Blazing a Trail of Destruction!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2012-02-14T16:12:00.002-08:00

This (insert length of time/family event/household crisis) has been so crazy/time-consuming I didn't get it together enough to do Valentine cards for our family this year. I am truly sorry because we have a lot of fun putting them together and creating memories. We are on a fabulous week-long mountain vacation and having some really great times together. Here are some photos to show you what we've been up to! Love you all.

October Photos

2011-11-01T08:07:00.001-07:00

Tree-lined Streets

2011-09-06T04:16:00.001-07:00

Tree-lined Streets, a set on Flickr.

Giving new meaning to "tree-lined streets." The clean-up effort in my neighborhood post-Irene.

Santa's Land

2011-08-29T20:56:00.001-07:00

Santa's Land, a set on Flickr.

Our latest hurr-evac turned hurry-vac adventure! Ended up in Cherokiee, NC, at Santa's Land. It's a 60's era theme park. It's just plain weird.

August '11

2011-08-27T18:30:00.001-07:00

August '11, a set on Flickr.

Photos from this month of crazy. We have a puppy. Crazy. That brings the dog total to 3. Crazy. Not pictured: Our praying mantis, Jaws. Crazy. Hurricane Irene came to town, the dogs, kids, and Mama fled to the NE tip of Georgia where Groms and Grandpa have a cabin for which we are SO grateful. Crazy. Brandon stayed behind for Irene. Crazy. Pics from that will be forthcoming.

Product Recommendation

2011-07-28T21:21:00.001-07:00

Do you have one of these? We've had this model for two years now and highly recommend it. It, we call ours "Zoe," is a constant source of entertainment. As with any product, there's an occasional glitch, but overall we are pleased with Zoe's performance. Of course, it may take two or three (or more!) decades to truly assess our ROI, but we're risk-takers and willing to bide our time. Now, Zoe may not be for everyone, but has proven to truly enhance our lifestyle.

2011-07-10T13:31:00.000-07:00

Pain, cont.

2011-06-22T12:10:00.000-07:00

And the knot on her forehead from the last one was finally almost gone...

Summer of Pain

2011-06-20T04:23:00.000-07:00

We're starting this summer of with a bang. Or, one could say, a bang, a tumble, and a chomp or two.
Amelia: First black eye. Crashed into a trunk.
Zoe: Scraped face. Fell down front steps onto concrete.
Quentin: Chewed hole in right foreleg.
Shane: Didn't hurt herself, but murdered a robin moments before this photo was taken.

Mother's Day Gift from Amelia

2011-05-13T11:41:00.000-07:00

Click on the slideshow to view it on flickr's site and see the captions (which decipher the pages). :)
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I told them we had to go pick something up.

2011-05-03T19:46:00.000-07:00

2011-04-11T19:32:00.000-07:00

Brandon sent home some books for the girls the other day. He's in Arizona for six weeks. This was the scene when the box was opened.

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So we were at Target and as I was picking up some cleaning supplies, Amelia was across the aisle checking out some pretty dresses. She took a couple off the rack to show me, then put them back. A Target employee working in the department - an older lady - said,

"You did a nice job. Would you like to work here?"

Amelia, "No. I'm only four."

"You're four? How about when you're five?"

"No, I have to be a grown up."

"Okay, when you're a grown up, then you want to?"

"Mmm, maybe after college."

2011-04-07T17:55:00.000-07:00

Mullet Banishment!

2011-01-29T12:11:00.001-08:00

Things We Do and Places We Go - Fall 2010 Version (a pinch of winter may have snuck in)

2011-01-26T12:45:00.000-08:00

The Official and Unofficial Christmas 2010 Photos

2010-12-25T05:37:00.000-08:00

How We Roll

2010-12-21T11:15:00.000-08:00

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?

2010-12-01T04:31:00.000-08:00

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

2010-11-22T19:25:00.000-08:00

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

2010-10-21T19:33:00.000-07:00

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

2010-10-11T20:13:00.000-07:00

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

2010-09-29T04:49:00.000-07:00

Summer 2010 - A Slideshow

2010-09-16T04:20:00.000-07:00

Stuff, Things & Favorite Photos

2010-07-10T05:04:00.000-07:00

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

2010-05-13T14:36:00.000-07:00

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!

2010-05-08T05:09:00.000-07:00

And then there was one...

2010-05-06T16:12:00.001-07:00

Stealing - er, borrowing - a post

2010-05-05T04:06:00.000-07:00

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

2010-02-24T17:56:00.001-08:00

Greetings from Doha!

2010-02-18T09:04:00.000-08:00

Zoe's First Cereal

2010-01-28T19:13:00.001-08:00

Brandon reading to AC

2010-01-16T14:03:00.001-08:00

Countdown Project

2010-01-07T08:21:00.000-08:00

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.

New Photos

2009-12-27T06:36:00.000-08:00

Put a bunch new pics up in Flickr for your viewing pleasure. Click on through...
Amelia's birthday and Christmas.

New feature

2009-11-18T15:08:00.000-08:00

There's a weekly, free paper delivered here. It's mostly ads, stuffed with ads. I finally read some of the personals. OMG, Becky, there's some good stuff in there. I will now be sharing some finds with my readers.

- I do not play golf but with patience you might could teach me.

- Good cook and baker and have a clean house and to make others content and happy.

- I'm still an old fashion guy. I love to spoil a special lady. Country Girls definitely welcome.

- Please, NO HEAD GAMES,NO DRAMA,We will make introductions by phone. Thanks for reading, and have a very Bless day, or night.

All this is (sic). And if you wish to contact any of the applicants, let me know.

- Must be single and DOES NOT have girlfriends on the side. NO one night stands and NO wife on the side. I look like Anna Nicole. Come on men show me what you got in yourself.

- White Female looking for White Male Companionship White female would like to meet a white male... Someone to spend time together and enjoy line.

Seriously, at this point, I should just scan the whole page...

- I enjoy watching TV, listening to different kinds of music. The only kind of music I don't like listening to is Rock-n-Roll or Jazz. I am very nice. I am not in for somebody that like to play games and cheat on their girlfriend. I am a very sweet person once you get to know me.

- I would like to meet a female who love to have fun, watch movies, going out, playing cards, and someone who will appriciate the thing I do for her. I love to cook, I enjoy a clean house, but I'm not a neat freak though just cleanliness. I love to write poetry and sing to my baby (which may be you, if you like). If these thing intrest you, don't wait call that number and see what this man can do for you.

- I am 5'11" 215lbs fathered 12 children, was living alone but 2 have moved back in... Looking for a woman of similar interest, even a family or hobby... To love me is to love me.

And the piece de resistance...

- TO MY MR WONDERFUL STILL OUT THERE PRAYING FOR SOMEONE LIKE ME Please remain patient as "I" am still out here trying to grow, work on my charm since I've had a lot of inner pain;and my finesse. I had been up to 9/22/08 a faithful and true wife of 31 years and very, very religious for most of my entire life of 66 years. I will have dark brown smoky hair that's naturally curly, large brown eyes, and am about 125 at present(a work in progress)5 feet tall with small feet. I am however, somewhat adventurous and a northerner. Had an Italian mother and six siblings, but spent many of my years in the foster-care system. SO PLEASE DON'T GIVE UP looking for Ms Wonderful vecause I haven't given up

Smartie pants

2009-11-04T12:53:00.000-08:00

While looking at the swirl of hair atop Zoe's head, Amelia said, "That's like the pot." I wasn't sure what she meant so she explained that the swirl was like the water when she flushed the toilet. Smart!

Later that same day, photographers were here doing a shoot. AC was asking each of us if we were "another animal." One said she was, but had Amelia guess, only saying she lived in the ocean. AC started listing animals - all of which did indeed live in the ocean. Smart!

Halloweena!

2009-11-01T06:23:00.000-08:00

That's what she was calling it at first. Now she's saying it correctly and spent a lot of trick-or-treating shouting "Happy Halloween!" (Makes me a little sad when she drops her versions of words for the "right" way.) The monkey costume was her pick for the preschool parade held downtown Friday morning. For t-or-t she chose the cowgirl get-up. The one where she's in a camo hat and gun holster (aack!) was from last weekend when she was helping Papa pack.

A Day at the Farm

2009-10-07T12:53:00.000-07:00

That is the name of the place Amelia's class went on a field trip. The kids all had a great time petting & feeding the animals, going on a hayride to see the fields, having a picnic lunch and picking out a pumpkin to take back to school to decorate.

It's moments like these that make me glad I didn't kill either of them that day.

2009-09-25T12:12:00.000-07:00

It was just after dinner and Zoe was crying. Amelia gave her a pacifier and read her a book, even showing her the pictures. Zoe watched her big sister intently.
LOVE!

Old people are so funny

2009-08-27T13:33:00.000-07:00

While shopping with Zoe today, she started making peeps and squeaks. And elderly woman said, "Oh, I know that sound. That's a new one." I acknowledged her and adjusted Zoe's carrier in the cart. As we passed by, the woman craned for a look and said, "Oh, that's not a real baby." Huh? I said, "Oh, she's real. Trust me." And kept walking, 'cause really, what the hell.

Finally!

2009-08-25T18:29:00.000-07:00

I finally took pictures of our house now that we're all moved in. The after shots follow the befores.

Snippets of Newborn Rearing

2009-08-13T07:55:00.000-07:00

If you want to see some very focused, wide eyeballs, have your toddler come upon you pumping. Said toddler may later say she's so proud of you making more milk.

TMI Alert: Postpartum recovery involved feminine sanitary products. When seen putting these in your underwear, your toddler may say, "Sorry you hurt your underpants." Not a time to try to explain, just say 'thanks' while stifling your giggle.

You'll be certain your newborn's nasal passages drain into her mouth when she is nursing and milk is running out of her nostril, dripping all over you. Also when spit-up becomes nose-up.

Zoe Elise

2009-08-03T13:02:00.000-07:00

Zoe Elise, born July 28, 9:34am. Just a smidget at 6 pounds, 10 ounces and 20.25 inches. Here are some early photos. We'll be adding to the set for sure!

Mensa may not be knocking

2009-07-09T20:02:00.001-07:00

Brandon: What's this?
Amelia: A frog.
B: That's right. What color is it?
A: Pink.
B: His tongue is pink, but what color is the frog?
A: Blue.
B: Yeah, his eyes are blue, but what color is the frog?
A: Sock!

One month to go!

2009-07-07T19:15:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday, Grams!

2009-07-06T11:17:00.000-07:00

Tumbling = righteousness

2009-07-04T05:14:00.000-07:00

At gymnastics the other day, this was going on in another group of kids: The teacher was giving instructions to the group and one boy was off playing with some toy swords (not sure where those came from), and being distracting. The teacher told the rest of the class to ignore him as he would lead them down the path to unrighteousness. I had no idea it was so easy!

At Lowe's

2009-07-02T13:13:00.001-07:00

I'm walking toward the bathroom, some guy is walking out. He turns the other way then looks back at me triple-take-style. He then stares at my belly and makes a face. Naturally, I make a face back. He says, "Congratulations!" Um, thanks.

Convo

2009-07-01T16:48:00.000-07:00

"Where's Papa?"
"At a party."
"Oh, okay, I go party, too."
"No, you have to go home and go to sleep."
"Why?"
"Because kids have to sleep more than mamas and papas. Because you're growing everyday."
"Huh?"
"You're growing everyday, doing new stuff and learning new things. So you need more sleep to be ready."
"Ohhh, that's great!"

31 Weeks - 2 Months to go!

2009-06-04T13:27:00.000-07:00

Fancy School = Fancy School Pics

2009-04-06T14:54:00.001-07:00

Photos by Windblown Photography.

Week 23

2009-04-06T14:51:00.000-07:00

Twittering along

2009-03-18T10:17:00.000-07:00

I've started to twitter. Don't worry, it's not a medical condition. It's yet another way to stay connected 'cause we're sadly lacking means of that. ;) It's an easy way to throw short updates out to the internets and you can see what I'm saying just over to the right. I'm nothing if not fascinating.

20 Weeks (less a day)

2009-03-15T17:10:00.001-07:00

We're at the halfway point. Tomorrow I get up at the crack of dawn and drive 90 miles to a specialist for my old-mommy checkup. I'm so lucky!

13 Weeks and Change (pun intended?)

2009-02-01T11:25:00.000-08:00

Shul

2009-01-28T13:48:00.000-08:00

Monday was Amelia's first day of "shul." No, she's not learning Yiddish, but that is her current pronunciation. Class is MWF, from 8:30 to 11:30am. She's doing very well, according to her teachers: follows directions, does her work, plays with others (she knows two of her classmates already) is sweet. The problem comes when she's asked if she needs a diaper change. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! And then come the tears. Monday it happened about ten minutes before the end of class so I didn't get a call. Today it happened about two hours in. The poor kid is so upset at the notion that she doesn't get over it and continues to cry. One teacher says AC has a strong sense of boundaries. I said, "We don't, so I don't know where she learned it." So, the current plan is I will change her in the classroom first thing on Friday, maybe even see if she'll let a teacher do it with me there. And then, there is to be no diaper talk the rest of the morning. Seriously. These are precious hours to Mama.

First pic of E2 (Embryo 2) or Who wants to see inside my body?

2009-01-25T09:39:00.001-08:00

Oh Happy Day!

2009-01-20T10:31:00.000-08:00

A little song from a newly 2(1) - year - old

2009-01-01T09:39:00.000-08:00

News and more photos

2008-12-27T14:32:00.000-08:00

Take two proven baby-makers, send them on a two-week vacation in an incredible part of the world without the aforementioned proof, and voila, more proof is on the way. That's right, we're crazy enough to do this thing again and are expecting a baby early August.

Also, Brandon uploaded his trip pics (finally)!

120 Photos!

2008-12-08T15:46:00.000-08:00

Here is a selection of the photos I took on our trip. Brandon is still "working" on "uploading" "his." (Which means I decided to stop waiting before sharing.)

You can click through to Flickr to see captions. Hey, it's much better than a slide show in my living room with watered-down cocktails, stale crackers, and spray cheese. :)

Holiday Spirit?

2008-12-01T20:52:00.000-08:00

I went to Kmart Saturday. I parked and grabbed a cart. I noticed there was a Salvation Army bell ringer out front so I put my purse in the cart and dug out a dollar. I had a coffee so I held that in my right hand along with the dollar bill and steered the cart with the left. I walked to the bell ringer and dropped the dollar in the kettle. The bell ringer offered thanks and then said, "I thought you were gonna pour that in the kettle," indicating my coffee. Huh? "That wouldn't be very helpful," said I. How weird is that?

home

2008-11-15T06:45:00.000-08:00

Forgot to add that we made it home! Got in at 2:30 am, Wednesday and were asleep by 3. Napped for 4 hours before Amelia woke up. That was a fun reunion and then she punished me for two days. Yesterday she niced up a bit.

Lots more to come!

Nearly Home

2008-11-11T22:00:00.000-08:00

We are about to board our final flight I the trip! I just slept for 90
minutes in a cushy leather chair in the Red Carpet Club at SFO. Pretty
awesome. That, and having clean multi-stall bathrooms with toilets
that actually accept tp. :)

Sent from my iPhone

Arrivaderci!

2008-11-10T21:21:00.000-08:00

Today we head home. Yay! It's been fun but I am ready. We did a whirlwind walking tour of Rome yesterday. Thank you transportation strike! We also heard there was an Alitalia strike yesterday, so maybe we'll see some of our cruise co-travelers who were scheduled to leave on their flights yesterday this morning when we go to the aiport. This will be especially great for Brandon who has several super-favorite friends. This is, of course, sarcasm. There are some who complain all the time and there are those who complain about those who complain. Guess which one is in our party? :)

Wish us luck in our travels home. Seriously. I think we've demonstrated that we need it.

Blus Seas

2008-11-08T06:43:00.000-08:00

No kidding - the Mediterranean is such an amazing shade of blue. I'm sure the photos will not tell the story. And I may not be able to tell it either; the days are running together. We're at sea today after our stops in Greece and Turkey. We hit Naples tomorrow and then on to Rome where the floating portion finishes. Internet access is crazy expensive so the whole story (what I recall as well as many embelishments, to be sure) will come after our return to real life. In the meantime, I'm off to the bar for a fancy drink!

Trip

2008-11-05T10:13:00.000-08:00

So, after joining the boat in Corfu, we have docked in Katakalon, Athens, Mykonos and Kusadasi. We've seen some wonderful things and eaten some wonderful food. We have also slept too much and stayed up too late. No one here is complaining.

Guess what?

2008-11-01T12:13:00.001-07:00

We are on the ship! It took a few days and many hours in the many airports, but we got here. We got to Corfu after wearing the same clothes for roughly 36 hours. Luckily our hotel was able to give us our room at 7:30am when we arrived so we promptly took hot showers and slept for 8 hours. We got the ship this morning and are currently at sea en route to Olympia.

Thanks for all your well wishes. Wait, you were sending them, right?

Let's try this one again!

2008-10-29T10:20:00.001-07:00

About to board again for SFO to Frankfort. We are now missing Venice
and Croatia but will beat the boat to Corfu. This trip WILL happen!

Sent from my iPhone

First day of vacation gets us hours away from home. In the same state!

2008-10-29T06:26:00.000-07:00

Our flight was finally canceled. Well, it was actually pushed to 11 this morning. This meant we got a voucher for a hotel and no luggage for overnight. Luckily we have toothbrushes with us and a few other items to feel freshish as we try this thing again! At this point we only know that we're getting to Frankfort. Brandon is working with the cruise line to figure out when and where we will meet the ship so we can then book the rest of flights/trains/ferries or whatever.

Adios, South San Francisco Comfort Inn right on the train tracks. We hope to not meet again.

2008-10-28T18:59:00.001-07:00

Super! We are still in SF. In the plane. Have been on board for more
than three hours at this point. On the plus side granola bars were
handed out.

We are still hopeful we'll get to the ship on time but we've lost our
evening out in Venice. Did I say the granola bars fell in the plus
category? What I really meant was where's the damn booze!

Sent from my iPhone

Funny...

2008-10-28T15:03:00.001-07:00

...Brandon's face upon leaving the mens room after using the Dyson
hand dryer.

Sent from my iPhone

2008-10-28T14:38:00.000-07:00

And we're still here in San Frsncisco. The aircraft problem migrated
from the entertainment system to the interphone system and the amassed
trwvelers migrated from gate 98 to gate 102. It was a mad rush to
resume a wait-and-see attitude. Potential exists for departure.

Sent from my iPhone

ONT - SFO

2008-10-28T13:11:00.000-07:00

Made it to SF with minutes to spare. Now facing slight delay while
entertainment system gets repaired. At least priorities are in order.

Sent from my iPhone

First day of travel

2008-10-28T10:49:00.001-07:00

Here we sit, drinks in hand, waiting for our first delayed flight. Our
first flight of our trip. Not panicking!
Sent from my iPhone

Trail Blazing Resumes

2008-10-07T14:14:00.001-07:00

I mentioned we're on diets. We've been talking about it for a while but with our love of all things cheese and beer, we've put it off. Then we got the email. From Princess Cruises. A 12-day Mediterranean voyage. (That's what you say on a boat, right? Voyage? "Trip" doesn't really seem to cut it.) We'd been hoping to do a cruise after the first of the year but this is the region I really wanted to see and Brandon was able to line up all the appropriate signatures on his time-off request and, most importantly, my mom agreed to spend two weeks at our place caring for Amelia and the dogs. Oh yeah! Did I mention? We are going alone. No kid. So, Nutrisystem got our money and we are now losing weight. We were crazy hungry for a few days. Then our bodies got used to that. They're still adjusting to the increased roughage. Well, Brandon's is still adjusting. (Where are those matches?)

So, we leave the end of the month and fly into Venice. We sail from there and hit Dubrovnik, Corfu, Katakolon, Athens, Mykonos, Kusadasi, Rhodes, Santorini, Naples/Capri, and finish up in Rome. WTF! We are so excited. Now I just have to figure out how much freaking out I will put up with from myself when we leave our baby for that long.

Helpful Child

2008-09-25T20:51:00.000-07:00

I definitely have a blemish on my face. I definitely picked at it. Amelia definitely sat on the couch next to me last night, poked it, and said, "Ewww. Yucky. Yucky. Yucky yucky ew."

Um, thanks.

Diet

2008-09-25T10:37:00.000-07:00

Brandon and I are on diets. He's in El Centro, California for the week. This is pretty much as close to Mexico you can get. If you're not already thinking gigantor burrito, I feel sorry for you. Anyway, he allowed himself a diet break for lunch the other day and sent me photo proof. Jerk.

Some things

2008-09-22T20:55:00.001-07:00

I picked up a couple of DVDs for our family-friendly collection (this is a tiny subset of the regular collection). One is called Barnyard. It's an animated number about which I'd heard nothing. This is often how I shop. Anyway, enough about me, the movie's rated PG. The label explains the rating's for "some mild peril and rude humor." I read this aloud to Brandon.
B - Sounds like our house.
R - Mild Peril? Yeah, we got that.
B - No, rude humor.
R - True, we got it all.

Amelia, after much ~~beating~~ training, has been going to sleep for naps and bedtime generally without complaint for, oh, I don't know, a year now? Until Tuesday. Tuesday I put her in bed for her nap around noon. As is our custom. She's been doing a noon to three nap and an eight to eight overnight for some time. So, Tuesday she screamed for a good ten minutes (as opposed to a bad ten) before going to sleep. Tuesday night I went out for lady time to play bunco with the gals. (You have to play bunco with "gals.") When I got home Brandon reported Amelia had a scream-fest at bedtime to the degree he went in to comfort her. This is a super-rare event around here. This screaming continued through Thursday. Every sleep attempt was met with this reaction. When my child is in this kind of distress there is a large portion of my brain (heart?) which kind of clumps up and gets pissed off. Others suffer. Friday rolled around and we were all home and I decided to do an experiment: it was noon and Amelia had played, pooped, eaten - all the important stuff - so I asked her if she was tired. She said no. Okay, we did this for quite a while. When she wanted to interact, I told her that since it was naptime and she was supposed to be sleeping, I would not play with her. No, she could not have more to eat or drink, it was naptime. She persisted with the line that she was not tired. At 1:50 I said, here's the deal, you are going to sleep. We all went into her room and put her freshly diapered bum into bed. She said "no," but we said "yes." She hollered for a matter of seconds and slept until after five. This led to nine o'clock bedtime which was not protested at all. Since then she's napped from about one to four and gone to bed by nine. The screaming is over. This may not seem like a big deal but an hour is big in the land of the 1.75-year-old. Or more specifically, the land of the mama of the 1.75-year-old. Deep breath. Embrace the change. Vote for Obama.

Don't be the one

2008-08-29T06:52:00.001-07:00

She noticed the "shoo" (airplane noise) outside the store yesterday. For the first time. She pointed to her bum and said "seet." I helped her up and she sat. And she loved it.Here's the thing: she doesn't know it can move.
Here's the warning: don't be the one to teach her. I'm looking at you, grandparents.

This is what you get when you say, "Show me your teeth."

2008-08-01T13:07:00.000-07:00

Morning, Sunshine!

18-monther gets first haircut (operation mullet-be-gone a success!)

2008-06-26T16:22:00.000-07:00

Father's Day

2008-06-15T13:58:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's Day to all you fathers. We threw a party last night for the neighborhood. We were pretty much ready for a party around here. I suggested that we switch Mother's and Father's Days this year because I got Brandon a kick ass gift and I didn't want to wait. It's a bounce house. It is awesome. We had it up for the party as well as a couple of kiddie pools and the climber and the teeter-totter and the picnic table and the inside toys and a bunch of juice boxes and cookies and cupcakes and sugar, sugar, sugar!!! Thank god for the bounce house. I was asked by another mom if I'd laid down the rules for the bouncer. Huh? Rules? Oh, apparently there should be big kid time and little kid time. Okay, got it. And then she asked if I was gonna let the kids eat then bounce then throw up in the bouncer. Huh? And then she said, "You really haven't thought this through, have you?" And she was right. Luckily there was no vomit. You're welcome. Here's a video of the baby dancing with her papa this morning. Her papa is sitting in LAX right now, waiting for a rescheduled flight which puts him into Washington DC at midnight. After that he only has an hour drive. Talk about a happy Father's Day!

Also, while we were readying the backyard for the party, we found a very swollen-with-eggs black widow (killed it), a two-inch scorpion (relocated it to the desert), a partial rabbit (offered it to the coyotes) and a dead baby bird (put it in the trash)! Yay!

We three

2008-06-04T09:39:00.001-07:00

Photo by Grandpa Scott (Haku) who, along with Grams Judy, surprised us with a quick overnight visit on their way to a Yosemite trek. (Okay, it wasn't a total surprise, we got a few hours warning.)

A True Trail-Blazer

2008-06-01T09:25:00.000-07:00

One of the brightest bulbs in our family chandelier burned out before his time. Brandon's grandfather, LeRoy, died when his plane crashed on Friday morning. Details are still coming in. I was asked to set up a blog site to centralize info.

http://leroypoulin.blogspot.com/

Please visit. There is an email address to which to send photos and remembrances which I will then post.

Ancient Mama-ese Wisdom

2008-05-16T10:37:00.000-07:00

"The raisins eaten on a Wednesday afternoon will be re-plumped to grapes on a Thursday morning."

I'm a winner!

2008-05-13T10:04:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks back I was cruising through my morning routine - drinking coffee, sitting on the couch, checking the internets - when I read this post on a fave shopping blog:

Dudes. Dudes. 696 valid entries* into the contest to win the 60-minute Flip camcorder. Sometimes I say to my husband, “They really like me!” and he replies “Yes, dear. They really like you…r stuff!” Regardless, I’m glad to have you all along.

I have but one Flip to give, and Ye Olde Random Number Generator picked number 65: Rebecca! Congratulations, Rebecca! (Check your email, and mail me back with your address, please.)

"Self," I say, "Your name is Rebecca." I moused over my name and saw my blog address. I did it again. I blinked, rubbed my eyes, drank more coffee. Could it be? I gingerly tabbed to my email and lo and behold. There was the aforementioned email! Dag. I was a winner.

The shopping blog is wantnot.net and is owned and operated by the lovely Mir. I have been reading her personal blog, Woulda Coulda Shoulda, since Brandon was deployed and have come to include it as one of my daily fixes.

This post is a belated thank-you for the Flip, Mir. We love it!

This thanks is in the form of a video of my kid being cute. You would’ve gotten it sooner but Amelia just wasn’t being cute enough. Kind of a bad deal for her since the agreement is love in return for cuteness. Hopefully she’ll continue to keep up her end of the bargain from now on.

Rebecca

(Try to ignore the creepy way I tell my first-born to "shake it")

I'm not sure what this says about me

2008-04-25T08:22:00.000-07:00

Carl's Jr. has Cap'n Crunch shakes and malts. I had a malt last evening. Last night, I dreamed about it. Was it that good or is my life that small-town. Hmmm.

Bubble Dance

2008-04-21T14:47:00.000-07:00

Taken March 14.

Survival guide excerpt - Amelia-style

2008-04-21T13:44:00.000-07:00

What do you do when a big, yellow dog sits in your lap?

Why, you hug it of course!

Yay for puppies!

Things you've missed out on...

2008-04-19T12:25:00.000-07:00

Him (from behind the bathroom door): No, no, no! Aargh. Gah.
Me (greatly concerned): What happened!?!
Him: I accidentally read Cathy!

A month later, repeated with substitution: Mutts.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Me (unloading groceries): Look, Albertson's has organic milk by the gallon now.
Him: Cool, how much is it?
Me: Seven dollars.
Him: Gah!
Me: The half-gallons are usually $3.50 or a little more, so...
Him: Gah!
Me: Hey, what's more important than the food we feed our family?
Him: How we're gonna pay for our iPhones!

(Editor's note - Fear not, we found a way)

AC went to the birds

2008-03-04T15:24:00.001-08:00

Grams and AC - nature lovers, originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

And to the fishes. We went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium with Grams last week. Brandon was on yet another business trip (4th one this year) so the dogs and kid and I packed ourselves into the car and headed to Haku and Grams' place for the week. We did a couple of runs to the fantastic playground that is Dennis the Menace park. One of those was with Grams and the other with Uncle Josh, Aunt Julisa, and Cousin Jocelyn. Joss is a year older than Amelia and they're now at an age where they interact and play with one another. Good times. Nothing better than babies chasing babies.

Valentine's Day 2008

2008-02-15T10:11:00.001-08:00

Valentine's Day 2008, originally uploaded by Monkey loves Kitten.

Hope you all had some monkey love of your own!

What's in a name?

2008-02-05T20:45:00.000-08:00

I made a new friend a few weeks ago. Her husband is new to Brandon's squadron and they have a daughter four days older than Amelia. Another wife put us in touch and we've had playdates at home as well as the park. Today we ventured downtown (that is hilarious if you've ever been here). We were in a shop where we each made a purchase. I went first. After she paid, the shopkeeper said, "Oh, Rebecca, I forgot to get your signature on the slip." Naturally, I walked back to the counter and looked at the slip. It said "Rebecca FriendsLastName." Quoi? I was perplexed to say the least. You see, my new friend is named Annie. So...

"Oh!" says Annie, " "Rebecca is really my first name. I was gonna tell you."
"Wait. What? How is that not something you would tell me right away? P.S. We have the same name."
"No one ever calls me that."
"Okay, you are definitely weird! And now I don't trust you because all the Rebecca's I know are untrustworthy."

I think I may really like this gal.

Thought

2008-02-04T23:07:00.000-08:00

This is the hardest time of the year for me. The weeks between ordering the Girl Scout cookies and their arrival. *sigh*

safety

2008-02-04T12:08:00.000-08:00

Bounce Houses is having a "Blowout Sale." That's one of those product categories where a blowout really doesn't sound like a selling point.

Sorry, Crimson & Gold

2008-01-15T20:38:00.000-08:00

I was at the grocery store with AC today. We were nearing the end of our trip, looping back from beer to ice cream (we're healthy like that), when an elderly white female riding a Rascal gestured to display.
"I wonder if there's a UCLA shirt under that USC one."
"I think there is. I see blue."
"I went to UCLA, I want to put it in front."
"Let's check."
So we did and there were in fact UCLA tees hidden behind the SC sweatshirts. There were two SC shirts showing. I offered to assist. I moved the SC shirts to one rack so the Bruin shirt was showing. That wasn't enough.
"Cover up the other one, too."
Happy to oblige, ma'am. Happy to oblige.

Words do no justice

2008-01-09T07:01:00.000-08:00

2007-11-14T12:07:00.000-08:00

2007-11-11T19:04:00.000-08:00