out.

We're still adjusting to life with 2 dogs, but adjusting in a good way.

whiskey

2010-09-15T18:45:00.000-07:00

"Rain makes corn, corn makes whiskey, whiskey makes my baby feel a little frisky..."

Not only does Lauren sing along to this song, but it's her favorite song. With as often as we listen to it, I wouldn't be surprised if Sasha says 'whiskey' soon. ;-)

We are doing sign language with Sasha, and ohmy, it's awesome! I didn't do it with my other girls because, well, I just didn't. But we're doing it with Sasha, and an added bonus is that we are all learning sign language. Really, it's pretty amazing to watch your baby (she's 12 months old) tell you she wants to eat, or that she wants more of something, or that the cat is nearby. Cheese, milk/nurse, apple, banana. All words she's signing, plus some others.

And, on the preschool front, I am enjoying teaching preschool. The one year olds are tough, man. But they are cute, and fun. I'm enjoying this age more than I expected to. Mostly, I figure, because the one year olds, while they do need a schedule, need less of a curriculum than the older ones do, which fits in with my style pretty easily.

Last week I made blue jello (blue being the color of the unit, along with the shape being triangle, and the theme being Texas) that we played with. I plopped jello in front of each kid, and let them just do whatever. Sasha wasted no time in putting it to her mouth. Suffice it to say, Sasha ate more jello than her 6 other classmates combined. Anyway, one little boy did really get into smearing it around on the table, and the other kiddos poked at it, not really sure what to do. We'll be playing lots with different textures (great for brain development!) throughout the year - any ideas are welcome!

Oh, and I'm doing signs with them, too. Eat is the one that some of them have picked up on.

We're doing dance class again this year, and I'm so excited to see how the girls grow and change from last year. The owner of the studio is their teacher this year. They are in separate classes, back-to-back, and the owner teaches each one. I had no idea before we signed up, but I'm glad. I feel like we lucked out, because the owner has such a passion for teaching little ones to dance. I'm very curious to see how Aubrey does with her, as she's such a free spirit when it comes to dancing. Or, well, anything, actually, but with dance it's just more obvious.

Starting to make Thanksgiving travel plans, figuring out where we'll go (because it's always been Deming, and now that no one is in Deming, it's not the place anymore) and what we'll do, and who can come. Some folks aren't feeling up for a big family gathering, and while part of me understands it, another part of me is saddened. Dude, we're still family. Makes me feel like, for some of the family, the old folks were the glue, and now that they're gone, maybe some of my relatives think, 'What's the point in sticking together?" Really, it makes me sad.

Lauren Elizabeth has decided that maybe Lauren is not the name for her. So she's requested that we call her L.E. I love it, and if she really takes to being called L.E., would you have her write it as L.E. or as Ellie? But then, also, there's a girl in her class called Lizzie, and Lauren/L.E./Ellie now would like to be called Lizzie, too. Since her middle name is Elizabeth, it's not really a stretch, but she likes it because then 'There would be two Lizzies. Wouldn't that be great, mom?' Anyway, I'm cool with calling her L.E. Not too keen on Lizzie yet, because of the classmate. Eh, we'll see.

Oh, and one more thing, to make this post even more random, have you ever had kalbi? Man, on man, is that stuff good. Korean bbq short ribs. Judy got it all ready and brought it over for Andy to grill. Yum! If you are so inclined, I'm tagged in a note on facebook, the note being the recipe Judy used. I'd go copy it, except facebook isn't loading well tonight. Poop.

what's new, pussycat?

2010-08-29T10:11:00.000-07:00

whoa whoa whoa
~~~~

Yikes, summer was way too busy! And fall is looking to be just as busy, but at least there'll be the routine of school, preschool, dance class, girl scouts to help keep us in check.

Aubrey started 3rd grade last week. Lauren starts preschool Tuesday. And Sasha will be in my class this year at Lauren's preschool, as I'm the teacher with the one year olds. (btw, for these little ones, it's really a mom's day out program - one year old is way too young for preschool! but we'll be learning as we play!)

Oh, and Sasha turned one on the 22nd. Weird, the past year went by so quickly, but at the same time, I can't imagine life before Sasha, seems like she's always been here.

Sasha is almost walking, but that girl will climb. Anything. Crap. Seriously, we're in trouble. In her high chair, buckling her up doesn't work. She squirms her legs right out of the buckle, even when it's so tight it's nearly cutting blood flow. So she doesn't sit there to watch the world go by, she stands there to eat (that stink bug!) while I keep one hand on her and eat my food one handed. (unless it's one of her favorite foods AND she's really hungry AND she's in the right mood, then she might sit. For 3.2 minutes.)

I smell trouble

2010-08-28T21:48:00.000-07:00

I am about to gush over some food. Really, really unhealthy food, that should never be consumed. But it's just so dang good. Anyway, that's my warning, in case you need to just close this internet window and walk away. Go grab an apple or drink a glass of water. Because otherwise two things are likely to happen. First of all, you may hate me when the cravings kick in. And second, your keyboard may become sticky with all the drool.

Proceed at your own risk!!! ;-)

Back at Christmas time I got a cookbook. This cookbook. Because I read her blog. This blog. And she is funny. Freakin' hilarious.

Anyway, I had read rumors online about PW's cinnamon rolls. And I drooled all over the photos of them in her book. And then, for the sake of my thighs (and hips, and ass, and waist, and arms, and, well you get it) I blocked the recipe, and the fact that I had the recipe so close at hand, out of my mind. I was successful for 8 months.

But I was in the mood to bake something, and whined to Andy that I wanted to try these, but blahblahblah. And he said something to the effect of, "Well just do it. Just try it. Stop talking about it and decide that you'll do it." (I love to bake, but hesitate when recipes call for 9 cups of flour - you know it's gonna be a crapload of cinnamon rolls, and what if you screw up? Like really screw up and can't eat them at all? What a waste!)

So I halved the recipe. And right now, as I type, there are 23 sweet, cinnamon-y, perfectly delicious rolls sitting on my stove, waiting for breakfast. There should've been 24, but, for the sake of thorough research, I figured I should consume one hot. You know, it wouldn't be fair to not try one piping hot, with ooey, gooey frosting dripping off it. Because then I wouldn't know if they were suitable for serving warm, let alone serving at all. And, as it turns out, they aren't that good at all. Nope, not at all tasty. Not one of the most divine culinary creations I've ever enjoyed. Nope. Not at all. So I'll just make sure no one else in my house suffers through one of these tomorrow morning.

Too bad the house smells so heavenly, I don't think they'll buy it when I try to tell them the cinnamon rolls were a flop. ;-)

(and, for the sake of your hips, thighs, ass, waist and arms, I am intentionally NOT giving you a link to the recipe. I'm already toast, but I figure maybe I can save you from my destiny. But if you insist on checking it out, "pioneer woman cinnamon rolls" might be a good start on google.

itching (oh, and look, it's Tree Huggin' Tuesday - been too long, eh?)

2010-08-02T18:56:00.001-07:00

I've been feeling the craft itch, so I've been scratching it. And having so much fun doing so. And learning that my sewing skills might be pretty okay. Check out my latest fun - it's so super green, and so super cute, and so super easy! Reusable sandwich bags. I think I mentioned them earlier, but I know I didn't have a picture to share. Velcro, vinyl (or mylar - you can totally use a potato chip bag or some other silver-lined food bag - I had no idea until after I'd made these - talk about green!), scrap fabric, thread, sewing machine, basic knowledge of how to operate the machine. Oh, and scissors. Easy, peasy!

I'd say that Aubrey'll be the only kid in her school with reusable bags, but my friend Judy's daughter goes to the same school, and Judy's the Bubba to my Gump (or the peanut butter to my jelly, or the TweedleDee to my TweedleDum, or or or I think you get the idea), so Aubrey and Jacki will be the only two kids with reusable bags. Until their teachers and friends see how cool they are. Trendsetters, that's what we'll be calling Aubrey and Jacki. :-)

tripping down memory lane

2010-08-01T22:01:00.000-07:00

I've been tripping down memory lane this past few days. It all started when I happened upon a random stack of old photos. Like, high school and college old. So, not that old, but old.

There, in the middle of the stack, was my senior prom photo. I went with Jodie, a junior who attended del Norte hs. We were dating at the time, and though we were friends before and after, our 'dating phase' was just about two months long. But Jodie's the boy I think of as my high school boyfriend. The other boys I dated, I don't think of them as fondly. Not that I don't think of them fondly, but Jodie was extra awesome.

Anyway, I saw the photo, remembered how fun prom had been, and moved on with my day, not giving it a second thought. I didn't quite start tripping until the next day. When I got an e-mail from facebook that I had a friend request from Jodie. I had to laugh at the timing, because it had been years since I'd last seen that prom photo, and there was Jodie, wanting to be facebook friends.

So, now I keep remembering random adventures and crazy fun times. Oh, and as it turns out, Jodie is a talented, hilarious singer. Check out his music video if you want to laugh. And say, "eww!" at times. ;-)

Phew, look at all the dust and cobwebs in this blog!

2010-07-26T08:52:00.000-07:00

*a-choo* Hey, it' s been awhile!

We had a great trip 'up north' to Wisconsin, with stops in Oklahoma and Missouri along with way. Oh, I miss Wisconsin folks. We saw so many good friends, it was wonderful.

And then we had our oldest niece, Marcelle (16) stay with us for a week. More fun, and more craziness!

So now we've been trying to settle back into being us, and it feels good. Still busy and crazy, because that's life, but oh, it feels good to be back to normal.

And, in other news, I've opened a site on etsy. Right now I just have some stars there, but once I figure out some details on my beaded garland, I'd like to sell those, too. :-) Feels good to get my craft on, I have to say.
I also pulled out my sewing machine and made a reusable snack bag (think ziploc, but no trash!). I LOVE it! Need to play with it some and see how it works before I get too excited, but it's looking promising.

So, how's your summer going?

on the road again

2010-06-17T08:14:00.000-07:00

Just can't wait to get on the road again....

We (us chicks!) are making lists of what we'll be packing, because in T-minus-4-days we hit the road, headed for Wisconsin.

My family has strategically placed themselves every 6-7 hours apart, which is incredibly convenient for us chicks, so we'll spend Monday night in Tulsa,OK with my favorite uncle, Tuesday night near St. Louis with my bro-in-law, sis-in-law, and the girlies' cousins, and then Wednesday we'll be sleeping in Wisconsin. Oh, I can't wait! We'll be there through the 4th of July, then come back in time to celebrate someone's 8th birthday. Can't believe Aubrey's almost 8.

So, I may not be posting much while we're gone, but I haven't been posting much lately, anyway, so you won't even know I'm gone. :-)

all changed up

2010-06-16T08:11:00.002-07:00

a new title for my blog, even! the title is inspired by the way Aubrey signed her last letter to my sister, "love us chicks" - I love that, so I'm using it. Don't worry, she's been compensated for her creative inspiration. :-)

I couldn't crop my big old flower photo just right, so I'm living with the white border at the bottom and right.

Summer fun

2010-06-16T07:44:00.000-07:00

Summer break has been full of sticky, splashy, crazy fun so far, and it's only just begun!We've gone splashing at the splash parks several times each week, with one day hitting two different splash parks - that was quite a day! We're frequenting the library, keeping track of what we read and participating in the summer reading program.
We're watching our garden grow. It's growing really slowly in this intense heat. I don't blame it. I'm surprised it hasn't yet shriveled up into dust. We're jumping on the trampoline, when it's shaded. We're hanging clothes outside to dry. Ahh.
We're sitting in our kiddie pool. We're feeding the birds (there were 3 blue jays in the yard earlier this week - so, so cool!). We're watching baby deer following their mamas.
But most of all, amid all the doings, we are just being. Being together. Being silly. Being sweet. Being loud. Being creative. And eating watermelon. Lots and lots of watermelon.

(by the way, I think watermelon photographs really well, don't you?)

under construction

2010-06-07T14:14:00.000-07:00

I feel like changing things up on my blog, and I got started, but it's not doing what I want, and I've got dinner to make, sprinklers to run in, and diapers to change, so sorry about the mess.... it'll get fixed (specifically, the header picture - need to find a new one I like that I can make fit right!).

Oh, and a proud mama moment - Aubrey said to me, in the middle of doing jumping jacks and pull-ups, "Mommy, the healthier I am, the happier I am!" She figured that one out all on her own, at age 7. She's a smart cookie, I tell ya! :-)

another year older

2010-06-05T20:44:00.000-07:00

Last week I celebrated my golden birthday, and I'm excited to be beginning my fourth decade. :-)

My big birthday gift is a chicken coop. Don't have it yet, but it should be done when we get back from our Wisconsin trip, then I'll get me some hens!

And, once that happens, instead of paying to go to the zoo, I might just start selling tickets for people to come to our zoo! But I've been thinking about chickens for awhile, and I am very excited.

In other news, Andy (and the laptop) were in Arizona for 5 days. Andy (and the laptop) got back today. Andy (and the laptop) were sorely missed. Andy keeps asking if I'm done on the computer. I keep saying "almost," all the while thinking, 'dude, 5 days without the computer. f i v e d a y s. I've got some catching up to do. Oh, and honey, I missed you, too. I promise.' No really, I missed Andy much, much more than I missed the computer, of course. And I'm glad they are both back. :-)

check out how the wind is blowing Aubrey's hair. And how the wind ain't doing a thing to Lauren's 'fluffy bun.' Mama and the hairspray developed a very close relationship on recital day.

And here is Aubrey not dancing. Silly girl, cute costume.

If it worked, here's one of Lauren's recital performances. She's watching her teacher off stage, even though she knows the dance, and I'm pretty sure she was told "stay on the orange X."

maybe I wish it wasn't the weekend

2010-05-21T19:29:00.000-07:00

aren't weekends supposed to be when you relax? they should be. but when 2 little girls have a dance recital on Saturday, and company comes next weekend, and there's end-of-the-school-year goings on, and I'm subbing both Tuesday and Thursday next week (that I need to prep for), we'll be lucky to get a load of diapers washed, let alone sit and relax for a few hours.

oh, and I suppose the recital could be a bit relaxing, except I have helium hand syndrome. Ever heard of it? It's where, whenever some group needs a volunteer, those that suffer from hhs cannot keep from raising that hand. So I am stage mama for both of my daughter's classes. Not just one class, but both. Because the girls are in different recitals. The powers that be think it's good for siblings to watch siblings perform. They work really hard to make sure that big sis can watch little sis, and vice versa. so, we will be at the college auditorium at 9:45, for Lauren's 10am recital, ready for Aubrey's 2pm recital. and, if they pass out surveys about the recitals, you can bet I'll be letting them know that ONE recital would be less stressful for those parents (grandparents, doting aunts) that have more then one child performing. fortunately, there's no cost to watch the recital. unfortunately, they sell dvd's. $36 a pop. $72 if I want each of their recitals. ha. hahaha.

blogging cut short... whining 4 year old is having a meltdown....

I was like a kid

2010-05-21T08:58:00.000-07:00

and it was like the candy store.

albeit a small candy store. but still.

~~~~~~

Saturday was the start of the book sale at the library. All childrens books $0.50 a piece.

The sale was scheduled to begin at 9am, when the library opened. I had $20 to spend on books for Lauren's preschool. Another $20 of my money, for books for us.

There was no way I was gonna miss out on the best of the best of the fifty-cent books, so I was there at 8:45. And the parking lot was empty. Did I get my days wrong? Does the sale start on a different day? Why on earth are there not hoards of people?

The sign was still up on the door, announcing that it did, in fact, begin that day. So I walked around the block. And another block. And marvelled that the little coffee shop downtown isn't open on Saturdays. Of course, downtown was pretty dead, so maybe it makes sense that they are closed Saturdays. But I would've gone in and gotten some tea, had they been open.

Then I went and sat outside at the library. at 8:58 another lady arrives, and she just stands by the door. I join her. There's an employee on the inside looking at us. I ask Other Lady if she's there for the book sale. Nope, just there to use the computer. There's a book sale, huh? Umm, HELLO!!!

Finally they open the doors. I beeline for the children's section. It's pretty small, but I'm not discouraged. I am the only one there. seriously? Well I'm not complaining, but seriously? Maybe 10 minutes in, with my stack 10 inches high, a friend (who I told about the sale, thankyouverymuch) arrives. I keep adding books to my stacks - now there are two, each about 10 inches high.

Finally, at about 9:30, a few more people wander in. And see me add to my piles. "Ma'am, are these books you have set aside?" "Yes, those are mine." Had we both actually said what we were thinking, I think it would have gone more like this: "Ma'am, are ALL these books set aside? Really, you are buying ALL THESE books? Umm, don't you think you should leave some for the rest of us?" "Yes, those are mine. Book sales are serious events. Next time you better be here at 9. Don't you dare touch my piles, I bite."

But, as the crowd grew (to, umm, 5), I felt a bit self concious that my stacks were so high. So I left with 42 books. 25 for the preschool, and 17 for us. Never fear, though, I went back Monday and got 15 more for the preschool, and 1 more for us.

And, when we were at the library for story time on Wednesday, I didn't even let myself walk over near the sale shelves. I have incredible restraint, loads of will power. Just don't tell me about a book sale ever again.

in response

2010-05-19T20:46:00.000-07:00

April asked a question on her blog, and while she posed the question on her blog, I felt like I could better articulate my answer here, instead of as a comment, so here goes. (Her question is here, the brief version is "What makes you, you?" - but deep down, not on the surface.)

***** the short answer *****

Luck, determination, and awareness - or a lack of any of the above - make people who they are.

***** the long answer *****

So, jumping in, feet first... recently I ran across an article (can't find it, sorry!) that said, pretty much, so long as your child knows she is loved, your parenting style is not going to make (or break) her... as a very conscientious parent, I let out a big ol' breath when I read that. Because there's always a little voice, "Could you have handled that differently?" (that's the little voice on a nice day - my little voice has said worse at times!)

I had a conversation with my sister a month ago, and we really became aware of how 'normal' we are. Not just her and I, but some of our cousins. And we talked about the biggest factor seemed to be that we all knew we were really, really loved. Not just by mama. Not just by mom and dad. But also by our extended family of aunts and uncles, grand parents, great aunts and uncles. No matter the crap life has thrown at us, there's always been this group of allies/defenders/protectors (By no means is that the cure-all, but, to us, it seems like one possibility).

From the outside looking in, my childhood seemed pretty great. And it was good, but it definately looked better than it was. The way my parents communicated (or didn't communicate) was all I knew. Looking back, I think it was an unhappy marraige painted over to look happy. Though there was (and is) obviously love there. And you could argue that with dad being a cop, working crazy shifts, communication was hard. Understood. One parent was very quick to find fault in whatever the other parent did or didn't do, treating the other like they were incompetent. Luckily I began to recognize this, and early in my relationship with Andy, told him about this pattern that I was afraid I might inadvertantly copy. Didn't realize this before it kinda became habit to treat 'incompetent parent' the way other parent had. Broke that habit, fortunately, but it was tough. As for Andy and I, well this habit creeped in periodically, and since Andy and I were woth aware of it, nipped it in the bud quickly. Oh, and for the record, my parents seemed to have figured out their patterns and habits, and things are much better balanced then when I was a kid.

Kids are resiliant. Really, really resiliant. I'm sure some of my habits and quirks just happened, but others, I know, I got from my dad (a serious concern for others well-being, to the point of doing whatever I can to get involved) or my mom (a big ol' case of wallflower syndrome). That's fun, btw, the internal battle between wanting to jump right in and *invite a stranger to dinner because I know they need a meal* versus *smile and walk away, and maybe I won't have to figure out what to talk about with this stranger - it might get uncomfortable.*

And, a whole 'nother set of my habits and quirks are because I saw the way someone (usually a parent, sometimes a grandparent or aunt/uncle) in my life was and I either liked that trait or didn't like it, and chose (rather subconsciously, I think) to act accordingly.

So, what makes a good person, good?

As for friends who's home life was less than good, one friend comes to mind, and she turned out good, overcame some potentially big barriers. But guess what. She had love. A crazy mom, crazier grandma, physically absent dad, a whole host of aunts and uncles. And for all the craziness, she knew she was loved, and protected, and wanted. A healthy dose of self esteem, some close friendships were also thrown in the mix.

On the flip side, what makes a bad person, bad?

I'm speculating here, that someone not realizing they are loved (because Lord knows there are bad people whose parents did the best they could and really, really love their children) might be enticed to do bad things, as would, more obviously, someone who really wasn't loved as they should have been. Abused, neglected, forgotten - how easy to fall into patterns of selfish, distructive behavior if you know no other way.

So, I guess the short answer is, luck, determination, and awareness - or a lack of any of the above - make people who they are.

**** and, for the heck of it, the fun, not so deep answer ****

My mom's patience and brains (passed down from both her parents), my dad's compassion and generosity (passed down from his mother), my Papa Ross's case of the always right, never wrongs, Grandpa John's silliness and constant desire to learn about things, Grandma Marg's faith, Grandma Ruthie's crazy craftiness, Great-Grandma Susie's craftiness, Great-Aunt Ibby's Sure, use more glitter! attitude, Great-Aunt Alyce's grace and love of letters, Great-Aunt Mary Jane's love of books, Tio's desire to take care of the world, and the joy of baking, which cannot be credited to any one person. Those are just some of the things that make me, me :-)

"Taylor the Latte Boy"

2010-05-13T21:35:00.000-07:00

Have you heard this song? It's been around, but I haven't heard it until recently. Oh it cracks me up. I think I love Kristin Chenoweth. "Who'd have thought love could be so caffeinated?" hahahaha

Did I mention my bruised tailbone? It's been bruised for, oh, 2 months now. I have no idea how I bruised it, and it hurts all the time. Makes me feel bad for people with chronic pain, because this is mild, and really, it's not all the time. Just whenever I go to get up from sitting, or re-situate myself while sitting. Getting out of the car after a long drive sucks. Royally.

I've lost count of how many people have told me Sasha looks like a doll. Really, some have thought I was one of those ladies who carries around the life-like dolls. I have no problem with people choosing to do that - it doesn't hurt me, and if it makes them happy, then so be it. But, I happen to bring a real baby shopping. And, I have to wonder how many people think I'm one of those and that Sasha is one of those and they see us in passing and don't say a thing. Maybe all the grins I get from other shoppers are the, "Oh my, look at that lady, bringing a doll to the store, treating it like a baby. Just smile and keep walking. KEEP WALKING!" grins, versus your normal, everyday "Hello!" grin. Hmm. I'll never smile back at a fellow shopper the same again. ;-)

I've been readingThe Secrets of The Immortal Nicholas Flamel, and I like them! Classified as "teen fantasy." And I was about to tell you that it's a series of 3, but I was wrong. It's a series of 6, the 4th of which comes out later this month. Crapola. Because I thought I was about to finish the 3rd and be done. I hate reading series as they are released. Drove me crazy with Harry Potter. Driving me crazy with Nora Roberts' Bride Quartet. Loved that I didn't read Twilight until this past fall - I was able to read the entire series in a months' time. Anyway, back to the books. I was drawn in by "Nicholas Flamel" - he was in Harry Potter. And he really did exist. And, apparently, his grave is empty. Sophie and Josh are twins that turn out to have some awesome powers. When they meet up with Flamel, they then end up meeting all sorts of cool, famous people throughout history (really, most of the characters did exist) that some way or another became immortal and have been living among us all these centuries (or decades, or millenia). Lots of destruction, mythical and mystical creatures, glowing auras. I'm enjoying it more than I thought I would. But crap, I have to exercise my patience in finishing this series.

2010-05-12T06:18:00.000-07:00

My internet conection is having a bad day. Crappiness. Hopefully it's worked the kinks out, it's annoying to have to reconnect every few minutes.

I've been slipping into crappy mood, by the way. Nothing to do with internet connectivity. I'm pretty sure it has to do with human connectivity. I don't have many friends here yet, and the ones I do have are not very close friends. Yet. I'm working on it. In the mean time, I've been the crappy, snippy version of myself lately. Deep breaths. It will get better.

And, I really, really miss my Wisconsin friends (in part, for sure, due to the lack of close friendships here). So the girls and I will spend a week or two up there this summer. I am very excited. I have a mental list of who we'll see, what we'll do. Need to make sure the most important folks will be around, and coordinate where to sleep when. :-) This completely scraps my plans for a west coast-ish wild and crazy roadtrip. And I'm cool with that. Wisconsin is the place both Aubrey and Lauren remember as home, so I want to keep them connected to that place and 'our people' there.

And, on the Sashafront, that girl is crawling everywhere. Everywhere. But she doesn't really like being on her knees, so it's an interesting scootish crawl, using her feet almost as much as her knees. She finally likes food, but it took over 8 months. And Cheerios. I delayed and delayed introducing a grain, for health reasons, but as soon as I gave in and gave her a Cheerio, now she's much more intrigued by food of any kind.

Oh, and the peaches. Millions of peaches. Peaches for me. Millions of peaches. Peaches for free. (Sorry, couldn't resist) The drive up into Aubrey's school parking lot is lined on one side with peach trees. We picked some of the yummiest, juiciest peaches I've ever had Saturday, and may go pick more again.

This weekend I'll be getting my composting worms. I'm very excited. Am I crazy to be excited about getting worms? Don't answer that. Anyway, they'll live in a big rubbermaid bin on the patio, and will be well fed, eating almost all our kitchen scraps. I heare they also like junk mail... so we'll try that, too. :-)

fill in the blanks

2010-05-06T18:30:00.000-07:00

i want a maid.
i can't get enough plum walnut yogurt.
i think batteries are a very wasteful necessity.
i think it's annoying to be asked "why" 6 times in a row, when I can no longer elaborate the answer.
i'm not sure i like swiss chard, but I'm gonna try it.
i'm hungry for some girlfriend time.
for cinco de mayo I looked at the calender, and said, "Oh, that's today, huh?"
i'm mad at the dog that thinks treats are buried in the litter box.
i'm glad that we've been able to camp so much recently (another trip this weekend!).
i'm nervous about sharing my blog with too many people.
i have long hair.
i need to find a yoga class.
i wish I could sit outside with my Wisconsin friends, talking about noyhing.
i'm excited to be making friends here in Texas.
i'm happy that the crafty bug hit me in time to make gifts for the grandmas and grandma figures this mothers day.

now you fill in the blanks. unless you already have. :-)

trying to find my groove

2010-05-06T05:32:00.000-07:00

I want to be back to blogging, but I'm still drawing blanks as to what to blog about. So I'll try, and it may be a bunch of ramblings, but I want to get back into blogging somewhat frequently.

Our garden is going strong. It's small, but it's going strong. 3 whiskey barrels, plus a handful of medium pots, and one spot actually on the ground.

What's growing:

1 yellow bell pepper
1 yellow pear tomato
1 large red tomato
1 unidentified tomato
2 strawberries
1 watermelon hill (with 2 watermelon hills not sprouting at all - arg!)
3 cucumbers
5 green beans
lemon balm
sage
rosemary
dill

And, in recent weeks I've also planted:

2 petunias - sugar daddy petunias that Lauren just calls sugar daddies :-)
1 red geranium
1 lavender (not the herbal variety, just a plant called lavender)
1 jasmine
1 lobelia
1 rose bush
1 pecan tree

I'm having lots of fun in the dirt, and I hope that my thumb is somewhat green - right now it's too early to tell. But there are actual tomatoes growing on the vines now - good sign. :-)

One of our favorite foods here recently has been bean salad. It makes my heart swell when the girls want to take bean salad in their lunches. And, I am a dork. But I've worked really hard to make sure our kids like a variety of healthy foods, so it makes me feel good. Oh, and this batch of bean salad - all made from dried beans. I normally open up cans, but I had the dry beans in the pantry so I went for it. Is it silly that I was feeling intimidated by cooking dry beans?

Oh crap, I keep forgetting to get or do something for Aubrey's teacher for teacher appreciation week. crap crap crap.

But, we did do some crafting for Mother's Day. :-) Two super cute, easy-peasy projects that I'm hoping the grandmas will love. Painted towels and clay thumbprint pendants (only, instead of making pendants, we made window charms). Unfortunately, in my haste to get them mailed off, I forgot to take pictures. For the towels - some were floral, very similar to the example shown, and others had Aubrey's handprints, Lauren's handprints and Sasha's footprints. LOVE those! I need to make some of those for me. :-)

mmmmm yogurt

2010-04-30T14:55:00.001-07:00

I love yogurt. well, today I love yogurt. it's one of those foods that I go back and forth on, because sometimes the texture just gets to me. but today I love yogurt.

have you checked out how much sugar is in a little container of yogurt, though? too much, I think. plus, well, you may guess that I don't like all the little plastic containers, either. I have issues. it's well documented.

so, my favorite treat these days starts with plain yogurt. here I can get fairly local (woohoo!) plain yogurt in a big glass (yipee!) jar. add in a spoonful of plum jam and a handful (or sometimes two) of walnuts. oh it's heavenly. and, since I control how much of what goes in, I've cut the sugar by more than half!

lauren's favorite yogurt is plain with a handful of chocolate chips. I know, chocolate chips = sugar. but, again, mama decides how many chips go in. sugar content there reduced by about half, depending on how generous I'm feeling with the chips.

the dog and cats like it plain. well, actually, they like it any way they can get it. good thing it's good for them, too?

by the way, Aubrey and Daddy are camping with girl scouts this weekend, it's yogurt for dinner tonight.

the house(s) that built me

2010-04-30T05:59:00.000-07:00

Miranda Lambert has a song, The House that Built Me, that makes me cry every time I hear it. I could play it 12 times in a row and I'd cry 12 times in a row.

I grew up in Albuquerque. My parents are still in the house they bought about a month before I was born. Albuquerque is home, always will be. But it's not my only childhood home. The houses that comprised what we affectionately called "the compound" in Deming are my other home. 75 years ago my great grandparents bought a large brick home on about half an acre - for $1,500. When my grandparents married, my greatgrandparents gave them half their land, and a modest home, the plan for which was advertised in Better Homes & Gardens, was built.

My mom and her 4 siblings lived here, with mom & dad, grandmother & grandfather, Uncle Dick and often Aunt Mary Jane. Can you imagine being raised by so many loving people? Always someone around to help with whatever you needed, listen to your story, read you a book, tease you about your crush.

Anyway, my memories of these houses go throughout my childhood. Playing on the stairs as a little kid, with my older cousin humoring us. In the kitchen in the small house, making cream puffs with my grandma. The swing Grandpa John always hung on the pecan tree out back, and the patch of ground where the grass n olonger grew because we wore it away as we swung.

The neighbor's wisteria that hung over the alley, always in full bloom when Ali and I would spend spring break there without our parents. The spring break of my junior year of high school, making construction paper buttons to campaign for student body vp. Mary Jane's basil for Mary Jane's pesto.

It's where I learned to ride my bike. And where I learned to drive.

Playing 'house' with Ali and my younger cousin, Rebecca, upstairs in the old apartments. Decorating the Thanksgiving table with pilgrim and indian candles - candles that were probably bought for a dime 60 years ago, and that we never, ever light. Wearing over-turned buckets on our heads to protect from falling pecans as we gather the nuts our uncles shake from the trees.

But the front porch, oh the front porch - endless hours playing with Ali and Rebecca. The front porch was a pizzeria. A dance studio. A bakery. An upscale restaurant. An ice cream shop. Mostly, a place for sitting and dreaming and teasing and imagining.

Since I was a kid, I've always cried on the drive out of Deming, hoping that I was going to see everyone again. Driving out of Deming after Dick's service, I cried a more final cry. I didn't know which way to drive out of town - which route to take - because I couldn't decide what I needed one last look at. The large brick home is still in the family, but the smaller one was sold. I don't know how long the brick one will remain, but I'm not sure that it matters - I don't know that I want to start building different memories there. And I think I'm not alone in that thought.

When we went to spread Dick's ashes at the homestead, the same place Mary Jane's ashes were spread in December, I could feel their presence. Not just Dick and Mary Jane, but also Marg and Jimmy, and my Grandpa John who died 4 years ago. They were gathered there, celebrating.

The day after we spread ashes, Sasha was baptized in the church I was baptized in. The church my mom and her siblings were baptized in. The church my grandparents were married in. And I felt their presence there, again. Very powerfully.

I'm sure I'll be in Deming again, if there's anything the family needs to do to finish clearing out the house. But that chapter has effectively ended. No more 4th of July gatherings, fireworks in the driveway. No more Thanksgiving meals prepared in the 2 kitchens, with 30 people bowing their heads as Uncle Dick says prayer. I'm curious where our family is headed. We are incredibly close when we are together, but don't communicate much the rest of the year. Something we are working on.

green hat

2010-04-10T12:00:00.000-07:00

I love this green hat. Because it keeps my head warm when I'm sleeping on our campouts. But mostly, really, because it's cute. And soft. And green. Aubrey summed up camping perfectly this morning, "This is the life!" I agree!

I hope you are having a relaxing, enjoyable weekend!

Fly away home

2010-04-07T07:05:00.000-07:00

Tio passed away this morning. In his sleep, peacefully. Part of me knows God's Plan is perfect, that His reasons are good. But that doesn't make it easier. And I'm left wondering His reasons - though it's not my place to know and I know that.

I'm not upset that Tio passed away. It's what happens. He had 80 years here on earth, a good life. There's just been so much death so close together, and the pain of 4 siblings dying within 5 months of eachother, well it burns.

So I'm praying this morning. Taking deep breaths. And remembering Tio.

random-random-random

2010-04-05T14:08:00.000-07:00

the 3 cleanest girls around.... for about 5 minutes. :-)

Awhile back I mentioned the sweet little boy we met at the park, who chatted and chatted and chatted to me. Upon learning that we both visit Deming, he asked if I knew Louisa. Yup. It's for sure now. I know his Louisa. Or he knows my Louisa. Whatever. It's a small world.

Louisa is a very dear friend to Tio, my great uncle. The last remaining siblilng of my Grandma Marg's. Tio is in the hospital right now. Dehydration, pneumonia, congestive heart failure. I'm preparing myself to go out there, but not loading up the car just yet. We'll see how he's doing over the next few days.

Our next camping trip is this weekend. I'm excited. Our goal is to camp every other weekend until it's too hot. We're gonna be expert campers, I tell ya! Or maybe not. It might get too dang hot here in Central Texas mid-May. ;-)

I'm going to be a preschool teacher next year. At Lauren's school. There's a room with one year olds - looks like I'll be in that room with Sasha.

Our new cat has been tough to name. So we've had him almost 2 months, and this week he's Frankie. But last week he wasn't. Sheesh. It shouldn't be this hard. At least the cat doesn't care what we call him.

I took my car in for an oil change today, and had the mechanic check on a few things. $400 later, my oil's been changed, and some problems that should have been noticed a year ago (when I dropped a crap load of cash at our Wisconsin mechanic's feet) were that much worse and have now been fixed. Ah well. Such is life.

Aubrey slammed a stuck bathroom door into her foot, breaking her pinky toe. Ouch. The brusing and swelling has been impressive.

Sasha thinks it's hilarious when Lauren runs screaming at her. Laurens loves running and screaming, so it works out.

The Easter Bunny was very generous to us this year. Maybe a twinge of sadness (when realizing that EVERY Easter of Aubrey's life, and Lauren's, had been spent with our WI family) prompted the shopping spree at the candy store. But chocolate covered gummy bears, candy legos and "Indoor Truffles," along with half the rest of the candy store, have been enjoyed.

I just read Fortune's Daughter by Alice Hoffman. It's been on my bookshelf for years. I have no idea how it came to live on my bookshelf, and I finally read it. It was really good.

We've been working on the garden lately. Most of it is in whiskey barrels. I have 3 barrels. It's a modest garden. But, it's a garden. Now I need to work up the courage to start vermicomposting.

Sasha's first camping trip

2010-03-27T13:45:00.001-07:00

We are camping this weekend. And hoping to do lots of camping this year. So far, so good. The nearly full moon and howling, gusty winds made it hard to fall asleep, but I slept hard, as did everyone else.

Chilling for a bit. It's a rare occassion that Aubrey will read to Lauren unprompted - melts my heart every time I see it.
The view from our tent. Ahhh.

Here's 'home' for the weekend.

It was C.O.L.D. this morning. Brrr. It is still March, so I won't complain about the chilly morning, just brrrrrrrrr.

And, of course, we have comedic relief whenever Little Miss Lauren opens her mouth. Today's gem, "Haha, I got my weenie wet!"

I hope you are having a great weekend. There'll be more pictures later. :-)

recipes

2010-03-15T13:33:00.000-07:00

Do you have a collection of recipes? If so, how do you keep them?

Andy and I each have our own favorites, and for a long time we each had a seperate binder, but now that we've been together long enough that we think this relationship will last, we've decided our recipes could comingle. Kind of. ;-) More like, we needed a small binder for a different project, and had a huge 3-incher itching to be used, so we decided to combine them. Sort of.

When the binder is right side up, Andy's recipes (all typed in Times New Roman 11pt) greet you, alphabetically, of course. Each recipe is in it's own sheet protector. When the binder is turned over and around, my recipes greet you. Still in the sheet protectors (that is really stinkin' smart!), but mine lack the anal retentive flair Andy's possess. Some of mine are hand-written. Some of mine are photo-copied. Some of mine are falling apart, after having spent years in my Great-Aunt Ibby's cookbook. Alphabetical order is out the window. And, some of mine, *gasp* share their sheet protector with another recipe or two. Shh, don't tell Andy's recipes. They may not take well to hearing how their neighbors live.

Most of our recipes have also made it to the computer (well, all of Andy's, seeing as they are all typed), and many also have a home in our e-mails. That's proven helpful many a times, when we've been visiting family and the in-laws want my cobbler, or my cousin requests that Andy make his pumpkin pie. Sure, we could (and do!) find substitute recipes online, but the recipes that we've saved are the ones that we've used again and again, and that we know work for us.

And today I'll be adding another recipe to my side of the binder. Granola bars. Oh my. You should try these. Really, you should. :-)

ah, the library

2010-03-10T12:01:00.000-08:00

I love the library!

We try to go every Wednesday for storytime (skipped today, though, because of an awful cough that hasn't yet gone away).

I logged on to the library today to renew a book, and I learned that so far, in 2010, I've saved $294 by borrowing rather than buying. At this rate, I'll save $1200 for the year. That justifies a shopping spree, don't you think? ;-)

The book I renewed is Michael Pollan's The Botany of Desire. Interesting stuff. And now I want to learn more about the real Johnny Appleseed. (When googling the book to create the link, I learned that pbs made a documentary based on the book. Have I told you lately that I love pbs?)

What are you reading?

and about the angels

2010-03-08T10:52:00.000-08:00

We've all been fighting a cold... lots of coughing going on around here.

Friday night Andy, Sasha & I were laying in bed, watching a movie. (Inglorious Basterds - we loved it)

Andy started coughing, and couldn't stop, so he got up, hoping that he could clear out. He couldn't. He kept coughing, not doing much breathing.

Then he fell. Backwards. Stiff as a board, didn't bend his knees, twist around to try to stop his fall, nothing. All 240-ish pounds. Boom.

He blacked out. Didn't know he had fallen until he saw me, above him, with panic written all over my face.

He is fine, thank God. His head hit the side of the bed, scraping his neck along the bed frame. If he had fallen a few inches closer to the bed, I'm afraid he could've broken his neck. If he'd fallen a few inches farther from the bed, his head would've broken his fall.

The scariest moment of my life. I feel really lucky that I can say that, seeing as he's fine. (In lots of pain, bruised up a bit, but fine)

Tomato Soup

2010-03-08T10:30:00.000-08:00

I love making soup, but have always been intimidated by tomato soup. And, honestly, I still am, in that I'm not ready to make it from tomatoes I pluck from the vine. But Rachael Ray, man, I love her. You know that, so long as you have the ingredients, you'll be able to make one of her recipes. Or, I know that I can, and feel like most people could, because she's very good at sharing easy, quick, real recipes.

Here's her recipe, with my modifications in bold parens:

2 (15-ounce) containers, chicken or vegetable stock/broth (preferred brand: Kitchen Basics) (30 ounces chicken broth, made from water and Better Than Boullion chicken base)
1 (28-ounce) can concentrated crushed tomatoes (organic crushed tomatoes - I couldn't find concentrated)
1 cup heavy cream
Coarse salt and black pepper

Fresh basil for garnish (I left off the basil only because I didn't have any)

Directions:
Combine broth and tomatoes in a medium saucepan over moderate heat. When soup bubbles, stir in heavy cream and reduce heat to low. Season with a little salt and pepper and simmer gently 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. With an immersion blender, puree soup. Serve bowls of soup with basil chiffonade and floating soup toppers (grated provolone, a bit of freshly ground pepper - delish!).

This soup is simple, easy, and so tasty. The flavor is more mild than Campbell's, but that doesn't mean there isn't depth of flavor. It means that there's no high fructose corn syrup. Looking at reviews, folks have switched the cream for lower fat options and have enjoyed the results.

Andy used the immersion blender just a bit, so there are some tiny bites of tomato, I love it like this. And, you could do this with a regular blender, just use your patience, as you'll be working with HOT soup.

blessings

2010-03-08T10:19:00.001-08:00

#59 ~ homemade tomato soup. This soup is so yummy, it deserves it's own post.. I'll work on that.

#60 ~ long walks around the neighborhood.

#61 ~ nice old men (anyone, really, but most rececntly it's been an older gentleman) who talk to us on said walks around the neighborhood.

#62 ~ teensy, tiny wildflowers just emerging, reminding us that spring will be here soon.

#63 ~ angels watching over us (this deserves it's own post, as well... I'm on it).

#64 ~ book fairs. Oh my, I'd spend $100 before blinking if I knew Andy would never know. Good thing he's around to keep my feet on the ground - or close to it!

#65 ~ cucumber-lemon water. So refreshing and calming.

#66 ~ SmartDogs Synergy flip flop slippers - super duper comfy, I go everywhere in mine. And, ~$16 at Sam's Club (different style than the link).

blahblahblah

2010-03-06T11:27:00.000-08:00

My middle child is pretty much fearless. Not even a dash of shy, except when I am trying to introduce her to someone. She just began really talking with anyone nearby. Really talking, to anyone. About anything.

It all starts with, "I'm Lauren." If we are grocery shopping and there are busy people bustling around who don't have time to talk, that's where the conversation ends. And then approximately 2 seconds later, as another passerby passes her way, "Hi, I'm Lauren." "I'm Lauren." "I'm Lauren."

If a kind stranger has a moment, they will indulge Lauren with conversation, and as their reward for indulging her, they will learn that she is 4, and will remain 4 for forty more days. That Lauren is spelled L-A-U-R-E-N (this comes in especially when someone has mis-heard her and calls her Lori or Laura). That her baby sister is called Hotdog, or Sprinkles, or sometimes Sasha. That Aubrey is in 2nd grade. That Daddy is at work. That Mommy's name is Rachel. That we have a new cat named Skippyjon. That Daisy finished Lauren's breakfast when Lauren wasn't looking. That Oscar is a fat old cat. That Haley is crazy. That the moon was out this morning with the sun. That this is her new outfit, and that she wore it yesterday and the day before that. That pink is her favorite color and she loves Spiderman. That she has an Ariel puzzle. Oh, and the man in Batman's suit is not Bruce Wayne, but Charlie Lawlson.

It's dizzying. But maybe not, because she is 4, has a bit of a lisp and is missing her two front teeth, so it sounds more like: "blablahblahfourblahblahblahL-A-U-R-E-NblahblahblahHotdogblahblahblahsecondblahblahblahDaddyblah blahblahMommyblahblahblahcatblahblahblahbreakfastblahblahblahfat old catblahblahblahsunblahblahblahoutfitblahblahblahpinkblahblahblah spider manblahblahblahAriel puzzleblahblahblahBatmanblahblahblah."

Hmm, no, it's dizzying either way. Anyway, we went to the park today, and a little boy, maybe 9 years old, thought I looked like the kind of person who would listen and indulge him in his tales. So I learned all about the channel Animal Planet, and all the shows that he loves on that channel, and I got to watch him act out his favorites. And his aunt lives in Deming (where my Tio lives) and do I maybe know a lady that goes by Louisa there? Yes, I do, it sounds like it might be the same one (the one with the baby bison). And he used to have chickens, but they belong in the country, you know, so he doesn't have them anymore, but at the feed store they were selling baby chicks and they were this big, and others were this big. And on and on. He was very sweet, and I'm pretty sure that's how adult strangers view Lauren.

Lauren's growing up so darn fast

2010-03-05T13:54:00.000-08:00

"Look, mom, now I'm a man!"

the beard suits her, don't you think?

it's easier to just stick my tongue out next to her than photoshop a grin on her face. plan on seeing many pictures of my tongue in the future, because this girl is having way too much fun with the "stick your tongue out when you see a camera" phase. Except, of course, when she's all bearded up and manly.

this girl, though, will grin. it may be goofy, but she'll grin.

see, goofy. and Skippyjon. after a literary character we love.

the way Aubrey ended a postcard to her aunt. Love us chicks. I LOVE it!

and what's a post without a picture of Sasha Belle? she and Oscar are becoming the best of friends.

In a two day period, 3 friends had babies. 2 girls, 1 boy. Plus, our new neighbors have a 9 day old boy. When I mentioned that to Andy, he thought maybe I was getting baby fever. I don't know where he's been the past 7 1/2 years, my baby fever does not kick in while I still have a babe in diapers... we've got some time.

Marinara sauce is on the stove, the house is smelling so yummy! Andy wasn't here to make it so I got to put carrots in. I would've also added chopped spinach, but I'm out. Instead we'll have steamed green beans next to our spaghetti.

Happy weekending!

blessings

2010-03-01T10:39:00.000-08:00

#49 ~ books that make my girls want to read more and more

#50 ~ new friendships growing deeper

#51 ~ a t.v. free week

#52 ~ in-laws that are going out of their way to bring me stuff from my Grandma's

#53 ~ taco night

#54 ~ lap cats

#55 ~ seed catalogs inspiring big plans

#56 ~ girl scout cookies

#57 ~ playdough

#58 ~ great-aunts that write letters

My March 1st Resolution

2010-03-01T10:07:00.000-08:00

I commented to Andy last night that the past few times I've talked with my mom, she's been a little off. I joked that maybe she wasn't enjoying what I was talking about.

Andy replies with, "Well you do complain an awful lot. Maybe she's tired of hearing you complain."

My gut reaction was denial, then I wanted to (but didn't) say, "WTH??? How dare you say something like that!"

But after a deep breath, I knew that he spoke the truth, because Andy is incapable of lying. Seriously. Never ask him if your new jeans make you look skinny, or how he likes your new haircut (*ahem* he teased someone for close to a decade that her forehead was huge, she went and got bangs, and he said, "eh, you look better without bangs."). He's not trying to be mean, or even funny. He can't help it.

Anyway, so I'm resolving to be more positive, and complain less.

No way

2010-02-24T11:51:00.000-08:00

It snowed here!

While you may have been lead to believe that I hate snow, I don't. It only appeared that way because winter in Wisconsin is way too long.

In Texas, snow is great. GREAT. Because it melts. Quickly.

We got 3 1/2 inches. School closed early. Built a snowman.* Had a snowball fight. School started late this a.m., which was completely unnecessary, but much appreciated! And, as I type this, I can see my grassy lawn.

*Mr. Snowman was apparently poorly constructed. While waiting for Aubrey to grab a carrot from the fridge, he tipped right over.

lazy sunday

2010-02-21T11:52:00.000-08:00

Ugh, I'm sick. Again. Seems like I was just sick. Anyway, Andy's been really sweet, taking care of the girls and letting me rest as much as I can. He took Aubrey and Lauren to sonic for lunch today, while Sasha and I slept. He asked if I wanted anything. I said, with a hint of duh in my voice, strawberry limeade. Bless his heart, he must not follow my blog very faithfully. He came home with cherry limeade. Not bad, by any means, and I am really enjoying it. But it ain't strawberry limeade. :-)

I'm mentally planning a grand roadtrip for the summer. Me, my mother-in-law, and 3 girlies. We want to visit all the old folks we can, and stop to see younger ones along the way. Maybe detour out of the way to see some younger ones, as well, but we'll see. If we could do my dream roadtrip, we'd be stopping in or driving through TX, NM, AZ, CA, NV, ID, OR, WA, MT, WY, UT, CO. 6,500 miles - just destination to destination - that doesn't include sight-seeing miles. We would see upwards of 30 relatives, and have opportunities to see lots of friends. Kind of dizzying, but boy, it'd be a blast. A summer full of memories. I can't even begin to calculate how long we'd be gone.

Potstickers for dinner tonight. Not the frozen ones, but homemade. I can't wait!

Jamie Oliver's TED Prize wish: Teach every child about food | Video on TED.com

2010-02-20T09:23:00.000-08:00

A must-see. Brought me to tears.

Jamie Oliver's TED Prize wish: Teach every child about food Video on TED.com

It especially got to me when the children thought that a beet was celery, and an eggplant was a pear. So very sad.

Healthy Kids

2010-02-19T08:16:00.000-08:00

So, I am working on a 4 day curriculum on healthy foods for Lauren's preschool. I'm laying all my ideas out there so that I can remember them, and so that you can give me feedback and ideas, if you so choose. :-) The youngest kids are almost 2, the oldest just turned 5, and thye are divided into classes by age. And really, I'd appreciate hearing your ideas and suggestions.

Food Pyramid Project (FPP)
- The FPP for the littlest ones will be about identifying foods as fruits, veggies, meats, grains. Maybe some big cut outs that they sort.
- there will be a collage project with the older ones cutting out from grocery store sales flyers, gluing items into their group.

Healthy Snack Day
- this curriculum will coincide with the Mother's Day Tea - we'll ask parents to help their child pick one of their favorite healthy snacks to bring and share. There will be no cookies/cupcakes/sugary punch.

Thank You Card craft
- the kids will decorate a pre-printed card that says something to the effect of, "Thank you, ________ (we'll hand-write mom or dad or grandpa, etc.) for all the healthy foods you feed me! I am growing up happy and strong, developing good habits that will stick with me for life!"

Leafy Comparison
- we'll bring in varieties of lettuces and other leafy greens, and let the kids compare the shapes, sizes, colors, tastes

Some songs and poems:

Peanut Sitting on A Railroad Track - song

A peanut sat on a railroad track
His heart was all aflutter (pat hand over heart.)
Around the bend came number ten, (hold up ten fingers).
Choo-Choo Peanut Butter (pretend you are pulling whistle.)
Smack (clap hands together).

I Eat My Peas With Honey - poem

I eat my peas with honey;
I’ve done it all my life.
It makes them taste funny,
But it keeps them on the knife.

Little Carrots - sung to "Ten Little Indians"

One little, two little, thre little carrots
Four little, five little, six little carrotts
Seven little, eight little, nine little carrots
Ten carrots in the garden plot.

(this can be sung with different veggies, too)

Some books to read:

The Little Red Hen
Feast for Ten
I Will Never Not Ever Eat a Tomato
A Bad Case of Stripes
The Berenstain Bears and Too Much Junk Food

Hopefully I can also post some info for parents, with healthy snack ideas, hints about encouraging eating veggies, etc.

Bee mine

2010-02-14T14:05:00.000-08:00

This year our Valentine's got honey sticks. Disguised as inchworms, "Inching along to wish you a very Happy Valentine's Day!" Or delivering a heart, "You're a honey!"

Hallmark doesn't make much off of us this time of year, but we like making it fun for the girlies. So we've got red heart garland (made from red Christmas wrap) strung up on the wall, along with assorted school crafts. Fun stuff!

I hope you are enjoying your loved ones today!

the never ending list

2010-02-10T05:12:00.000-08:00

today my to-do list seems rather intimidating. so instead of tackling it just yet, I'll bolog about it, spend some time on facebook, maybe e-mail my sister, you know, all the important things. :-)

- finish cutting and hole-punching inch worms for the girls' v-day cards

- make Lauren's birthday banner

- type up minutes from the last preschool board meeting

- get to library to return books (hopefully in time to enjoy story time)

- sweep and mop

- dust the blinds and other rarely-dusted things

- run dishwasher, empty dishwasher

- draw up plans for Lauren's cake - make sure we have all necessary ingredients

Really, the list isn't that bad. Because I'm not going to dust. And there's a 99% chance I won't sweep or mop. But I am really hesitant to start on Lauren's banner. I have what I need, I know what I'm doing, but I've never done it before. So I'm unsure. And since I'm unsure on one item on my list, my whole day is looking crazy. C.R.A.Z.Y.

In addition, I'm grieving another death in the family - Grandma's brother Jimmy passed away over the weekend. That's 3 out of 4 of those siblings dead in 3 months. More C.R.A.Z.Y. (and I mean no disrespect by only mentioning in passing about Jimmy dying - I'm only trying to preserve my sanity, as there's been too much death too quickly.)

And did I mention we got our new cat? He's black, and all the 2 leggeds in the house love him. The 4 leggeds are coming around. He remains nameless, because Lauren's suggestions of "Blackey Raisin" and "Snowflake" were vetoed. Along with my perfectly acceptable suggestions of "Morris" and "Dante," and Andy's suggestion of "Casey" (that one sounds too much like Daisy and the dog was getting confused) and Aubrey's suggestion of "Ed." We're tossing around "Felix" and "Merlin."

I've come to realize

2010-02-05T19:37:00.000-08:00

I copied this from April. Because I'm not feeling especially creative here in blogland. :-)

1. I've come to realize that my chest-size...isn't all that important, so long as I can feed my baby.

2. I've come to realize that my job...is the best job in the world.

3. I've come to realize that when I'm driving alone...something must be going on. That just doesn't happen.

4. I've come to realize that I need...to take me time more often.

5.I've come to realize that I have lost...

6. I've come to realize that I hate it when...I yell at the girls, but I still do it.

7. I've come to realize that if I'm drunk...I must be having a nightmare. I do not like alcohol.

8. I've come to realize that money...is a good thing to have enough of, but it doesn't make the world go round.

9. I've come to realize that certain people...are in my life only temporarily, others are here to stay, but that they all are in my life for a reason.

10. I've come to realize that I'll always...wonder, "what if?"

11. I've come to realize that my sibling...is awesome. Completely awesome.

12. I've come to realize that my mom...will always be here for me.

13. I've come to realize that my cell phone...can be ignored.

14. I came to realize when I woke up this morning...that I forgot to get Aubrey's folder ready for school.

15. I came to realize last night before I went to sleep...that I was getting to bed at a decent time, and I liked it.

16. I've come to realize that right now I am thinking...wow, I really need to mop. Maybe tomorrow.

17. I've come to realize that my dad...is cooler than I thought.

18. I've come to realize that when I get on Facebook...I have lots of fun catching up with folks.

19. I've come to realize that today...was a good day.

20. I've come to realize that tonight...could be a fun night

.21. I've come to realize that tomorrow...it's all up to me.

22. I've come to realize that I really want...to live self-sufficiently.

23. I've come to realize that the person most likely to respond to this is...n/a.

24. I've come to realize that life...is perfect. In a very chaotic, hectic, non-perfect way. :-)

25. I've come to realize that this weekend...could be relaxing. Or not... it is all up to me!

26. I've realized the best music to listen to when I am upset...Sugarland - Life in a Northern Town.

27. I've come to realize that friends...are sometimes so much more than friends. There needs to be another word.

28. I've come to realize that this year...is full of opportunities.

29. I've come to realize that my ex...was incredibly immature.

30. I've come to realize that maybe I should...throw away all the sugar in my house, because cutting back just ain't cutting it!

31. I've come to realize that when I love...I am loved back.

32. I've come to realize that I don't understand...intolerance.

33. I've come to realize my past...brought me here today.

34. I've come to realize that parties...need pinatas.

35. I've come to realize that I'm totally terrified...of one of my daughters dying.

36. I've come to realize that my life...is blessed.

Happy Groundhog Day!

2010-02-02T08:20:00.000-08:00

So Puxatawney Phil tells us there'll be another 6 weeks of winter, and he's only right 40% of the time? That works for me, bring on the spring!

The National Parks: America's Best Idea makes me want to load up the car and hit the road. And then I remember that there are so many beautiful places to see beyond National Parks. Especially if we can get away from all the concrete and asphalt. So once my sniffles subside, we're going to Miller Springs Nature Center - less than 10 miles away - all I need to pack are water bottles and snacks. Well, maybe a diaper, too.

Andy bought Food, Inc. and Food Rules last week, and we're both a bit more inspired, now.

Have you seen Food, Inc.? Must-see, if you haven't yet. It's good to know where your food comes from. And the family that really can't see how to afford broccoli and pears, so they hit a drive through? So very sad.

Food Rules is exactly that. Rules about food. Some rules are elaborated with a few paragraphs. Other rules need no elaboration. Like my favorite, Rule #20 -

It's not food if it arrived through the window of your car.

That's not to say I'll never go to sonic again, but, you know, I'll try to keep in mind that much of what will come in that brown paper sack is, as author Michael Pollan calls it, edible foodlike substances, and decidedly not food.

I'm working on a nutrition curriculum to bring to Lauren's preschool - one that will involve parents. I subbed there last week, and the lunches some of the one year olds were eating, it made me so sad. The Director is saddened, too. So we'll see what happens.

Tree Huggin' Tuesday

2010-02-02T08:06:00.000-08:00

S'cuse me, I hab a cowd. *sniffle* *sniffle* *aaa-aaaa-chooooooo*

So I'm taking it easy today, carrying my dedicated hanky* wherever I go. Not a box of tissues to be found. And, sneezes loud enough to wake the baby. And the neighbor's baby.

*it's not an official hanky - it's a kitchen towel that no one else will be touching today, and it will be well washed before it dries another dish. :-)

ah, it's friday

2010-01-22T08:27:00.000-08:00

Today Jillian Michaels kicked my butt. I am so out of shape, but I'm working on it. Luckily Sasha napped and let me do the complete abs workout today. Some days I don't even get through the 5 minute jogging-in-place warm up. And other days I don't even turn on the wii. I will be jello in approximately 7 1/2 minutes. I can feel it coming on.

Morning snack today is a smoothie. orange-celery-banana with a dash of cinnamon and brewer's yeast. yummy. I should do this every day. Or at least every other day. Definitely a nice post-Jillian Michael's butt kicking snack. :-)

Tree Huggin' Tuesday

2010-01-19T10:50:00.000-08:00

TakeOutWithOut

This is something I need to work on (*ahem* sonic strawberry limeade). Because, really, there are only so many things you can do with those styrofoam containers in the name of re-use.

I've got a cabinet full of pyrex lidded containers, as well as tupperware, of course... I bet you do, too. ;-) Also, there's room in my purse for a couple of cloth napkins wrapped around my own silverware.

EnviroRambo said it better than I am.... so read this, if you have a minute.

fog

2010-01-15T14:31:00.000-08:00

I'm in a fog. Ugh, no me gusta!

This week we made a menu, and stuck with it really well. Got next week's menu made today. I love that. So much less stress that way. Now if I could somehow convince myself to do something similar with housework (Mondays = clean the floors, Tuesdays = launder the bedding, etc.).

Oh, and I answered sonic's call this afternoon, and am enjoying a Route 44 strawberry limeade as I type. If I'm going to eco-sin, might as well super-size it, right? ;-)

Have you read the children's book, Flat Stanley? I have not, but we want to now. Our friend Sydney in Wisconsin read it in school, and she and her classmates each made a Flat Stanley to mail to a friend with an assignment: take Flat Stanley on an adventure (take pictures, collect brochures, etc.) and return Flat Stanley with notes of his adventure. Hopefully tomorrow will be nice and sunny so that we can have some outdoor adventures.

It's raining, it's pouring, the old man is snoring..... and I want the sunshine, dangit!

One other thing - did I tell you Aubrey's Christmas Tree adventure? At my folks' house, my girls were sleeping on the living room floor with my sister. All in a row - Aubrey, Ali, Lauren. In the middle of the night Ali awakes to a crash. The Christmas Tree had fallen over. On top of Aubrey. Aubrey never woke up. When Ali hollered, "Mommy (we each still call our mom Mommy at times)! The tree fell on Aubrey!" my mom kept right on sleeping, while I bolted out of bed. The tree shifted in the stand just enough that it was never going to stand again, so we rotated the heaviest Christmas Tree ever* so that it would lean into the wall, not onto my oldest. After we got the tree situated, and confirmed that Aubrey was in fact still breathing (how can you sleep through that? she was buried by tree!), we discovered the ornaments that had found their way underneath Aubrey. So weird. No explanation for the falling tree.

*well maybe not the heaviest, but it was really, really heavy.

anyway, happy Friday. I hope your weekend is grand.

What the?

2010-01-14T21:16:00.000-08:00

That's what I say, an awful lot. "What the?" or sometimes it's "What the hay?"

I didn't realized I said it so much until Lauren said, "What the?" At least I don't add assorted naughty words at the end. :-)

~~~

I love Conan. I'm kinda lukewarm on Jay. This whole mess makes me love Conan even more. Like Jay even less. And maybe that isn't fair, because maybe Jay is as much at the mercy of the Powers That Be as Conan is. But I can't help it.

~~~

I've been watching very little coverage on the earthquake, because I've got little eyes all around, and I don't want them to see too much. Also, I cry every time I think about the tragedy. I'm praying that everyone that is hurting may find comfort and peace, and that aid is quick and overflowing.

~~~

Tomorrow I may venture down to Austin. I 'm dying to find a true health food store, not a GNC-like vitamin store. As much as I LOVE small town life, there are some serious drawbacks.

~~~

I just started reading The Jungle Effect. So far, so good. I'm very intrigued.

~~~

Tonight we had eggs benedict for dinner. Followed up by lava cake for dessert. Mistake-o-rama, let me tell you. Too much richness, I have a belly ache. But atleast there's no lava cake left to make me sick tomorrow. :-) (We also had green beans and cantaloupe - some healthy food!)

~~~

I gave Andy so much grieve about him wanting to buy The Hangover, but I love that movie. It's hilarious. Not as vulgar as I expected. On a related note, one of Andy's long time friends said, "When I watched that movie, I kept thinking about Andy." Andy did not take that as a compliment. I laughed. And said a little prayer of thanks that he's grown up a lot.

beat 'em or join 'em?

2010-01-12T06:16:00.001-08:00

So, do we buy a minivan or suv? We aren't in the market this week, or this month. Maybe later this year. So, go for the more environmentally friendly minivan, or the safer suv?*

That's one of the problems with being environmentally aware. I'm leaning towards suv because of the safety factor. But then there's guilt, because I know our chances of being in an accidnet are pretty slim. Oy.

We aren't in the market any time soon - we're doing fine with what we have for the time being. I'm just dreaming. And feeling guilty about dreaming of a gas guzzler.

THAT's frustrating. I can't turn off my environmental awareness. Some days I just want to turn it off. But I can't. Or, I can, but as soon as I turn it back on (involuntarily, I might add) I feel bad about whatever I did while it was off. Sonic strawberry limeade in a big ol' styrofoam cup, anyone? What about Taco Bell in their handy-dandy plastic bags? Roadtrips are the worst for this, but it happens often enough without roadtripping, too.

Ugh. Now I want a strawberry limeade, but feel guilty about wanting a strawberry limeade. I'm a dork. Such a dork.

Anyway, what would (or did) you do? minivan or suv?

*to explain, in case you don't know... we are a family of 5. Most of the time we don't all 5 of us go out, but on the rare occassion that we do, we currently take 2 cars. We roadtrip a fair amount (the girls and I - we let Andy stay home and work, aren't we sweet like that? ;-) )

Tree Huggin' Tuesday

2010-01-12T02:57:00.000-08:00

dispose the disposables

easy as it sounds... try to reduce your use of disposables. you can bring your own travel mug to starbucks, buy a loose bunch of carrots to peel, cut and put in portion-size reusable containers (instead of buying individual serving size bags of baby carrots), give cloth diapers a try, keep a real plate and silverware at work for lunches.

pretty much any time you drop something in the trash, ask yourself if you needed it to begin with. kleenex? a hanky would work well in most cases. a paper towel to wipe up that drip of coffee? how 'bout a washcloth instead.

Happy Huggin'!
Rachel

blessings

2010-01-11T14:05:00.000-08:00

#42 ~ gingerbread house kits on clearance. we're gonna have some fun tonight!

#43 ~ Twinnings Lady Grey tea. I know I've mentioned it before, I'll try to not mention it again.

#44 ~ tabletop centerpieces created by 3 year olds. our current centerpiece is a pewter goblet holding clearance candycanes (nick jr, of course!) and two pheasant feathers. one of a kind, no doubt!

#45 ~ homemade split pea soup.

#46 ~ my nest planner. one of the things I asked for for Christmas. so far I love it. this week's menu is in there, along with the grocery list. and some crafty ideas, and a lofty to do list (mostly invloving the crafty ideas). :-)

#47 ~ $0.44 avocados.

#48 ~ my church. as Dorothy once said, "There's no place like home."

wassup?

2010-01-09T19:21:00.001-08:00

Ever want to blog, but just not know what to blog about? That's me. So, here's a jumble of crap. I mean, here are some wonderful insights and stories. Yeah, insights and stories.

Sasha spent the last week raspberry-ing all the time. It's so cute and fun. I love it. But tonight she entered the scream at an ungodly high pitch phase. NOT cute and fun, especially when she's cuddled up next to your ear.

Lauren is watching Star Wars, at her request. Return of the Jedi. She's loving it. Oh, and her new favorite song to sing is Yankee Doodle. THAT is cute. Much cuter than screaming "Buttman" all around the house. Thank you, Bart Simpson.

Aubrey is spending the night at a friend's house. Ahh, the quiet.... :-)

I want another feline. I need another feline. Not necessarily a kitten, but a shelter cat. I'm browsing craigslist (though really, I want a shelter cat). And, today at the bank, in the middle of shopping malls galore - not a residential area, there was a cat, sitting in the sun. I approached him very carefully, but he ran into the storm drain. Really, though, I know we can afford another pet, and there are so many cats (and dogs and other animals, I know) that need loving homes. Now I just need to convince Andy that he needs another cat.

I pulled my sewing machine out and made some cloth wipes. Just in time, 'cause, you know, Sasha is almost 5 months old. I have loads of excuses, by the way, for why it's taken me this long. Of course, I think I'm the only one really concerned, so I'll apologize to myself for the procrastination, and I'm sure myself will forgive me. I think so, at least.

All our Christmas decorations are still up. Maybe tomorrow they'll come down. Maybe not.

I recently got a blackberry. One of the cool features is that if you hold down the 'a' button, it capitalizes. Know what happens when I try that on the computer? 'aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.' I think I've been spending too much time on my blackberry lately!

Andy just bought the winning lottery ticket. I know it's the winner because I told him he could only buy it if it was the winner. So we're golden. ;-)

I LOVE LOVE LOVE my pressure cooker. Tonight we did short ribs, in beef broth. Freakishly tender. Mmmmm. Andy said that any food we eat tomorrow will be a letdown. I can't disagree.

Kettlecorn is some tasty stuff. Sam's Club sells Popcorn, Indiana brand kettlecorn. Popcorn, Indiana is based in New Jersey. And I might complain about the misleading name, but ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhmyyyyyyyyyyyyyy, this stuff is too tasty to care where it is made.

Hey, did you read this article about HM Clothing and Wal-Mart destroying and tossing clothes that didn't sell? So many people could benefit from those ruined-and-tossed-away clothes. Not to mention the waste. It kinda makes me sick. And sad.

Now, to keep my hand from finding it's way into the bag of kettlecorn again, I'm off to make a cup of decaf Lady Grey. My current favorite tea. Oh how I love hot tea weather.

toodles,
Rachel

PS - Lauren grew tired of Star Wars, now it's Tom & Jerry.

more and more and more blessings

2010-01-06T12:04:00.000-08:00

#33 ~ Sasha's raspberry concerts, performed several times a day.

#34 ~ my car, that safely carried us 1500-ish miles in the last 16 days.

#35 ~ my sister-in-law, Dolores. I've always liked her, but getting to spend so much time with her, I really got to know her better. She does such an amazing job taking care of her family, and she helped me fold clothes. That may sound petty and inconsequential, and, in the big picture, it is. But I HATE folding laundry. HATE it. And I know hate is a strong word, but seriously, anyone who wants to fold my laundry is on my WOOHOO I LOVE YOU list, regardless of anything else they do or don't do. (psst - think Andy would fold all the laundry if he never had to do the litter box again? I think I'll find out!)

#36 ~ old friends. I was able to have breakfast with my childhood best friend, after 11 years of not seeing her. It was great. She's great. And, a peanut butter malt at Owl Cafe is part of a healthy breakfast. Right? Right?!?

#37 ~ neighbors. Our neighbors, my in-laws' neighbors, my parents' neighbors. There are some awesome neighbors out there.

#38 ~ New Year's Eve parades. Especially the homemade variety. 6 of us paraded up my parents' street, blowing horns, clanging wind chimes, puffing train whistles, and streaming homemade streamers. With a blue moon lighting the way. perfection.

#39 ~ tea parties with far away cousins, using Great Aunt Ibby's hand painted china. more perfection.

#40 ~ Grandma Marg's piano sitting in my mom's living room, being gently (and not so gently) pounded on. And, my mom's beautiful piano playing amid the pounding. pa-rum-pum-pum-BANG-rum-pum-BLAM-pum-BANGBANGBANG

#41 ~ my camera.

happy new year!

2010-01-05T10:46:00.000-08:00

I'm back. We were in New Mexico for Christmas and New Year's. Spent lots of time with lots of relatives. Ate almost enough green chile.

Exhausted my brain such that I can't think of a tree huggin' tip to share. So I'm hoping you can share a tip with me. Please? :-)

Tree Huggin' Tuesday

2009-12-22T08:19:00.000-08:00

So, even though you wrapped all your gifts in reusable grocery bags and the like, *wink, wink* I am sure some of the gifts you will be opening are in paper. Cute paper. So now you get to give that cute paper a second life and make winter decorations. Snowflakes, to be exact. Remember making them in school? I love making snowflakes. It's such a quick, easy, gratifying project. And I'm such a dork. We know that. We work with what we've got. :-)

Just cut square-ish pieces of paper from your pile of used wrapping paper. any size. Last year I made a snowflake that was ~2 feet in diameter. (That was virgin wrapping paper, never wrapped a present at all. In my green defense, it was the last bit on the roll, and I knew we were moving - I was not going to move 2 square feet of wrapping paper. Instead it decorated our glass door until Valentine's Day.) I also made really small ones, and all sizes in between (with the used wrapping paper, of course).

Fold up and cut like you do with normal, computer paper-white paper. Then tape in your windows (walls, mirrors, etc.) and enjoy. Last year our windows were adorned with such a mix-match of different papers, it turned out so cute. And Aubrey really enjoyed helping make them. Lauren helped as much as she could. Andy might've even made a few. I don't remember.

This year (we won't be home at Christmas time) I'll be folding up pieces of wrapping paper and stashing them in my suitcase, for a snowflake making extravaganza when we get home!

Okay, and this green tip is kind of a stretch. I know that. But it is really fun to make them, and, seriously, the patterned wrapping paper turns out such cute snowflakes. So much cuter than boring old white paper. I'll never go back.

Happy Flakin'!!!

Rachel

blessings 5

2009-12-17T15:17:00.001-08:00

#30 ~ being able to stay home with my girls. It's been almost painfully obviouis how blessed I am that I can do this the past few months... up and drive to NM to visit a dying Grandmother without a thought... make it to every school performance, no matter how small... coordinate class parties, and not have to miss work to attend said parties... along with getting to spend my days cuddling with Baby Sasha, reading to and playing with Lauren and taxi-ing Aubrey to and fro.

#31 ~ Andy's fish fry. My hubby can fry, really well. Might explain, just a bit, why I need to lose some weight, huh?

#32 ~ Valvoline Instant Oil Change. When they say instant, they mean instant. awesome.

Tree Huggin' Tuesday

2009-12-15T07:52:00.000-08:00

gift wrapping

some of the gifts we are giving this year are going in reusable grocery bags.

most stores seem to have their own logo on affordable bags, and there are also some cute, cute ones out there.

I got one with the UNM Lobos logo on it, for my mother-in-law's UNM sweatshirt. And I got a cute one from Petsmart for Andy's work gift exchange (no pets in that bag, but a popcorn bowl, bag of kettlecorn and board game).

Michael's has some cute ones. I know because I've walked past them each of the 3,642 times I've been to Michael's the past two weeks. :-)

The presentation is very different, and I won't be wrapping every gift in reusable bags, but if using gift bags is your M.O., then switching a few paper ones for cloth would be an easy switch. And, unless you have a basement full of old gift bags (reusing those is, of course, super green), the cost will be comparable - maybe even more affordable for the cloth bags!

Happy Wrappin',

Rachel

more blessings

2009-12-14T06:37:00.000-08:00

So now that I am conciously thinking of my blessings, it's painfully obvious that I am not always as nice as I could be. It's very tempting to be sarcastic, but that's really not what I want to accomplish in acknowledging my blessings, so I'm reminding myself to take deep breaths. Also, sometimes it's hard to think of my blessings... all the more reason to do this, I think!

#23 ~ Great Grandmother Kailey's sugar cookie recipe, as recorded by Grandma Ruthie in our family cookbook. My new favorite sugar cookie recipe, with just a touch of family history.

#24 ~ Aubrey's honesty. Without hesitation that girl will tell me that my belly is kind of fat. Granted, that's not what I want to hear, but it's undeniable all the same. But she also tells me when my jeans make me look skinny. Also, she raved about the above sugar cookies, "What did you put in these, mom, they are GREAT!" (the answer was vanilla, by the way, it's not some secret, obscure ingredient)

#25 ~ Our cat Oscar. As I type this, he is filling in as 'warm body' next to Sasha.... she's still asleep and I get to be up, moving around. Or sitting down, blogging. But you know what I mean. :-)

#26 ~ Andy's co-workers and their families that we are getting to know better and better.

#27 ~ my creativity. I know there are others out there way more creative than I, but I *love* making pretty things, it makes me feel good.

#28 ~ church breakfast potlucks. Yum.

#29 ~ wii boxing

crafting and creating

2009-12-08T22:01:00.000-08:00

I really wish I could bottle up all my Christmastime craftiness and creativity, to tap into the whole rest of the year! Seems like I'm overflowing with ideas right now.

Last year Emily posted about her 12 Days of Christmas tradition, and I thought it seemed like such a cool idea, so I copied it. Sort of. It's mostly unrecognizable except for the 12 Days part. Because I wasn't feeling creative enough, didn't have enough money or enouh time, to actually represent the 12 Days (a partridge in a pear tree, two turtle doves, etc.). But, today I am packaging up 12 little boxes and tins, each with some goodies inside, to send to my Grandma's brother, Tio Dick. I decided at Thanksgiving/Marg's funeral that I would send some cheer his way, and then, WHAMOO, his other sister, Mary Jane up and died, within a month of Grandma Marg dying. So, a box full of cheer is most definitely in order!

I bought $1 boxes and tins at Michael's, and I love them. They are so stinkin' cute. Paired with simple tags I made, I really like the way they turned out. If only every thing could be so cute! Each box cost less than $2 to fill... a mini slinky, a ceramic bird ornament, Reece's peanut butter bells, mini candy canes, a few cookies... you get the idea.

AND, I've been making ornaments. I made some very similar to these a few years ago, but this year I added beads. The jury is still out, what do you think?

Tree Huggin' Tuesday

2009-12-08T01:40:00.000-08:00

Cleaning Supplies

My favorite cleaning supplies are baking soda and vinegar. If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you probably aren't suprised. :-) This started mostly because the chemical smell of commercial cleaning products induces headaches and drives me mad, but, coincidentally, it's the greener option, as well. Fewer chemicals being washed down the drain to mess with water-living creatures and plants = one happy Mama Earth.

A spray bottle with diluted vinegar does great work on windows, counters, bathtubs (any hard surface), baking soda is great for scrubbing grime and gook, as well as eliminating odors.

Happy Huggin'
Rachel

(ps - sorry I didn't post last week, I have no good excuse)

T.R.O.U.B.L.E.

2009-12-07T20:00:00.000-08:00

Yup, I am in trouble. I've found a recipe that would've been best left unfound, as far as my hips, tush and belly are concerned.

I have a bad habit of collecting recipes, so when there were *free* recipe cards on the candy aisle at Target, I didn't stand a chance. Each card features a chocolate mint recipe. It doesn't matter that we really don't like mint all that much in our house, the recipe cards were *free*. I took a card for each of the recipes.

Andy saw the card for the mint chocolate delights, and said, with no hesitation, "Let's make these, but with peanut butter chips instead of the dark chocolate and mint chips." I should've said no. I should've run the other way with my hands over my ears. I should not have gone to Sam's Club (of all places, seriously?) to buy a 12 pound bag* of peanut butter chips, along with 4 pounds** of butter.

These cookies are amazing. Whoever it was that first put peanut butter with chocolate, well she (or he) should be named a saint. Or burned at the stake. I don't know.

Here's the recipe:

Peanut Butter Chocolate Delights

2 cups all-purpose flour

2/3 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 sticks butter, softened

2/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

2 cups peanut butter chips

Preheat oven to 325'. Combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl, set aside. Beat butter, sugars and vanilla in mixer until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually add flour mixture. Stir in chips. Using your cookie scoop (if you are crazy like me and need your cookies to be uniform) or just two regular table spoons, place onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-13 minutes. Cool on sheets for ~2 minutes, then remove to cooling rack or directly to mouth (watch for burning pb chips!). I would love to give you a suggestion as to how best to store these, but eat them all at once, as fast as you can, with milk! really isn't a proper storage method. :-)

*that may be an exaggeration, but the bag is way too big for normal purposes. again, Sam's Club? seriously, Rachel?

** not an exaggeration

No Knead Bread

2009-12-07T08:37:00.000-08:00

Seems like there are recipes for this all over the place these days. Here's my version, which originated from MEN's recent article.

7 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ tablespoons yeast
1 tablespoon salt (or to taste)
4 cups lukewarm water (approx. 100 degrees)

Combine the dry ingredients. Mix with water until everything is uniformly moist. The dough should be wet and loose enough to conform to the shape of its container. Let rise for at least 2 hours, so that it begins to collapse. Refrigerate overnight (or at least 3 hours). DO NOT PUNCH THE DOUGH. As much as you may want to punch it, you need the gas that punching it will release. Resist the temptation!

On baking day, dust the dough with just enough flour that you can grab a grapefruit-sized ball (or really, whatever size you want). Plop said dough on a floured mat (I use my cutting board) and let it rest for about 90 minutes.
30 minutes before you want to bake your loaf, turn your oven to 450’. Make sure your cookie sheet (or pizza stone) is in the oven during the preheat – you want it nice and toasty warm. When your 30 minutes is up, slide your loaf from mat to cookie sheet. I have yet to figure out how to do this gracefully, my loaf usually rolls off the mat, reshaping itself as it goes. Place an oven-safe container with water in the oven – this moisture will help your crust to crust itself. Don’t you love my technical terms and explanations?

Bake for 30 minutes (adjust the time for smaller or bigger loaves).

This dough can stay in the fridge for 2 weeks, and you can bake it, one grapefruit-sized handful at a time. As the dough sits in the fridge, it will become sourdough. Yummy!

blessings 3

2009-12-07T06:33:00.000-08:00

#15 ~ my kitchenaid mixer (and the oh-so-delicious chocolate cookies with peanut butter chips that said mixer mixed yesterday!)

#16 ~ friends at church who are always ready with a smile and hug, and who worry about me when they don't see me every Sunday

#17 ~ Santa, Mrs. Claus and their many helpers who spent their Friday evening here in our little town, entertaining so many little ones

#18 ~ Mother Earth News magazine. Their website is pretty cool, too.

#19 ~ my body, and all the amazing things it is capable of

#20 ~ Ragu. For years we made our own spaghetti sauce, but right now we are really enjoying the sweet flavor, not to mention the extreme simplicity of just popping open the jar!

#21 ~ Christmas carols

#22 ~ homemade bread

Christmas Movies

2009-12-03T10:04:00.000-08:00

THAT is why I miss having cable. More than anything else, I miss having the Hallmark channel and the Lifetime Movie Network channel during December. I could put my tv on LMN and leave it there all day, every day. I love love LOVE cheesy, made-for-tv Christmas movies.

I don't miss nick jr or noggin, though I know the girls do. I don't miss the history channel, discovery or anything educational and informative like that. MTV and VH1, not a chance. Nope. I just miss 24/7 access to cheesy, made-for-tv Christmas movies.

Really, I know we don't need cable. Life is too full and busy to justify having cable. But dude, I miss my Christmas movies.

Cute dogs!

2009-12-03T08:42:00.000-08:00

Daisy Mae's cousins have entered a contest, and you know how these online voting contests go, right? So, here's Lily's page, and here's Grace's page. If you are so inclined, Daisy Mae, currently snoring on my kitchen rug, would appreciate your voting for either of Grace or Lily, or both! (Grace, Lily and their human parents would appreciate it, too!)

Oh, and Daisy Mae is not entering this contest. Either she knows she's too cute, and wants to give other doggies a chance, or she knows she's just too dang ugly to have a shot, and doesn't want to be embarassed. You can decide, because I'm not sure myself, and I live with her! :-)

blessings 2

2009-11-30T07:19:00.000-08:00

#10 ~ my in-laws, who drove 3 hours and spent a night in a hotel to attend my Grandma Marg's funeral

#11 ~ dental insurance

#12 ~ pie. buttermilk, or pumpkin, or cherry, or apple. mmmmm

#13 ~ St. Luke's. My grandparents married there in 1944. 4 of 5 of their children were baptized there (the oldest was baptized in Pennsylvania, where they lived for a short time), all 5 confirmed there. Two of their children were married there. One of their granddaughters was baptized there. And now their ashes rest there, as their souls rejoice in heaven.

#14 ~ my washing machine and dryer

Tree Huggin' Tuesday

2009-11-24T09:20:00.000-08:00

Did you know that lots of things that can decompose don't always get the chance, when tossed in the landfill? They end up just taking up space for way too long.

And, did you know that deer love apple cores and banana peels? Whenever I'm eating one of those in the car, I throw the core or peel out the window (umm, in areas where I know there's wildlife - not in downtown Albuquerque!) for some lucky critter to find. I always hope the lucky critter is on the correct side of the road to enjoy the treat, or that they attended Safety Town and know to look both ways. :-) I also always hope that no one sees me and thinks I'm littering.

I like to see how little we throw away, so I try to put as few food scraps into the trash as possible. Right now I don't have a compost pile, but I have a dog and loads of deer. Combined, they like most of our food scraps. Egg shells, onion skins and bell peppers don't fare well, but almost everything else disappears if given the opportunity.

What I really want is a 'wormery' - a bin of worms to eat my scraps. They are even cooler than the deer - much less picky! (I've heard they like junk mail) Plus, worm poop is like gold in the gardening world. I'm trying to talk myself up to trying it. And trying to talk Andy into letting me try it. In the meantime, we've got lots of happy deer. Really happy.

Happy Chuckin' (your apple core out the window, that is!)
Rachel

Blessings

2009-11-23T09:14:00.000-08:00

I stumbled upon this cool idea, thought I'd give it a go. :-) My goal is to list 1000 blessings. Not today, or next week or next month, but bit by bit. On Mondays, if all goes according to plan.

#1 ~ wiggly, sleepy baby cuddled in my arms

#2 ~ acorn tops aka fairy hats in assorted sizes, adorning my windowsill, hidden in the doll house, fallen behind the loveseat, forgotten in pants pockets

#3 ~ my Grandma Marg, and all the beautiful lessons she quietly taught by her example

#4 ~ the smell of cold in the morning

#5 ~ pink sunsets in New Mexico

#6 ~ my sister, arguably the coolest sister anyone, anywhere, could hope for

#7 ~ finger nails (and sometimes toe nails) painted 6 different colors

#8 ~ snores down the hall

#9 ~ toasted lentil soup, and a husband who does the dishes

and another thing

2009-11-21T18:38:00.000-08:00

I've been to Forks. It's the closest town to the Hoh Rainforest. After seeing New Moon, I have to say, locationally speaking, they were right on. My understanding is that they shot on location, same mountain range, just north a bit, in Canada.
The forest was beautiful. We also went to the Sol Duc Hot Springs - very hot and relaxing! All I really remember about Forks is that it is really stinkin' tiny, and one of the funniest bumper stickers I've ever seen was on a truck in that town:

Hug a Logger

You'll Never Go Back to Trees

Obviously I don't share that sentiment, but still, I laughed out loud. And I'm not opposed to hugging loggers, I just like hugging trees. :-)

Woohoo

2009-11-21T15:25:00.000-08:00

Last night I went to see New Moon. By myself. It was great. Mostly. I could've done without the texting and tweeting going on all over the place (the GROWN ladies next to me were doing it - not the 12 year olds in front of me!), and the screams and giggles when Jacob took off his shirt were ridiculous, but it was a theater full of New Moon fans... not surprising!

I liked the movie, but not nearly as much as the book. Mostly I liked having a few hours to myself. Next time I have a few hours to myself, I doubt it'll be at a crowded movie theater, though!

timing

2009-11-17T20:56:00.000-08:00

Periodically, one of us will be inspired to be healthier, and the other, not so much. So, while there's never actual, outloud discouragement, it can still be really tough to get going with eating better and exercising.

Knock on wood, though, I think Andy and I are on the same page right now. It's so much easier when we're working together on this! We're both paying much closer attention to what we eat (had an amazing dinner tonight!), and trying to work out more. He joined a gym this weekend. I'm still deciding between gym or curves, but in the meantime, I'm jog/walking the dog around our block at least 1x daily - it's just over a mile around our loop here.

I'm really hoping this sticks. We both need to shed some pounds and be healthier.

Tree Huggin' Tuesday

2009-11-17T10:55:00.001-08:00

Mellow Yellow

Have you heard, "If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down." ? :-) We try to practice this. Lauren does really well if she's the first, but if some one is already letting it mellow she freaks out, "Mice pee! Mice pee! Flush the toilet, I have to peeeeeeee!!!" I have no explanation for the whole mice pee thing, except to say that Lauren is crazy.

I also brush my teeth while showering. I know folks who pee in the shower, and others who save bath water and dish water to water their plants. Wait to do a load of laundry until it's a big load. Bathe only on the 5th Sunday of every month. Just kidding about that part. I think.

What other ways can we conserve water?

Happy Huggin',
Rachel

Grandma Marg

2009-11-15T13:51:00.000-08:00

My Grandma Marg passed away November 9th, she was 88 years old.

I am so thankful that I was able to spend some time with her during her last days. In and out of reality, some of her delusions were beautiful. At one point Sasha was nestled in her arms, sleeping. It was getting late, and Marg protectively put her hand on Sasha, saying to Ali and I, "You can go now, I've got the baby." That delusion really stuck with her, and when we walked in the next morning, she commented about how the baby didn't cry at all in the night.

The next night, looking at Ali and I, she was talking to her daughters (my mom and my Aunt Marjie), "I feel like I might not see you tomorrow. If that's true, I'll see you across the border." She ended up stablizing and being moved to a nursing home, where she was very comfortable for about 5 days, before peacefully 'crossing the border.'

I go back and forth between feeling such sadness to feeling such joy. Sad, because, of course, I miss her. Terribly. And also sad because now everything changes. Family traditions are up for grabs. I think it was God's timing that she die in November, after everyone had made their Thanksgiving plans, because Thanksgiving is THE holiday for my family. We still have this Thanksgiving, but now that the grandparents are gone (my Grandpa John died in April, 2006), who knows how we'll be spending Thanksgiving from here on out. Hopefully together.

I feel overwhelming joy, too, though. Because she missed Grandpa John terribly since he died 3 years ago. They were married for over 60 years. And now they are together again, smiling down on their sillies. Oh, so much joy!

Here's a picture of her. I'm not positive how old it is, but I'm guessing it was taken in the 1980's.

Oh, we miss you, Grandma Marg! Thanksgiving will not be the same without you, but we all promise to be 'good guys' ~ though there's no guaranty that we won't misbehave and leave you rolling your eyes at us!