The Official and Unofficial Christmas 2010 Photos

How We Roll

Text conversation the other day:

Me: Quentin just peed on the slide.

Him: Dick!

Me: Yep, that's what he used.

Him: :/

Me: You're welcome.

Did I do that?

We were sitting in the family room Sunday night after a long day's drive back from the mountains and a dinner of leftovers. The girls were playing with a toy where you take a plastic hammer and pound balls into a chute. Zoe had the hammer and had wandered away from the toy while Amelia lined up the balls with her back to her little sister. I muttered quietly to Brandon, "Do you think I could talk Zoe into hitting Amelia on the head with that?" He nodded in assent. A moment later, Zoe walked directly to Amelia and SMACK! that hammer made contact. We were so stunned we sat in silent as she did it two more times. At that point Amelia screamed and we snapped out of it. I comforted Amelia while Brandon removed the weapon.

"Was that my fault?"
Shrug.

I am far more powerful than I thought.

Baker Man

Brandon made an incredible apple pie last weekend. It was the kind of pie that takes five pounds of apples to make it worth your while. When Brandon bakes, it's a best-case scenario. He researches and gets out his scientist hat. This is the pie.












And this is the inside of the pie.

We ate some pie. We gave some pie to our neighbors. We ate some more. And there was still some left several days later. Amelia and Brandon looked at the pie and Amelia came running to find me. "Mom, there's mulch on the pie!" "Mulch?" "Yeah, mulch on the pie. And that's the first 'mergency!" "Mold? Could it be mold? And what's the second emergency?" Never did find out what the second emergency was, but mold was indeed the culprit as far as the pie was concerned.

Being Amelia's mom

Today at the fire house, for the field trip:

Fireman, after the puppet show about fire safety, "I bet you all have smoke alarms in your house."

AC, "I don't!"

Fireman, "You don't? Really?"

AC, "Well, we do, but they're covered with bugs."

Fireman, laughing, pointing to me, palm to forehead, "I bet that's your mom."

Two weeks of progress

Zoe decided a 14-month-old should be able to do certain things.

Summer 2010 - A Slideshow

Stuff, Things & Favorite Photos

So, Zoe is now crawling on her knees. She is also snacking nearly constantly. She is often heard coming with a 'thunk' as she crawls with her fist lodged in a Snack Trap.

Amelia is on her second sinus infection of the year. Not normally a cuddly girl, she wants to snuggle. With her 102 degree body. In the heat of summer. Oh, kid. I tucked her in the second night of the fever and she said, "I can't believe it." "What?" "That I'm sick. I don't want this headache or this fever. I just want to be all good. I had the fever lesterday (sic) and I'm not bery (sic) good at getting better." Poor Little.

A few weeks ago I took the girls to the NC State Museum of Natural History in Raleigh. This was the justification for going to Trader Joe's. The store had kites displayed throughout and was holding a drawing for these. A worker got AC's info and, guess what, she won one. So now we're driving back (2 hours) to get her free kite. What? It totally makes sense. This time I'm justifying it with a visit to a a children's museum.

Mother's Day 2010

We started the day with breakfast out (complete with free extra waffle thanks to overstressed ((Hello! It's Mother's Day!)) kitchen). After Zoe's morning nap, we headed to a local farm for some pick-yo-sef strawberries. Back home for a late lunch, naps for the girls, and then a fabulous dinner on the deck. Brandon made a grilled shrimp & bread salad and some grilled artichokes on the side. I whipped up a shortcake with the berries and we maxed out on all the deliciousness. Thank you 70-something degree day!

Homecoming!

And then there was one...

Stealing - er, borrowing - a post

This made me laugh this morning so I'm sharing. Hope you like it, too. (From finslippy)

A poem (not mine)(and thank God for that)
My friend Sarah linked to this poem the other day, and I was reminded of how much I loved Frank O'Hara and still do. He was so funny and compassionate, and his poems always made me so happy I lived in the city, and so sad that a dune buggy ran him over. I wish he were alive so I could chase him around a room shouting LET ME HUG YOU. I bet he wouldn't be able to run fast, because if he were alive he'd be old! And I'd catch him! And then he'd ask me to let him go, and I would, but only after a minute, or five.

Poem

Lana Turner has collapsed!
I was trotting along and suddenly
it started raining and snowing
and you said it was hailing
but hailing hits you on the head
hard so it was really snowing and
raining and I was in such a hurry
to meet you but the traffic
was acting exactly like the sky
and suddenly I see a headline
LANA TURNER HAS COLLAPSED!
there is no snow in Hollywood
there is no rain in California
I have been to lots of parties
and acted perfectly disgraceful
but I never actually collapsed
oh Lana Turner we love you get up

Amelia's 100th Day of School

Greetings from Doha!

Zoe's First Cereal

Brandon reading to AC

Countdown Project

Last night we counted out the Kisses and put them in a vase. When I was explaining what we were doing, I told her that each day she would get one - her kiss from Papa. She said, "Awww, that's nice." So she had her first one last night while the soup she helped me make was simmering. I don't think she truly understands the concept, but it's at least something for her to look forward to each day and I know that seeing the vase empty will benefit me, too.