More Morris Madness

Holy Matrimony

2011-10-05T20:42:00.002-05:00

So this post is mainly so I can remember this conversation to tease my kids with later, but maybe you'll get a kick out of it, too.

Tonight the kids and I were out Boo-ing (leaving anonymous Halloween treats for friends), and in the car, we were chatting. Well, somehow the conversation turned to the fact that Addison wants to marry Pearson's friend Jake. This is something she mentions often, but keeps secret outside of our family. I asked her if she'd told him, and she scoffed, "No, Mom! I can't tell him that until I'm old enough! I'll tell him when I'm a grown up." I asked her how she planned to tell him. She said she would put it in a note so she didn't have to tell him to his face. Pearson pragmatically agreed with this approach, saying, "Yeah that would be embarrassing!"

So I asked what she'd put in the note. She said, "I'll just say, Dear Jakey. May you... Could you get married to me? Love, Addison" Pearson was concerned his mom may laugh at it.

Pearson sat silent for a minute or two and then said, "I know who I wanna marry. I wanna marry Aleece. She goes to our church and I know her. And she's pretty. And she's always ALWAYS good in Primary. I'm mostly good but I've been bad in Primary, too." (Good to know they both have their lives planned out...)

I asked. "What if Aleece thinks 'Oh, I only want a boy who is good in Primary like I am!'" He again pondered silently. "I'll be good in Primary now," came the earnest reply. Ha! I'm shocked that this is a motivator at this early age, but hey. I'll take it!

Goodbye, tooth!

2011-09-13T13:59:00.000-05:00

Addison hit a milestone today! First tooth lost! She was very brave and she is very proud of her new gap! Yay, Addison!

I had a baby.

2011-09-01T18:24:00.001-05:00

So. We had a baby 2 weeks ago. She is perfection in every way. I am going to try (*try*) to update our family blog so that we can share a little of what's going on with us!

Here's the birth story if you're interested, or just skip down to the pictures!

Emerson Anne Morris was born August 15, 2011 at 2:07pm. She weighed 6lb 13oz, was 20 inches long, and has two giant dimples. I was scheduled to be induced on the 18th, a Thursday, and on Monday was having pretty painful contractions. I was determined to have the baby a little earlier, so I went to the hospital. Although my contractions were fairly intense and frequent, they weren't very regular. Luckily, they decided to keep me, and broke my water right before noon.

They asked me right away if I wanted an epidural, and not knowing what lay ahead and thinking I had hours of labor to go, I said I'd like to wait and see if I could handle it on my own. Well, apparently the water breaking was all my body needed to kick into high gear because my contractions started to get REALLY intense. I was breathing through them, but couldn't talk (or be talked to) when I was having one. I started to really worry that if they were that painful that early, I was in for a world of hurt and it would quickly be too late for the epidural. So I changed course and asked for the epidural around 1 o'clock.

Well, of course, all of the anesthesiologists were busy and couldn't come right away, and by now my contractions were KILLING me and right on top of each other. I just knew that I had waited too long and it was going to be too late by the time one got there. I was begging, literally crying begging, for anything, ANYTHING, to help the pain. The anesthesiologist got there and thought he was funny making jokes while I was dying, and at that point, NOTHING WAS FUNNY. Ugh. I may have called him a swearword.

Even after the epidural was in, it didn't kick in right away, which upset me even more. I thought it was instantaneous, and it's so not. I think I was an 8 when they got it in and it was less than 30 minutes from getting it in and Emerson being here, and if I had to guess only 10 or 15 of those 30 minutes was the stupid thing working. And I was so not graceful with the pain. I was screaming and acting a fool. I was so embarrassed after. But honestly, I've never even conceived of pain like that. It all happened so fast, it was really hard to process. I was dumbfounded when they handed her to me.

But of course it was more than worth it in the end. She is perfect, and I haven't had any complications or much pain at all after the delivery. So far she's been a way easy baby. She eats and sleeps and poos, and even in the night she just wakes up to eat and then goes back to sleep. We couldn't be happier, or more blessed. Seriously, every time I have a baby, I just want 10 more babies!

Mango, you vile poison!

2010-06-10T12:39:00.003-05:00

Every once in a while, I get this rash on my lips. Maybe once or twice a year. It's tiny, tiny little bumps and redness (both hard to see because of where it is) on my lips that get really itchy. I thought it might be an allergy, but it seemed so random and far apart that I'd never found correlations. Oh, and the best part is that my lips get all swollen, too. *sarcasm* Most people might dream of a way to double the size of their lips without surgery... But, have you met me? Swollen lips are not doing ME any favors. Essentially, it takes my least favorite feature, that are already too big, and makes them HUGER and REDDER! Uuuuuugh. (And please no lip compliments. I know everyone wants full lips, but I really don't like mine.)

Anyway, like I said, this has happened for years and I just deal with it and then it goes away. Well I got one earlier this week, and did some Googling. Of course, most results deal with rashes that are MUCH more severe (read: disgusting) than this. Seriously, don't Google "lip rash" unless you want to see some nasty. But then I stumbled on post where someone described a seemingly identical rash, and one of the responses contained these little words:

I have the same rash on my lips. I get it when I eat mango.

Get the crap OUT! Look what's on my counter:

Started with 8. Now there are 4. I ate 3 of them. Oops!

I just bought mango for the first time in FOREVER a couple days before I got this rash!! More googling led me to this blog post, where someone else had the same epiphany.

Yeah, so, after 30 seconds of research, I consider myself an expert and have self-diagnosed myself with a mild mango allergy. I have discovered that mango trees are related to poison ivy (or something like that) and the chemical that causes a reaction to poison ivy is also present in mango sap (I think it's the sap), which is on (or maybe in?) the skin. Apparently, you can eliminate most of the allergens by washing the skin with soap and water before you cut into it, but some people with major allergies will still react to it.

So now the question is... will I stop eating the delicious mango, or continue risking this obnoxious disfigurement? That's a tough call...

TOOTH EXTRACTION!!

2010-04-08T10:08:00.001-05:00

Before:

During:

And after:

Homemade Easter Shirts

2010-04-03T11:14:00.002-05:00

Ok, I know what you're thinking...is this a craft blog now? I never post, and when I do, it's to show something I made. Whatever, I like makin' stuff, and (at least for the time being), the kids LOVE wearing stuff I make!

Here's the shirt I made for Pearson, which I copied off this Flickr photo. I did it using freezer paper, there's a good tutorial for that here.

Addison's is appliqued and then machine stitched on, and is a copy of a shirt I saw here.

So here they both are, but...

They're even cuter on some adorable kids:

This is them trying, unsuccessfully, to high five:

Until the next time I make something I love, adieu.

My favorite thing I ever made!

2010-02-05T22:15:00.001-06:00

Well, right now anyway…

Saw a fab tutorial here for making a messenger bag out of a pair of cargo pants. The next day, I was at Goodwill, finding some cargo pants!

It was pretty easy, and I looooooove how it turned out! This one is for Addison, clearly, but I also have one planned for Pearson. I’m thinking these can either be their library bags, or maybe their church bags. We’ll see!

And, yes, I’m totally on a sewing kick. Can’t wait to show you what I have planned for Addison’s Valentine’s dress!

Random Quotes

2010-02-02T19:50:00.002-06:00

"They have good food here."
- Addison, in the middle of church, in reference to Sacrament (bread and water, for crying out loud!).

"They eat sushi in China. With forkchops."
- Pearson, during a discussion about how people do eat raw meat, which was spurred by his comment that he hates things that eat animals... to which we responded that people eat animals... to which he responded that people only eat COOKED animals... to which we responded that no, people eat raw animals sometimes, too. He was watching March of the Penguins at the time. And yes, we corrected him on the China/sushi thing. But not on the forkchops thing. Because I think it's precious.

(Also, how sad is it that it takes a picture on my blog for me to notice that my son desperately needs a haircut...)

Escuela en la casa

2010-01-28T18:40:00.001-06:00

No, we’re not doing Spanish yet… But if anyone wants to buy us some Rosetta Stone, we can try it! Ha! If anyone’s interested, here’s some of the home school stuff we actually have been doing:

Letter writing is a favorite. It’s good practice for penmanship, spelling, and sentence structure. But more than writing them, getting their own envelopes in the mail with their very own names on them!

A favorite of MINE is the Story of the World. It’s the history of the world, told in way small children can understand. We started with nomads, but we’ve gotten to the point of them learning to grow crops and tend animals. It’s surprisingly good.

A favorite for phonics are letter tiles. I saw these on a homeschool blog and it’s been one of my best purchases. The kids love them and they can be used in so many ways. For instance, our favorite game is me giving the kids the letters of a word and having them put them in the correct order. Addison’s would be 3 or 4 letters, and Pearson’s would have tricks in them like ‘ph’ or ‘ough’.

I’ll be honest: math has been the hardest for me to understand HOW to teach. Manipulatives help. Like these linking cubes. Used for patterns and simple addition for Addison, and used for carrying and multiplication for Pearson.

Jerad and I went to a used book store to look for homeschooling books, and found a couple gems. Like this child’s science text book. It’s simple enough that Pearson can read it on his own, and includes lots of basic science information.

Overall, still LOVING the homeschool thing. Our biggest challenge has been, and even I’m shocked by this, finding time for it! It’s so easy to get side tracked by other things, from visitors coming over, to play dates, to errands that need to be done, etc. etc. etc. I’ve alternated between happiness with a casual schedule and panic that we need something more regimented. It’s especially hard because I have other things begging for my time as well: the house, my consulting gig, my CASA stuff, church calling and activities, and trying keep both my children and myself “socialized.”

When I left my job, I thought I would have time coming out of my ears! Time for sewing, time for reading, time for my BLOG and projects long neglected, all on top of my other responsibilities. All I can say now is… HA HA!

Homeschool: Day 1; and other stuff...

2010-01-04T21:06:00.001-06:00

Well, we started our homeschooling today. A LOT of things went wrong. It could have been a really, really awful day. But somehow, it wasn't.

It started here:

9:30 AM: Kids bundled up to go out in 20 degree weather (which, with no sunshine and wind felt more like 5 degrees, but whatever). We were headed to the library. We've (I've?) decided to take a more casual approach to their curriculum, at least this semester. Our main objective will be a project-based approach similiar to Reggio-Emilia, which I've talked about here before. Very child-led, very natural learning.

Most books I've read did not recommend any formal curriculum for Kindergarten at all, although it's available. We plan to focus most of our time and energy on our projects, the kids each picked one to start with, but I am supplementing with some phonics, math, and light history and science.

SO, we'd planned on getting out the door by 9, but our discussion of what we were going to find out at the library, and why we were going, and how we were going to accomplish it took longer than I thought. No problem. Here we are, ready to head out the door:

Well... turns out... the library doesn't open until 10. D'oh! Oh, and um, it's not opening AT ALL because they don't have heat today... which, of course, we didn't figure out until we'd sat in the parking lot for a half an hour waiting for it to open...

No problem, we say. We'll go home and work on phonics (or "Language Arts" as Pearson likes to call it)! We do, and it all went swimmingly, if I do say so myself. We moved on and did a little art afterward. Before long it was lunch, then reading time, then quiet time, and then time to get Gillie from school (we're picking her up from her school Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and she and her baby brother will be with us all day Tuesday and Thursday). So we clean up a bit and get ourselves all bundled up again. But wait! Where are my keys!? After what felt like an hour (actual time: 3 minutes), we discover them here:

D'oh! Not shocking, really. Ask Jerad. (Wait... don't... it infuriates him...) The most surprising part was that it took me so long to look there. Anyway... We're off! And that all went great... except...

Well, you don't belong on the kitchen table, Side-View-Mirror. You belong on the passenger side of my truck! Yeah, I hit a mailbox. But I firmly maintain that the tiny (miniscule!) force with which I hit the mailbox could not POSSIBLY have caused the mirror to hurl itself from its perch had it not been for Jerad's recent incident pulling out of our driveway. I won't embarrass him by detailing his very nearly pulling the same mirror off by being a couple inches too far right to clear the carport post, and I certainly won't tell you that he probably unknowingly cracked the connecting piece between the mirror and the truck before I yelled for him to stop and that pointed out that he was about to rip it off. No, I won't do that. Suffice it to say that I have a possible explanation that would take most of the blame and some of the shame off my own shoulders, but that I'm far too gracious to conjecture like that. :)

All the mishaps aside, I had a wonderful day. I think I mentioned that I've been kind of panicking since our plan had started into motion, but all that was totally gone from my mind and heart today. I loved every minute of it, and felt so lucky to be a part of their education in such a way. Granted, this was only day one, and we have a LOOOOOONG way to go, but today, I felt totally at peace with my decision and that was more than I could have hoped for.

============================

In other, unrelated news, here are my favorite things I gave as gifts for Christmas. Given how long this post is getting, I'll mostly let the pictures speak for themselves.

Handmade Christmas gifts for Addison and Gillian:

Assorted cookies, baked with Nikki for family members:

Packaged with care:

Hope everyone had a great holiday season! I know I did!

New Chapter

2009-12-18T10:48:00.000-06:00

Well, it's begun. Sorta.

As most of you know, my family is embarking on a new adventure: homeschooling. My last day at my job was yesterday, and my role in our home changes. Change is difficult. Even a change that you wanted, even a change you knew was coming, even a change you're sure will be a good one. I've been, well.... freaking out! Is homeschooling crazy!? Will my kids be happy!? Will they learn what they're supposed to!? Will I be able to handle it?! Will we be able to get by on our newer, tighter budget?!

I'm feeling nervous but excited. I'm not sure the kids know what they're in for. Addison is thrilled by the idea of being with her mom all day, Pearson is more skeptical. We'll see.

We won't begin in earnest until the new year. I'll use this time to finalize plans and learn ever more about this homeschooling thing.

Wish us luck. We're gonna need it!

Also, we had the BEST time at our Disneyworld family reunion!! We so need to do that more often, family!

Officially private!

2009-12-03T00:45:00.000-06:00

Now that it's officially private, let me know if you're using Google Reader and want to add my feed! I will email you instructions! Testing, 123. Testing....

To be continued...

Pasta with plasticy brûlée, anyone?

2009-11-19T20:54:00.001-06:00

I was making one my favorite go-to meals, which by now I know like the back of my hand. The noodles were done, while I still had a minute or two on the sausage and cauliflower in the oven. So, I did like I always do, and drained them in the sink, then rested the colander over the pot I’d cooked them in.

As I got the baking sheet of meat and veggies out of the oven, I smelled something funny… aaaaand promptly ignored it. I needed to give the sausage another couple minutes to cool so I could chop it up before combining everything with parmesan cheese, olive oil, and parsley. La la la.

Cut to a couple minutes later: I hear a weird sizzle in the noodle pot. Not like water, it was more hissy and bubbly. And now, the smell is DEFINITELY burning plastic. As I lift the colander off the rim, I can see green columns dripping from the bottom, into the pot, where gooey plastic sat gurgling angrily.

Yeah, the burner and pan had been left on HIGH HEAT that whole time. Doh!

My kids will never let me live this down. “Mommy, that was AWFUL!” and “Mom, you ruined that green thing forever!” and “DAD! MOM MELTED DINNER!” Saddest of all, I think my pan might be ruined:

RIP, favorite pasta pot.

PRIVACY!!!

2009-11-14T01:08:00.001-06:00

So, I've wanted to make my blog private for a while, but didn't think it was worth it since most Readers don't support authenticated feeds (translation: people who use Google Reader and the like would not be able to get my site on their readers). I know that I can't remember to manually check particular blogs, so didn't want to make that the only way to see mine.

HOWEVER, I seem to have found a work around. Essentially, I would provide you a different feed to plug into your reader. The feed itself isn't technically protected, but it would be impossible to guess it, so it accomplishes the same thing. If you already manually check my blog, meaning that the way you view my updates is directly from my blog, and not through a reader, nothing will change for you except that you will have to be logged into your Google account to view my blog.

SO, I need to send invites to invite people who want to continue to read my blog. Just send an email to me (if you don't have it, it's just my first name @ gmail.com), and give me the email address that you use to log into Google (it's usually but not always a Gmail account). Also (IMPORTANT) let me know whether or not you use a reader. If you don't use one, again, nothing really changes except that you have to be logged into Google. If you DO use a reader, I will send you instructions on how to get my feed in your reader.

So there. Privacy AND convenience.

I'll leave it public for a couple weeks to make sure I get everyone. I hope everyone makes it through the transition! Don't forget! Send me an email!!

Because this guy deserves his own post!

2009-10-30T23:16:00.002-05:00

I've noticed that this guy hasn't gotten much blog love lately. He's not doing any sports right now, his birthday was ages ago, and he's less likely to humor my desire to film pointless interviews than his sister... sooooo... yeah.

I decided to dedicate this post to my absolute most favorite 5 year old in the UNIVERSE! Facts:

1. Pearson is really good at math. He can do multiple digit addition with carrying, and has been working on multiplication. I was really good at math when I was a kid, but I never LIKED math, so I stopped taking it as soon as possible. I'm hoping he does not follow in my footsteps.

2. Pearson's reading progress skipped from like a 2 or 3 to like an 8 or 9 overnight! It was so crazy. He'd been doing basic reading, sounding some stuff out, but not really reading on his own, and then BAM! He's reading EVERYTHING. I don't remember when it happened, but it really did seem like he wasn't reading and then the next day he was!

3. Pearson is asserting his independence all over the place. He knows EVERYTHING and I am wrong ALL THE TIME. I have no idea where he got it from. I hear I was an easy going, never arguing kind of child, just like I am as an adult, so it's baffling.

4. Pearson has a great name. I love it.

5. Pearson is REALLY good about doing "chores." Granted, his chores consist of keeping his room clean, making his bed, and letting the dog out to pee, but he's GREAT about doing those things (his sister is NOT!!!). I think it's about time to start adding things to that list! Honestly, I think he could handle a lot more responsibility than I give him.

6. Pearson grinds his teeth really, really bad. Like you can hear it from across the room when he's doing it, it's so loud. His dentist doesn't seem worried, so I guess I shouldn't be...

7. Pearson's favorite food is boxed macaroni and cheese. Much to my dismay.

8. Pearson is VERY complimentary. He loves to tell people what they're good at and what he likes about them.

9. Pearson sometimes mouths his words after he says them out loud. For instance he might say, "I can't find my shirt" and then he will immediately mouth those same words without saying anything...

10. Pearson's bottom front tooth is EVER SO SLIGHTLY loose. The dentist pointed it out when he went this week. It's very slight, I wouldn't have noticed if he hadn't showed me. He is very excited about this milestone, although I am sure it'll be months before he actually loses the tooth.

BONUS: Pearson finally learned all the words to his favorite songs on the Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack. It's not at ALL annoying that he sings them almost compulsively! ;)

I was not kidding about the pictures!

2009-10-22T21:12:00.003-05:00

It's probably a good thing that I couldn't get to all my photos, because "culling down" is apparently not in my vocabulary. Between pictures I got on my phone, pictures my aunt AD emailed me, and pictures I'd already uploaded to the web before I started the OS upgrade, I think these 957 pictures are sufficient...

Without further ado, testing my BlogPress iPhone app:

Addison the "baby panda"!

Pearson looking rather creepy as a mummy!

Addison and Gillie in costume!

The decorations! Ugh, I love Halloween!!!!

Mmmmmmm! Vanilla vanilla cupcakes!

Goodies for the party-goers. These were pajama pants I made.

The paper mâché bat piñata.

Addison taking a whack!

Dainty Dorothy taking her turn.

Miss birthday girl pretending to be shy!

Party people!

Addison and her school buddies!

4 generations in one photo. We were so glad my mom came! Pearson and Addison are delighted by "sleepovers".

Saying goodbye to Aunt AD, we had SO MUCH FUN with her!!

Addison was disappointed when her birthday WEEK was over, but she's adjusting well back into a world that doesn't revolve around her...

- Posted from my phone, so errors don't count!

I know I'm behind!

2009-10-22T10:51:00.003-05:00

I know I'm 2 weeks behind my weekly goal of blogging, but I swear I have EXCUSES!!! You see, my aunt visited, my daughter had a birthday party, my mom was in town, we're upgrading our computer operating system with a clean install, I got sick, I had a deadline at work, and my house burned down!

Ok, ok, my house didn't burn down, but I was on a roll, and I went for it... what can I say? I'll catch you up on all of the above as soon as my computer at home is updated! PICTURES GALORE!

Recent Recap

2009-10-07T20:34:00.004-05:00

So in between answering life's greatest unanswered questions ("Why is a button on your shirt and a button that you push called the same thing?", "Why does alcohol hurt a boo-boo?"), here is some of the other stuff I've been up to:

First of all, I've been LOOOOVING this whole Nikki-not-working-while-she's-on-maternity-leave thing.

We've been able to go to the park:

And to the zoo:

The highlight of which was this sea lion being every bit as enamored with the children as they were with him:

The kids LOOOOOVE the Halloween Store. Check out that creepy baby prop! The head rotates and everything!

And yeah, I totally let them do things that probably make the sales people twitch, but hey, I've bought gumballs from the little machine, so we're even, right?

We actually let the kids take an impromptu swim the other day in like 70 degree water. I thought they were INSANE, but they were having a blast so who was I to argue?

And of course, I've gotten lots of hands -on time with this guy, who is impossibly cute:

And can I just tell you how excited I am about it being Halloween season?! The clothes the kids wear, the decorations, the pumpkins, the crisp weather... it's all marvelous! Why can't it be October all year long!?

And last night I became positively OBSESSED with home movies of my kids. Seriously, it's bordering on unhealthy. I can't help it! The videos catch so much that photos never could. They way they used to talk, and walk, and move. Ugh, it's killing me! I was tempted to post like 50 of the old ones here, but that would be boring and weird, so I decided to compromise and show some RECENT video of the kids to show the stuff the pictures can't. These are actually from the same day, a few weeks ago, as I was getting ready to drop them off at school.

First up, we have the kids headbanging to Marilyn Manson's version of This is Halloween. I warn you to turn DOWN your speakers before pushing play! By the way, the headbanging and the dance moves were complete improvised. These kids are nuts:

Next up, we have a quick interview with Addison. I had to get on camera what she currently wants to be when she grows up. It's... unique.

Isn't it romantic what she wants to be?! A princess mom, with a beautiful dress, who dances with her husband. She also wants 8 (!!!!) kids -- 4 boys and 4 girls, natch -- and a brown and pink and yellow princess dog. She's given this much thought, and reminds me ALL THE TIME that this is her life's plan. Completely cute, and also kinda scary...

Impromptu Tea Party

2009-09-28T21:00:00.002-05:00

Ok, this is old at this point, but I wanted to share anyway, because it was so sweet!

After some questions and not-so-subtle hinting from Addison about her silver tea set, Grandma offered to throw Addison a little tea party with silver and china and EVERYTHING! Addison was delighted! She had pink lemonade in her tea cup and we were served lovely cookies (100 Calorie packs of chocolate something-or-others) and fresh cucumber sandwiches.

And her Gi-Gi (my mom) was even there to join in. Thanks, Grandma, for being the only person I know who would break out her fine china and real silver for a private tea party for a 3 year old! And that's why we love you so much!

Soccer Stars!

2009-09-28T20:58:00.003-05:00

Well, not exactly, but still. Addison and Gillian have started their soccer season, and if they're not the best players out there, I'll be darned if they're not the cutest! Precious, I tell you.

Here we are, mid-run, looking quite serious about what we're doing:

Here is Addison, famous for running down the field while intently watching the cheering section:

Which invariably leads to one of her dozen or so falls throughout the game:

She's a tough cookie, though, so it's ok.

By the way, I am making a goal of blogging once a week for two months. I figure if we suffer through the lame for a while, it's bound to get interesting again eventually, right!? Let's hope!

A test of will...

2009-09-09T10:46:00.000-05:00

No T.V. for one whole week! None. Nada. Zip. Zilch.

And yes, it applies to mom and dad, too! Scary!

But I do plan on cheating with a Netflix movie after the kids are in
bed one night!

What's black and white and red all over?

2009-08-16T16:53:00.001-05:00

The little dress I whipped up for Addison this afternoon! I used this incredibly easy tutorial from Martha Stewart to do some sorta-smocking at the top, and it was all easy from there! Addison LOVES it and I'm so proud. Best of all, I made it from RIDULOUSLY cheap fabric from Ikea, so it's also one of her least expensive items of clothing! Woo hoo!

Open Letter to the Lake: A Photo / Video Essay

2009-08-04T21:12:00.004-05:00

Dear Lake,

Thank you so much for the marvelous vacation I shared with my family this weekend. It was a break we needed very much-- to reconnect as a family, laugh and play together, and enjoy your natural beauty.

We are especially grateful for the endless entertainment you provided to the kids, sans batteries and plugs. They needed it, too, even if they didn't realize it.

The serene water and lush shorelines were the perfect backdrop for our photos, which I will treasure always.

You challenged my children to not be afraid of climbing the rocks, swimming with fish, and yes, even jumping off cliffs!

You gave us time to bond with Grandma and Lee, and reminded us how grateful we are for them.

We will miss you, Lake, and can't wait to come visit you again.

123 to the Zoo

2009-07-29T23:19:00.001-05:00

We went to the zoo today for the first time in a long time, to check out the new "Birds and Bees" exhibit with Grandma. We were SO sad when we found out the normal seasonal exhibit, the Butterflies, wouldn't be coming this year, but decided to give it a chance... As you can see from the pictures, we were glad we did! The kids got sticks with a seed cluster clothes-pinned to the end of it, and the birds would sit on the stick and eat the seeds! Big hit!

And of course, no trip anywhere with Grandma would be complete without a treat, so we grabbed to some Dippin' Dots-type ice cream before we left. Here, Addison is questioning her flavor selection...

Yesterday was a good day

2009-07-23T16:46:00.002-05:00

I watched Addison practice writing her name.

And laughed at her goofy faces as I took pictures.

And smiled because I couldn't help it.

I made bread dough, enough for 3 loaves throughout the week.

And made a big batch of chicken salad because Jerad is bored of peanut butter and jelly lunches.

And let the kids make quick work of the leftover ingredients.

I played pirates with this guy.

And adored his enthusiasm.

And loved when his sister joined in.

And watched contently as they enjoyed each other.

You know what I just don't get?

2009-07-18T21:43:00.000-05:00

I DO NOT get:

Veganism. Vegetarianism? Maybe, arguably. But veganism?! That just sounds like a life of torture for no good reason. No milk, no cheese, no butter... I just do NOT understand it. Why!?

Washing your car regularly. I understand, sometimes you just need to. You've been through some mud, or something. But generally speaking, that's like washing your shoes with any regularity. There's no point. But I think people secretly judge you for never, ever washing your car. You're shunning society's rules or something. People automatically get the impression that just because the outside of my car is always dirty, that the inside must also be a mess. They assume that even before they get in it and confirm that it's actually true.

Smoking. How the crap do people smoke in this day and age!? We know so much about what it does to you! Not to mention the bad breath, stained teeth, and general smelliness. But you know what REALLY baffles me? When I find out someone STARTED smoking as an adult. I mean, with peer pressure and the desire to rebel, I can see how teenagers might be tempted, and then maybe they get addicted and never get the drive to quit. But when a GROWN PERSON starts smoking?! Does not compute.

Toe shoes. Have you seen these hideous fashion offenses?? No. Just no. I was first introduced to this mind-bogglingly ugly footwear at the airport a couple months ago. I could not stop staring. WTC is on your FEET, dude!? I also tried to discreetly take a photo... You never realize how loud your phone camera's shutter sound is until you're trying to take pictures of a stranger's feet on the down-low. Sadly, since he was walking, the pictures were all blurry anyway. I honestly cannot believe people wear these. I mean, ok, they're supposed to be better on your feet, your back, your balance, and your agility... but what does that matter when it looks like your feet caught some sort of Shrek disease?

That's all I have for the moment, but I leave you with this picture of Addison. She was very excited to show me how she made a bed out of a cardboard box the other night. She also, completely seriously, BEGGED me to let her sleep in it on the floor in my room, and was DEVASTATED when I wouldn't let her. I offered the crib mattress on the floor in my room, but no, she only wanted to sleep in the box.

He just wanted to get on my blog

2009-06-17T09:22:00.004-05:00

But boy, did it work! My anniversary was Monday, and I woke up to discovery this at the table:

Wow, right!? I know. But there's more. All that fresh fruit (which he cut up himself) accompanied this amazing breakfast:

And if you look closely at that candy dish on the table, you'll notice M&Ms. Here's a close up of those:

SWEET, right?! Even sweeter that he bargained to get off work early so he would have time to go to the grocery store and get all the ingredients and them come home and make it, all before I got up! AWE!! Happy 6 years, babe, and thank you for an amazing wake-up!

In other news, as some of you may have known, there was a huge storm in Memphis on Friday. It was a big-un. It was loud and scary, and the kids did NOT like being huddled in the bathtub with a mattress over their heads. That is, until my iPhone busted out with some Mamma Mia magic! Seriously, that soundtrack never gets old.

We and all our stuff were fine after the storm, but the power was out, and Jerad had to go to work, where the ER was SLAMMED (of course). So I was at home with the kids without power. I decided I would tough it out until the power came back, but once the kids were asleep and it was pitch dark (we had NO candles, just one dinky 99 cent plastic flashlight), I was FUH-REAKED out. So I called my back-up family, the Glasscocks, and told them we were comin' over!

The kids all made a pallette on the floor downstairs and not too long after that, this is what they looked like:

Thankfully, Nikki and Shane's power came back around 3 in the morning, but ours stayed out all through that next day. We had to throw out the contents of our fridge and freezer, but after removing all of it, I'm not sure that wasn't a blessing in diguise, if you know what I mean...

And I leave you with pictures of Pearson with his hair did. This is the reason he wanted his hair short: the "shark fin". I post them both because I think it's so funny how in the first one, he can look so grown up, and in the next one, he's making a face that reminds me so much of baby-him.

Sewing Machine Meme

2009-06-11T20:20:00.006-05:00

Sew, Mama, Sew! is hosting a "Sewing Machine Month" with lots of info on sewing machines and how to choose one. To that end, they are compiling reviews for a round-up at the end of the month. Although I've done exactly 8 projects on my machine (including mendings), I've DEFINITELY caught the sewing bug and decided to review mine based on my experience so far. So... if you're uninterested in sewing, feel free to skip this post for the cute, new Pearson one below-- my feelings won't be hurt!

What brand and model do you have?
Brother CS6000I

How long have you had it?
I got it in April of this year, so about 2 months.

How much does that machine cost (approximately)?
Right now at Amazon, it's about $175, but I've seen that vary by about $20, both up and down.

What types of things do you sew (i.e. quilting, clothing, handbags, home dec projects, etc.)?
I'm a total beginner, so I've just done a few random "practice" projects, including a softy, a couple tote bags, some mending, making pants into shorts for my son, and some drawstring snack bags.

How much do you sew? How much wear and tear does the machine get?
I've only had it 2 months, so I couldn't say how well it holds up to wear and tear. I do hope to use it a lot more in the future.

Do you like/love/hate your machine? Are you ambivalent? Passionate? Does she have a name?
I love it so far! It's been VERY user friendly, easy to learn, and has cooperated with me well. I think it's a fantastic machine for beginners like me!

What features does your machine have that work well for you?
I love the variety of the built-in stitches, the ease of switching presser feet and threading the machine, and the simple bobbin-making. I guess in general, I like the small learning curve.

Is there anything that drives you nuts about your machine?
Not really. Not YET, I should say. I am very curious as to how it will handle thicker fabrics and such, but anything more powerful would have been overkill for me anyway.

Would you recommend the machine to others? Why?
Absolutely, especially for beginners. I can't think of how they could have made the machine less intimidating, which was HUGE for me since I remember thinking that threading a machine and making a bobbin was like 2 steps away from rocket science. The reviews on Amazon are outstanding, so I would say if you're looking in this budget range, you couldn't do much better, especially for all the accessories it comes with. Also, I will mention that I don't think this machine is ONLY for beginners. My mom has been sewing for 30 years and owns this machine as well.

What factors do you think are important to consider when looking for a new machine?
If you're totally new to sewing, definitely consider how complex the machine is. There is SO MUCH to learn when you start sewing, from terminology to methods to tools and MORE, the least you can do for yourself is get a machine that's easy to use. Sure, it would be cool to have a $2,000 machine that has a serger and does embroidery and everything else under the sun, but when you're learning, keep it simple.

Do you have a dream machine?
Yeah, a machine that has a serger and does embroidery and everything else under the sun!

New 'Do: the Photoshoot

2009-06-11T19:49:00.003-05:00

Pearson has been asking to get his hair cut short (REAL short) for a while, and I finally gave in. Here, we try to get pictures for the blog:

Me: "Ok, let's try to get a picture of your new hair for my blog!"

Pearson: "Alright!"

Me: "How about a big SMILE!?"

Me: "Ok, that was good, but your smile was a little fake-y... Try not so big a smile."

Me: "Uhh... that was a less big smile... but still really fake looking..."

Pearson: "Let's try to get a picture of the back of my hair! It's really little back there!"

Me: "Well, let's try to get the front first and then we'll do the back."

Pearson: "PLEASE, Mom! I want a picture of the back, it's really cool!"

Me: "Ugh. Fine. Turn around!"

Me: "There. Now let's get a cute shot of you from the front. SMILE!"

Me: "Come on, son, you can do better than that, let's take another one."

Pearson: "I don't really wanna do this. Can I go back and watch TV again?"

Me: "No. Let me get a good picture."

Pearson: "Mom! This is taking too long!"

Me: "If you let me get ONE good picture, you can go watch TV!"

Pearson: "Fiiiiiine."

Me: "I said GOOD picture, not SCARY picture! You could at least try."

Pearson: "I AM trying!!"

Me: "No you're not. Just one good one. That's all I need. Where the smile's not too big, not too small, doesn't look fake. And from the front. Come on, it's fun!"

Pearson: "This isn't fun."

Me: "Sure it is! One sweet smile on 3... One. Two. Three!"

Perfect.

Lately:

2009-06-04T20:38:00.000-05:00

1. Tote bags:

The kids' summer program requires a lot of stuff that we must bring with us each day: swim suits, towels, sunscreen, extra change of clothes, water shoes, and on and on. It's far too much to put in their backpacks, so I decided to be ambitious and make them tote bags to carry their stuff in. I have the CUTEST fabric from Ikea that I wanted to use, but I was so scared I would mess it up and ruin it, that I went and bought whatever was on sale at Hobby Lobby.

They turned out... ok. I'm really proud of them and all, and they feel really, really sturdy, but if you look closely at all... even not that closely... my stitching is SO uneven and crooked, and looks kinda sloppy, even though I was really trying. Oh well, they work and the kids like them.

I made Pearson's first and thought 18" sounded too small, so I went with more like 22". And it's ginormous! WAY too big. Turns out the 18" they call for in the pattern is just right. Shocking, huh?!

2. Potato Pizza:

Weird, huh?! But it's delicious! The recipe is here, but it requires you to log in. I use Bug Me Not to get around this, and the name and password that worked was username: jeebus1 / password: christ. (Sorry, I didn't pick it!) If you can't get it, just let me know and I can email it to you.

The crust was really easy and good, so I'll definitely be making it again.

3. Raccoon:

This raccoon scared the crap out of me when I went to let Kirby out after dinner. He didn't even run off, he just sat under my car and let me take pictures and let the kids gawk (from inside the screen door). Raccoons are so deceptively cute! It's like he's a cuddly little friend, but in reality, he wants to maul you and give you rabies!

The one where I go visit Lindsay!

2009-06-01T21:39:00.004-05:00

I just got back from visiting my lovely friend Lindsay, her sweet husband Enos, and her GORGEOUS son, Lucas.

The trip couldn't have been better, except maybe to have been longer. We had the best time together, and I was instantly in love with Lucas, who is like, even 10 times cuter in person, IF you can believe it. I was horrible at getting pictures, but some of the ones I got are below. Lucas was not one for photo shoots! He would be giving me these ear to ear grins, and as soon as I would bust out the camera, he'd be all... 'no.'

The highlights of the trip included:

Sitting in the back seat with Lucas, who thought having someone else back there was SO funny!
Many, many Jamba Juices (Mango-A-Go-Go, of course)
IKEA!!
Seeing the Pixar movie UP, it was excellent.
Thai Village for Thai food and the Red Iguana for Mexican. YUM!!
Watching falling videos on Youtube, and laughing so hard we were hurting.
Baking a sinful Reese's peanut butter cake together, which was better than we even thought it would be.
Sewing throw pillow covers with fabric we got at Ikea.
Absolutely endless laughing... and singing... and impressions.
Spending time with a dear friend and her marvelous family.

I miss you guys already, thanks so much for having me!

Looky looky!

2009-05-27T12:30:00.000-05:00

Little baby tomatoes have made a debut! I'm so proud!

Haiku

2009-05-21T22:28:00.000-05:00

Contacts bugging me
Wishing I had Bang Bang Shrimp
You know, from Bonefish

It's been a month today, but I have news!

2009-05-20T22:42:00.000-05:00

I know I've been a crap blogger lately. Sorry. I'll try harder, I will. I was sitting there feeling guilty for not blogging, thinking to myself, "But there's nothing to blog about... nothing new is happening..." Then I realized that, why, YES, yes there IS something new!

Today I interviewed to be a CASA volunteer. And I did great and they accepted me, and so now I am one! There's training first, and that doesn't start until July, but still! So, there. That's my news. Bye.

=====================================

Oh, what was that? Oh, you don't know what on earth CASA is or why I would want to volunteer with them? Well, then let me tell you:

CASA stands for Court Appointed Special Advocates. You can visit their website here, as long as you promise not to pre-judge based on their apparent spokesperson: Dr. Phil. Actually, this is new information for me, as this is the first time I've visited the national CASA site and not the local chapter's. Anyway, I digress.

CASA volunteers act as an advocate for a child who is in the child welfare system because he or she is abused or neglected at home. Volunteers undergo special training to prepare them, and once they're ready, each is assigned one case, which they see through until the child is in a safe, permanent home, either with their own families or a new family. They provide an unbiased voice in court for that child, and also ensure that the child is never "lost in the system." They conduct research and interviews to assess the child's situation, and make recommendations to the court. I am told that in Memphis, CASA volunteers are enormously respected in juvenile court and that their recommendations are upheld by judges in about 90% or more of their cases. Even after the judgement in a child's case, CASA volunteers continue contact with that child to make sure the judgement is being implemented fully.

The child welfare system is overburdened, and often children do not get the support they need to ensure the outcome that is in their best interests. CASA began in Seattle in 1977, and was so successful that judges across the country began employing a similar protocol. CASA volunteers try to give the judge a complete picture of the child's situation, and are a constant champion for that child until his or her case is resolved.

Although I am nervous about the prospect of hearing about horrific abuse to an actual little child that I can see and touch (I know this will be different than reading or hearing about it), I feel really good about doing this. I am excited to be involved in something that really, truly makes and immediate and tangible difference to a child who needs it. It's a big (huge, really) commitment for me and my family, but I really want to make it work. The training program is 3 nights a week for a month, and a case can be anywhere from 10 to 20 hours per month in research, interviews, writing reports, and attending court dates. Wish me luck!

Everything's Amazing, Nobody's Happy

2009-04-20T19:42:00.000-05:00

Wish I could embed this, but that was disabled on this video, so you'll have to go to this link to see this video.

So funny, and could it BE anymore true!? Best quote: "How quickly the world owes him something that he knew existed only 10 seconds ago!"

My first sewing creation!

2009-04-16T18:53:00.001-05:00

Don't look too closely! Addison loves it! She named it Coraline!
Hm...

We're RADICALS! (Tax Day Protest)

2009-04-15T20:48:00.002-05:00

Well, we had a great experience at our first ever political demonstration. There was a fantastic turn out, and nary an extremist in sight. The only thing I saw that made me cringe was a guy whose t-shirt had a picture of Barack Obama with bullet holes imposed on it. Not cool, dude, not cool.

The kids and I made signs earlier in the day. I went back and forth on whether I wanted the kids to carry signs. On the one hand, I wanted them to be involved, but on the other I'm not looking to indoctrinate them and am very conscious of how they will look back on photos of their experience. Maybe when they're grown up, they won't share my beliefs, and I don't want them feeling like I "used" them when they didn't know better.

But they were both very eager to carry signs like Mom and Dad, so I decided to make their signs something very neutral and non-provocative. Their signs ended up being HUGE hits. We had at least 10 people ask to take their photos, it was so funny. Pearson was hamming it up. At one point, this guy really wanted us to get in front of the camera for Channel 3 News because he thought our kids had the best signs! We didn't, but it was cool!

The crowd was very peaceful, but very energetic at the same time, and I was so pleased with the overall atmosphere. TONS of passing cars honked and shouted their support as they passed. It was great.

I am really glad we went and showed that we were a few of the many Americans who are displeased with the direction of our country right now. We're spending at an alarming rate, and for what? Our government already mishandles and squanders the money they already have, and they just keep wanting more. More money simply does not mean better results, just as more government intervention does not mean problems solved. Here's hoping the message was heard!

WAY too many pictures!

2009-04-14T17:26:00.002-05:00

Addison eating a foot long hot dog. We found this very funny.

Addison, having drawn on her arm and fearing getting in trouble, had tried to lick the marker off.

Pearson LOVED this creepy little spider.

The kids getting ready for an Easter egg hunt.

My herb pot experiment! We shall see...

Parsley. YUM! There is also thyme, basil, and dill. All my faves!

My newest acquisition. I've been thinking a lot lately about not having some very basic, self-sufficient skills. Hence the herbs and the sewing machine. I'm going to take some sewing lessons!

I already put it to use when Pearson tore his blanket.

It's not perfect, obviously, but he's so happy his blanket isn't "dead"!

The close-ups I promised of my mom's felt food! LOVELY!

Poptart!

Egg and cookie.

Dunkin Donuts. Now 1/4 mile from my house! Eek!

I babysat Jax when he was here one night. It was SO FUN! I want another baby, have I mentioned that!?

We painted this weekend. My room is now white with one dark gray wall. We LOVE LOVE LOVE it!! We need some white bedding (and drapes, and decorations, and new furniture) to complete the look. This is what inspired it.

No explanation needed!!

Anatomy of a fail:

2009-04-13T19:06:00.004-05:00

I do not need anymore chocolate. I had too much over the weekend.

But there are all those Dove eggs left, they're my favorite, and once they're gone they're gone.

Yes, but that doesn't mean I need to pig out right now.

No, I don't, but really, what difference does that make? I can have a bunch now or I can spread them out over a few days. It's the same amount of calories and fat, and it's not like I'm going to buy any more.

True. But I did already have 4 today. Oh wait, I had 4 twice, so I had 8 today.

That's not that many! [looking at nutritionals on bag] Weeeell...

I just need ONE little chocolate fix after dinner. That's all. Just one!

Ok, I'm going to eat one of the little off-brand chocolate crunchies in Jerad's drawer. I can never eat just one Dove, they're too good. But the buddy-brand chocolate won't tempt me further, it will just satisfy my chocolate urges.

[ Crunch crunch crunch... Ew... Crunch ew crunch. Ew ew crunch. Seriously, ew.]

These are gross.

Yup.

How can chocolate be so not good? The kids LOVED them.

Their pallets are sooooo much less sophisticated. [Swigs the peach tea flavored Crystal Light]

Ok, so I need to probably have just one Dove egg, you know, to get the taste out of my mouth.

Good idea! But just one.

Totally. [Tips bag into hand. One eggs falls into palm, a second falls to the floor.]

Ok, I have to eat that now. It's, like, a sign.

I could just put it back. They're individually wrapped and all.

But clearly I was meant to have it. Besides, what's one more?

Word.

Special delivery!!

2009-04-06T15:50:00.001-05:00

A package came today from my mom! It was filled with all kinds of goodies! Pearson got his own apron, and Addison got a whole bunch of handmade felt food!!! She is so tickled she can't stand it! She also got two little stuffed monsters that are too cute for words! How lucky are we to have such a thoughtful and crafty GiGi!?!

I'll have to take better pictures once our computer is hooked back up (we're flooring the bedroom), because the food is wonderfully detailed! I almost wish I'd have hidden the box and put them in their Easter baskets, but then GiGi wouldn't have gotten the credit!

Thanks, Mom! Now, get that Etsy shop going!!!

How would you answer these life questions, from a 5 year old?

2009-03-31T16:42:00.001-05:00

Pearson has the most insanely deep, complicated, and difficult questions. Often they're things I just don't know, like what kind of food a mollusk eats. But I can usually look those up and answer him (different mollusks eat different things, some are herbivores, somes are omnivores, some are carnivores, and some are detritovores, meaning they eat dead things).

But more and more, the questions are... harder. Please see below for both his questions and their progressions with my attempted answers:

How do babies get into mommies' tummies?

When a grown-up man and a grown-up woman love each other, they can make a baby together. The man puts a seed into the mommy, and it grows into a baby in her tummy.

Does she eat the seed?

Uhhh... No...

How does the seed get in there?

How do babies get out of mommies' tummies?

Some mommies go to the doctor and get a small cut on their bellies, where the doctor takes the baby out and then sews her up.

Did you get cut?

No... my babies were born a different way...

How? How did me and Addison get out of your belly?

When all the grown-ups were babies, who took care of them?

Well, when I was a baby, I had a mom, which is GiGi. When my mom was a baby, she had a mom, which is Grandma. When Grandma was a baby, she had a mom. That's how it works for everybody. Moms have babies and then the babies grow up, and as grown-ups they have their own babies.

What about the first babies? Who took care of them? Did God make all grown-ups?

Well, the Bible says God started with 2 grown ups, Adam and Eve. They had their own babies.

Then their babies had babies?

Yes.

But you can't marry your sister. How did those people have babies with each other?

How are those idiots ruining our country?

Oh, your dad and I are just worried about the choices some people are making right now. They're doing things that we don't think are good.

Are they trying to rule the world?

Well, sort of. But it's not like in a Batman movie. The people voted and chose them to make choices for the country.

So the people picked the bad guys?

...................

Yeah, I'm totally in over my head!

Donuts and Books

2009-03-18T19:58:00.000-05:00

I'm on some sort of self-imposed, but subconscious computer hiatus. Well, not a true hiatus, mind you, because I do check my email every day, but lately, that's pretty much it. The house being in disarray due to our projects has me all backward...

A Dunkin Donuts just opened less than a mile from my house. The universe is conspiring to make me fat. I am especially sure of this because of the coupon for a dozen free donut holes they gave me on my inaugural visit.

Also, I am in LOVE with the book my aunt, Adrianne, selected for our next book club pick. Oh my gosh. I love this man's writing. My favorite sentence so far: "Trust me, though, the words were on their way, and when they arrived, Liesel would hold them in her hands like the clouds, and she would wring them out like the rain." I read that sentence over and over. I'm only on page 123 of 550, but I plan on reading this a little slower than I generally read. It's fantastic.

Catching up!

2009-03-10T20:43:00.001-05:00

First, we have pictures of playing the snow last weekend (this weekend, it was a balmy 75 degrees). The kids had a blast, even with their makeshift snow clothes. See if you can spot socks as gloves and rain galoshes as snow boots!

Next, here are some pictures of our progress with the home improvements. Please bear in mind that we are still very much a construction zone, so things are quite messy. We were so optimistically clueless this weekend, thinking that Jerad and Shane would be done with the entire house in less than 2 days... Sadly the guys spent literally every waking hour the entire weekend working their butts off and finished with the living room and kitchen. We totally owe Shane some serious manual labor in his backyard this summer, he was so great! In addition to the flooring, we have a lot more work to do, including painting the doors and baseboards, adding decorative elements such as drapes and stuff on the walls, and reorganizing everything so our stuff fits better and makes more sense. But, here's where we are so far:

In other news, today I posted a Craigslist ad for our piece o' crap playset in the backyard. I listed it for free if they could come pick it up, and even included a picture of it in all its sad, faded glory. I got about 40 emails about it within 20 minutes, many of which included pleas about how much their children would love it, how strapped for cash they were, what a blessing it was to come across my ad, how they lost their jobs, how they babysit kids would be over the moon for it... Oh my gosh. So now I have to let like 39 of these people know that I can't give them my yard garbage, which they would appreciate about a zillion times more than I do. I feel so bad.

And now you see why "the yard" is yet another project on our endless list!

Linkage:

Awesome robot toothbrush holders!

Easter toys for under $10.

Cute, custom children's art necklace!

Very funny: How to get your family out of financial crisis!

Craigslist prank on ex-boyfriend landed this chick in the pokey!

Amazon launches a game trade-in service.

Is it disgusting that I really want to make these?

Jamba Juice: Steel cut oatmeal for $1 thru the end of the month. Sad, I don't live near one!

Fried Rice

2009-03-03T20:03:00.000-06:00

I adore fried rice. It combines two of my favorite things (fried + rice). Sigh. My favorite fried rice is generally what comes with Hibachi meals. You know, the kind that's made right in front of you... Yum! My favorite sushi places also have good fried rice. Until recently, I never made it at home, believing that it was just one of those things that can never be really, really good made by the home chef. Boy, was I ever wrong. I now have two fried rice recipes that are both SUPER yummy and completely reasonable for weeknight meals. And I will tell you the secret to yummy fried rice: COLD, leftover rice and don't be afraid of high heat.

The first is from Ellie Krieger, the healthy cooking chef on Food Network. Her stuff is usually pretty good, and very, very healthy. Here's the recipe for her vegetarian fried rice:

Fried Rice with Scallions, Edamame and Tofu

(source)

Ingredients

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon canola oil, divided
2 large cloves garlic, minced
4 scallions, greens included, rinsed, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon minced ginger
4 cups leftover cooked brown rice
3/4 cup finely diced red pepper
3/4 cup cooked, shelled edamame
1/2 cup fresh or frozen, thawed, corn
6 ounces firm tofu, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
2 eggs, beaten
3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

Directions

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a wok or large skillet until very hot. Add the garlic, scallions and ginger and cook, stirring, until softened and aromatic, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the rice, red pepper, edamame, corn and tofu and cook, stirring, until heated through, about 5 minutes. Make a 3-inch well in the center of the rice mixture. Add 1 teaspoon of canola oil, then add the eggs and cook until nearly fully scrambled. Stir the eggs into the rice mixture, then add soy sauce and incorporate thoroughly. Serve hot.

The other recipe I'm loving is from Cooking Light. This is the one the kids scarf down like it's going to run away! What makes it special is the green bean flecks going throughout it, which are crunchy, but not onions (the kids wouldn't dig them if they were).

Ham and Egg Fried Rice

(source)

Ingredients

4 cups cold cooked long-grain rice
1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 cup thinly horizontally sliced green beans
3/4 cup diced ham (about 4 ounces)
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
2 1/2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup (1-inch) slices green onions

Preparation

1. Break up rice with hands to remove large clumps, if necessary.
2. Heat a 14-inch wok over high heat. Add canola oil to wok, swirling to coat. Add 1 1/2 cups onion and garlic to wok; stir-fry 1 minute or until onion begins to brown. Add beans and ham; stir-fry 2 minutes or until ham begins to brown.
3. Reduce heat to medium-high. Add cold rice to wok; stir-fry 2 minutes. Stir in soy sauce, sesame oil, and black pepper. Push rice mixture up sides of wok. Pour eggs in open space in center of wok; cook 30 seconds or until set, stirring to scramble. Gently stir scrambled eggs into rice mixture. Sprinkle with green onions.

Enjoy!

Snow, Decorating, and Linkage!

2009-03-01T10:12:00.000-06:00

Sorry for the slow blogging lately! I figure if you don't have anything interesting to say, don't say anything at all. :)

I have the pictures from Pearson's birthday party last weekend, but I left the disk at work, so I can't post them... Oops! But I do have a few other things to fill you in on:

It snowed some yesterday, and even more last night, so this is what it looked like this morning:

Unfortunately, neither I or the kids have any gloves or hats or appropriate shoes, so we haven't gone out in it yet. We may get brave before the day is over, though.

I have two websites I wanted to share that I am completely in love with! The first is decor8, an amazing design site with TONS of inspiration and beautiful things. From her About section:

Launched in January ‘06, decor8 is a design blog dedicated to sharing decorating ideas, interiors, independent art and design, products and services, and to inspire readers to live a more fulfilling, creative life.

[...] decor8 is updated daily featuring everything from sofas to stationery along with product reviews, reader discounts, contests, interviews, store and home tours, do-it-yourself projects, and trade show coverage. Topics on small business ownership, blogging, and independent design are also discussed and meant to encourage and engage readers.

The second is Chez Larsson, by a Swedish woman named Benita Larsson. She blogs about her home and hobbies, and posts information on the amazing projects she undertakes in her spectacular (and TINY) house. She's done many home tours for different publications, so check one out to see how cool her house is.

And of course, you may notice that these blogs have something in common. Perhaps this picture can offer some explanation for where my head is:

Our living room and kitchen are currently a disaster area as we are in the midst of repainting. Next weekend, if all goes well, we should be installing laminate flooring. It's horrible to have the house in such upheaval, but exciting that maybe we can make some progress in improving our home. I've never had the money / time / inspiration to really decorate our house and make it look the way I want it, and I really believe it is a source of negative energy in my life to live somewhere that I really don't enjoy and am not proud of. Now that Jerad is out of school and has more time to spend on these kinds of projects, I hope that can change! We're mainly fixing things up to sell, but there's no reason that I can't use the opportunity to acquire a better sense of what I want and what I will do in the house we eventually buy. Besides that, we're stuck here for at least a year so we might as well, right?! Right!

Linkage:

A very inspiring girl's room makeover, done very inexpensively.

New generation of Polaroids: a tiny printer! WANT ONE!

A free option for workout videos: video podcasts.

The ultimate Coca-Cola collection! I used to "collect" Coke cans... And by collect, I mean I had, like, 7 of them.

The Lego cake I made for Pearson, after he and Addison had chosen their pieces...

I plan on writing a longer post about this at some point, but KidZui is absolutely the GREATEST program if you have young children that want to use the computer and internet.

Who is Jerad, really...

2009-02-23T21:15:00.001-06:00

As I am having trouble coming up with my own topics to write about, I guess I can rip off a meme from someone else's blog... I don't write a whole lot about Jerad anyway, so this is a good chance to let everyone in a few of his quirks and get to know him better.

1. He's sitting in front of the TV, what is on the screen ? Battlestar Gallactica, or History Channel (anything about a war), or Discovery Channel (on something boring about how they make boats or something)

2. You're out to eat, what kind of dressing does he get on his salad? Ranch. But if he's feeling a little more sophisticated, he does like a nice vinaigrette as well.

3. What's one food he doesn't like? Capers. He's a vacuum, he eats everything, but I always say capers because once I tried mixing cheese and capers into scrambled eggs at a friend's recommendation, and he HATED it. HATED. I liked it, but he wouldn't even finish his helping, which is saying a LOT.

4. You go out to eat, what does he order to drink? Dr. Pepper, unless he's on the wagon for the frugality plan, in which case, water!

5. Where did he go to high school? Somewhere local, and if you hadn't asked, I could have told you.

6. What size shoe does he wear? 11 1/2... I'm reasonably certain...

7. If he was to collect anything, what would it be? Hmm... he's not a collector at all, but probably if he was it would be reference books. He freaking LOVES those.

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich? Steak and cheese? He doesn't have a particular brand of sandwich he loves, but anything with TONS of stuff on it makes him happy: peppers, onions, olives, pickles, vinegar, olive oil, mayo, mustard, you name it.

9. What would this person eat every day if he could? Steak and potatoes, hands down.

10. What is his favorite cereal? Now, he won't admit this, and he doesn't have it very often because I don't want the kids having it, but he LOVES the super sugary, nutritionally empty cereals like Cocoa Pebbles and Cap'n Crunch.

11. What would he never wear? Anything too tight, and by too tight, I mean barely tight at all. He likes loose clothes.

12. What is his favorite sports team? No sports, thankfully!

13. Who did he vote for? Same person I did, and didn't seem any happier about it. He lost.

14. Who is his best friend? Moi! We're homebodies, so it's just default!

15. What is something you do that he wishes you wouldn't do? Criticize.

16. What is his heritage? White. Some European blend.

17. You bake him a cake for his birthday; what kind of cake? Chocolate cake with chocolate icing. But he'd rather have donuts or brownies than cake.

18. Did he play sports in high school? A little basketball, but he's never been a sports person.

19. What could he spend hours doing? Video games. I don't know their names, but the kind where you're looking through the character's eyes... there's a word for it but I can't remember it.

20. What is one unique talent he has? He is the BEST cleaner in the entire world. Dusting, vacuuming, dishes, laundry, he does it all to perfection! NO, not really, but wouldn't that be dreamy!? Ha! Actually, he's a nurse, so he has many unique talents, including the ability to place IVs, perform CPR, and identify the symptoms of a heart attack!

Golden Potato-Leek Soup with Cheddar Toasts

2009-02-19T20:10:00.000-06:00

Dinner tonight was fab-u-lous! So fabulous, indeed, that I had to share the recipe. As always, I made a few modifications, so my edits are in green. Here's a picture of the result, and to make it more appetizing, it's followed by a picture of what it would have looked like if I'd had professional styling and lighting crews:

Original recipe here.

Golden Potato-Leek Soup with Cheddar Toasts

Yield 8 servings (serving size: about 1 cup soup and 1 toast)

Ingredients
Soup:

1 tablespoon butter (I ended up needing 1 1/2 T)
3 cups thinly sliced leek (about 3 medium)
6 cups cubed peeled Yukon gold potato (about 2 1/4 pounds)
2 cups water (I used chicken broth instead of water because I don't love vegetable broth and thought the combination would be better)
1/2 teaspoon salt (1 t)
2 (14-ounce) cans organic vegetable broth (such as Swanson Certified Organic)
2 thyme sprigs

Cheddar Toasts:

8 (1/4-inch-thick) slices diagonally cut sourdough French bread baguette Cooking spray (I did a half loaf... maybe 16 slices. We ate them all!)
1/2 cup(2 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese (maybe slightly more. enough to give a sprinkle to each toast)
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

Remaining Ingredients:

1/3 cup whipping cream
(approximately 1/2 cup frozen corn - I had some left over and thought it would be good in the soup. IT WAS!)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Thyme sprigs (optional)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°.
To prepare soup, melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add leek; cook 10 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally (do not brown).
Add potatoes, water, salt, broth, and 2 thyme sprigs. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes or until potatoes are very tender.
To prepare cheddar toasts, place baguette slices in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 375° for 7 minutes or until toasted. Turn slices over; coat with cooking spray, and sprinkle 1 tablespoon cheese (I needed less) over each slice. Bake 5 minutes or until cheese melts. Sprinkle evenly with red pepper.
Remove pan from heat; discard thyme sprigs. Partially mash potatoes with a potato masher; add corn, let heat through for 1 - 2 minutes; stir in cream. Sprinkle with black pepper. Serve with cheddar toasts. Garnish with thyme sprigs, if desired.

This is so delicious and easy, and fantastic for the cold weather. Hope you try it!

Plus a little Linkage:

2009-02-18T22:16:00.000-06:00

I would so want this if it weren't a bajillion dollars!

Awesome: a visual search tool for shoes, handbags, etc.

I've heard about several of these "taxpayer protests" and am heartened that they're happening. I'd love to go to one.

Cute rock n' roll wall decals for boys.

Whole wheat chocolate chip cookie recipe... I think I'll try it now that I have whole wheat flour anyway!

A MUST BOOKMARK if you use Netflix streaming!

A really adorable album for new parents!

Cardboard fort! So cool!

How great are these lunchboxes!?

The Bubba Turned FIVE!

2009-02-18T21:52:00.000-06:00

My wonderful son turned 5 today! Happy Birthday, Bub! We started the day with his request for breakfast (pancakes) and ended it with his dinner request (boxed mac and cheese and edemame) and one of his birthday presents (Connectagons).

Pearson has been a joy since the moment I met him. I am incredibly lucky to be his mom.

Real food!

2009-02-10T19:39:00.078-06:00

Photo by Miles Evenson

Isn't it funny how some things happen so serendipitously? One day very recently, I stumbled upon this book about the importance of eating "real food." That is, unprocessed, non-industrialized REAL FOOD. I was intrigued enough to add it to my Amazon Wish List (I could do a whole other post on how much I adore Amazon's Universal Wish List, but anyway...). Visiting the author's website gave me a lot to think about in regards to the kinds of food I eat and all the research findings I didn't like reading.

Then a bumper sticker that read "No Farms, No Food" caught my eye one day and so I did some Googling, and it ended up being about a lot of the same stuff.

Finally, today it started seeming like the universe was trying to tell me something. Nikki sent me a link that a friend had shared with her. It just so happened to be to a farm in Arkansas that does something called CSA, or Community Supported Agriculture. Basically, they offer a "subscription" to their produce, and each week, your fee earns you a box of their fresh, local, seasonal harvest. As someone already in love with farmer's markets, this is fantastic! There are two locations available in Memphis to go pick up your goodies, and the cost for a week's worth of produce seems quite reasonable. Needless to say, I've filled out my application!

So officially starting in May, during the 4 weeks I've signed up for so far, I am going to try eating a lot more "real" and see how much of our industrialized foods we can cut out of our diets. I discovered last week how easy even homemade whole wheat bread is, so maybe it won't be that hard! Of course, I'll keep you updated!

Linkage:

The king of all ice cream scoops!

First hands-on with the Kindle 2. I'm in love!

It's easier than ever to switch to the most superior webmail around!

I've never wanted a mini-laptop before, but wow.

Milton Friedman schooling Donahue on capitalism.

If you use Firefox, Ubiquity is probably the greatest thing since... well... Firefox.

Some cute Valentine's Day toys. Ok, that could easily be misinterpreted...

Happy Year of the Ox!

2009-02-03T20:28:00.016-06:00

This weekend my Grandma and I hosted a dinner party in honor of Chinese New Year. I saw some recipes in Cooking Light that looked fun, and when I told her about them, she said, "Let's do it!" How amazing is my Grandma!?

It was just local family, so I didn't feel too bad when the potstickers didn't make it out of the pan in once piece, or the shrimp was overcooked, or the salad got 4 times as much ginger as it was supposed to. The food was still good and it was actually really fun for me.

Here's a slideshow of the food and fun, if you're interested:

And the recipes (along with visuals of what they SHOULD have looked like:

Chinese Potstickers

Double Mango Pudding

Stir-Fried Shrimp

Long Life Noodles

Spicy Sweet and Sour Chicken

Stir-Fried Bok Choy and Lettuce with Mushroom

My fellow bookworms!

2009-02-03T19:29:00.062-06:00

Ok, so who has read Unaccustomed Earth? I know AD has, and Maegan got it, but I don't know if she read it. Grandma read it. Carla and Mom, I want to say you were thinking about it? Nikki has been too busy with tax season. Extended family, Jamie, Melanie? George tribe, what about you? Mary, I know you read it even if you didn't join my book club. Aaaand that about covers all the people who visit this blog...

Anywho, let's start talking about it! What did everyone think? Which was your favorite story? Isn't Jhumpa Lahiri incredibly insightful into the way people think, the way people act?

Of course, I adored the book. My favorite story was probably the title story, Unaccustomed Earth, I think, but they are all lovely. The dynamic of the father and daughter, and the many things that go unsaid is so relatable. It was beautiful to see both sides of the secret the father kept. You knew why he would keep it, and you knew why it would hurt when his daughter found out.

Obviously, a common theme in all her stories (all her books, really) is the blending of the Indian and American cultures, and how it affects these families trying to assimilate. And although I can't relate to being an immigrant, most of the issues these characters face are pretty universal: acceptance, judgement, disappointment, comfort. And Lahiri's insight into their emotions is almost unnerving.

So, keep the discussion going, tell me what you thought!

=======================================

AD, you should host the next book club, so let us know what to read!

=======================================

Linkage:

The perfect children's tea set!

Make your handwriting into your own font! (Melanie already tried it and it looks awesome!)

Why the size of government really does matter.

In case you missed it, we don't WANT a new New Deal!!

Adopt a word to save it from extinction! Love it!

Kirby is home!!

2009-02-02T14:19:00.006-06:00

In case you were worried, fret not anymore! Someone called during lunch today and had her about a half mile from our house. She looked like she had been wandering around since we lost her: she was matted, filthy, and STUNK like you couldn't believe... but she seems physically fine. Emotionally is another story... she's really skiddish and scared, and cried a lot. I'm sure she'll be back to her old self before you know it! I'm just glad she's alright!

Where, oh, where can our little dog be?

2009-01-30T19:43:00.035-06:00

Yesterday morning Kirby got lost. Jerad let her out to pee and didn't pay attention. Our yard not being entirely fenced, shock of shocks, she wandered off. She was wearing her tags with my phone number, so I was totally convinced my phone would ring before lunchtime. It didn't. I wasn't that upset about it until bedtime, partly because I was still in denial and had been thinking all day that she wouldn't be gone that long, and partly because when night finally hit, I realized how cold and hungry she would be out there alone. Most of my family are convinced that someone has taken her in, but I can't seem to be that optimistic. I am still convinced she's either starving, freezing, or hurt (or all of the above).

Even though she had her tag, we've done all the recommended things, just in case. We've been to the shelter, called animal control and the Humane Society. I talked to neighborhood kids on my way home from work, and driven around our neighborhood with me and the kids yelling for her all the way. And still no Kirby.

Pearson is going to have a hard time with this if she doesn't come back. He loves her more than any of us, and never forgets ANYTHING. This sucks.

Linkage:

I love these baby blankets!! Brilliant!

And I love this diaper bag! (Hmmm, wonder where my head is?...)

Getting creative with an Ikea bunkbed! (Same one Addison has!)

In a sentence, why print is doomed.

An iPhone app that tells you which celebrity you resemble... it told me I look like Joy Bryant, who is very pretty but looks absolutely nothing like me.

Thoughts on government's optimal size.

My Reader exploded with TAG!

2009-01-26T19:10:00.080-06:00

So I go to check my reader this afternoon, and everyone and their dog has been tagged! I'll play along, especially since I didn't have anything orginal to write about today!

8 Favorite TV shows:
(not all recent, but the only one I watch regularly anymore is The Office)

1. The Office
2. 30 Rock
3. Law & Order (The original, baby! The re-runs on TBS)
4. King of Queens
5. Friends
6. Forensic Files
7. Seinfeld
8. ER (The ones back in the day. It kinda sucks now.)

8 Things I did Yesterday:

1. Made myself a No-Pudge Brownie
2. Brushed my teeth
3. Talked to my sister on the phone
4. Caught up with my work email
5. Made all the beds in the house
6. Folded ALL the laundry in the house
7. Made ribeyes with thyme shallot reduction, twice baked potatoes, and green beans
8. Tried to catch up with my feeds, but failed... is that something I didn't do then?

8 Things I Look Forward to:

1. Having another child
2. Pearson learning to read
3. Addison night-time potty training
4. My Chinese New Year dinner party I'm throwing with my Grandma this weekend
5. My sister's next visit
6. Warmer weather
7. Having NO DEBT
8. Moving out of this house

8 Favorite Restaurants:

1. Deli Mexicana
2. Wesabi (might be gone forever after a drug ring was busted there recently)
3. Tsunami
4. Royal Panda
5. Bonefish
6. India Palace
7. Saigon Le
8. Soulfish

8 Things I Wish for:

1. The continued good health of those I love
2. World peace
3. The US adopting more libertarian principals
4. Happy children
5. Keeping a sharp mind, and continuing to learn
6. My mom and sister living near me
7. Children with good values
8. A strong and loving marriage

8 People I tagged:
Everyone who reads my blog has already been tagged, because everyone who reads my blog is related to me... I take that back... Everyone who reads my blog is either related to ME or to my friend LINDSAY! So I tag Lindsay and everyone related to her! HA!

==========================================

The Return of:
LINKAGE:

Kindle 2 dropping soon? Signs point to YES!

And I thought Pearson's tantrums over the Wii were bad...

"Business cards" for moms. They're way pretty!

Free coffee and breakfast at Panera Bread tomorrow.

The new Newbery and Caldecott Metal award winners!

Taking the "glass half-full" approach to the state of affairs.

This recession is not a failure of market economics.

I love optical illusions, so I want this!

Worried about bad breath!?

P + A

2009-01-25T09:07:00.002-06:00

Addison when she learned about baby teeth:

2009-01-24T17:42:00.003-06:00

This is Addison 10 seconds after me explaining to Pearson that his teeth will fall out for his grown-up teeth to grow in. She was hysterical. "I don't want my teeth to fall oooouuuutttt!!! I won't eat anymore!!! Nooooooooo!!!!!!"

Despite my effort to explain that her teeth grow right back, she was not consoled. This has been, for her, devastating news indeed.

The least productive business trip ever

2009-01-20T15:43:00.002-06:00

So I came to Asheville, North Carolina with my boss to drum up business in anticipation of our new office opening here. We had several meetings scheduled with potential clients in the region.

After an 8 hour drive through what was basically a blizzard, we got here yesterday afternoon. We had a meeting scheduled this morning with a community college about an hour away, and another one this afternoon with a local arboretum. After driving out to the college this morning and discovering vacant parking lots and locked doors, we figured out that school was cancelled due to the weather. And yet... It didn't occur to us that the arboretum might also be closed before we headed over there this afternoon. It was.

There is still hope for tomorrow, but today was a total bust. Well, maybe not a total bust, since I did get some super cute shoes when I discovered my stillettos were way out of place here in laid-back Asheville.

I am officially a published author!!

2009-01-15T19:30:00.001-06:00

Ok... perhaps that is a sliiiiight exaggeration, but the NieNie book is ready to sell! I'm ridiculously flattered to be included, and really humbled to be even a small part of helping Stephanie Nielson, who couldn't be more deserving.

My aunt announced on her blog today some wonderful news! NieNie is actually rejoining the blogosphere tomorrow! I can hardly believe it! I can't wait to hear from her.

We Battle the Wii

2009-01-13T19:36:00.000-06:00

I really shouldn't generalize when it comes to my kids. Every time I do, they end up proving me wrong. If I say Addison is a great eater, the cosmos align so that she turns her nose up at her food for weeks. If I say my kids are great at sitting through movies, they act a fool in the theater and force us to remove them to the hall.

So it is with great caution that I say that... lately... Pearson has... kinda... sorta... been... well, themostagreeablechildonthefaceoftheearth. Shhhhh... I'm waiting for a scream from the next room...

And I mean that as far as cooperating goes. He's in this weird, annoying-is-funny stage, which I could definitely do without, but the child does what he's told, goes with the flow, and gets into minimal mischief. He will even clean up on his own and do a good job of it! However... there is one area where we've been having some difficulty lately...

The Wii.

During the holidays we got pretty lenient with our digital entertainment rules. The kids are generally limited to whatever time there is between bath and bed for their movie / computer / video game time. This can be an hour and a half on some nights, and on other's it's barely a half hour. It just depends on how efficient our evening ritual is that night. During the holidays, we kind of let them watch movies and play the Wii... a lot. A LOT lot. So when we went back to school last week, it's been a hard adjustment for Pearson that he can't turn the Wii on whenever he wants. We seemed to have conquered the Giant-Tantrum stage, and have moved on to him asking every. five. minutes. if he can play the dang thing.

Picking him up from school:

Me: Hey bud, how was your day today!?

Him: Good. Mom, can I play the Wii tonight?

Ugh.

But, I'll give him this... he's impressive on Crash Bandicoot. He can beat levels that HIS DAD struggles with! And it's been an important motivational tool for when I serve broccoli!

Lovely art from my lovely son:

2009-01-07T22:03:00.003-06:00

An "I love you" note from Christmas.

Me and him.

Book Club: Let's DO this thing!

2009-01-05T18:49:00.001-06:00

Ok, so I've been desperately racking my brain to come up with my selection for the first book of the book club. I don't even know how many of us will truly, truly keep up with this, so maybe it's wasted effort... but in any event, I think I have a winner.

First I will tell you about the books I considered before settling on my final choice:

I started with Your Money or Your Life,which is the first book that they are reading on Simple Mom, but decided that I didn't want to start with non-fiction, self-help. And I also wasn't sure if anyone else would like it.

Then I looked at The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, which is about a fat nerd whose family is cursed. It was eliminated because it was nearly 400 pages long! And I also wasn't sure if anyone else would like it.

I was interested in a memoir called Hurry Down Sunshine. It's about a father dealing with his daughter's battle with mental illness. Seemed a little heavy, plus I wasn't sure if anyone else would like it.

I also considered a comedic novel like one from John Swartzwelder, but really, I wasn't sure if anyone else would like it.

So then I finally pondered the comment that someone left about recommending books we've already read, and decided that this was a good idea. I selected Unaccustomed Earth, an amazing collection of short stories from one of my favorite authors, Jhumpa Lahiri. I read it as soon as it came out in the spring of 2008, and absolutely loved it. I don't even generally care for short stories, but I adored her previous book of short stories, Interpreter of Maladies, and her novel, The Namesake, so I had little doubt I would like these, too.

Let's plan on having it read by the middle of next month and talking about it starting February 15. I think it's fast reading so hopefully this will be enough time to get it either from the bookstore or from the library and then to read it. What do you guys think? Is 6 weeks too long, too short? And who wants to host next?!

So, there you have it! The first reading we'll do together! Woo hoo! Of course, I'm still not sure if anyone else will like it...

Pearson: The Overly Enthusiastic Star-Wars Battler!

2009-01-03T17:34:00.002-06:00

Here is what Pearson looks like playing a game of Star Wars on the Wii:

(Plus, if you watch the whole minute, you'll get a cameo from Addison who found a box of packed away summer clothes from 2 years ago...)

By the way, the coffee table was actually placed there as a buffer between him and the TV... for obvious reasons...

Addison: The Little Baker

2008-12-30T11:50:00.001-06:00

Addison LOVES to cook. Mainly, she's been interested in REAL cooking, but with her new room, she got a little kitchen nook and then Christmas brought some new kitchen goodies! Now, she's just as interested in pretend cooking and asks me all the time, "Will you come play with me in my kitchen, Mom!?" Now, how do you say no to THAT?! Answer: you don't! You occasionally delay ("Right after I get dressed, I will come play with you!"), but she always reminds you when you're done with what you said you were going to do ("You're dressed! Now you can come play with me!")!

She is so adorable in her little nook, cracking her wooden egg, mixing in her bowl, and popping things in and out of the oven. And she always shares her homemade goodies with her babies and her family.

Plus one of the Jax-man!

2008-12-26T21:24:00.001-06:00

Christmas Slideshow!

2008-12-26T21:10:00.002-06:00

We had a wonderful Christmas full of family and food! Christmas Eve was spent at the best Chinese food place in town, Royal Panda, a new Christmas tradition. The kids were thrilled with their loot and we had an amazing dinner at Nikki and Shane's house. We are so glad to have my sister, Maegan, and her son, Jax, here with us, and Jax has been a joy.

The kids got digital cameras for Christmas, and they were their favorite gifts this year. I've included some of their masterpieces in the slideshow! Hope you enjoy, and hope you had a wonderful holiday, too!

Testing the waters on Twitter

2008-12-21T21:33:00.001-06:00

I love blogging. Not necessarily as a blogger (as I've mentioned, I haven't been the best blogger lately), but as a blog reader. I love the technology, the community, the contact, the network. It's been a fun thing to get into over the last couple of years.

Through many of the blogs I read, I am very acquainted with other forms of social networking, like Facebook and Twitter. Some blogs I read rave about how much the writer loves using these social networks, and some blogs I read include articles on getting the most out of such sites. I've been a Facebook member for a while now, but started using it more when I got an iPhone. After reading a couple other moms saying how much they love Twitter, I recently decided to give it a try!

If you're not familiar with it, Twitter is micro-blogging. You blog, but you're limited to 140 characters. It's sharing little pieces of information at a time, like something you want to link to, something you're doing, or something you're thinking about, for instance. I'll be honest, I haven't hit the "I'm-loving-this" mark yet, but I can see potential if more people I know start using it (hint-hint)! Check it out if you're interested and let me know what you think!

Oh, and while I'm thinking about things I want to start using, I will remind my fellow iPhone users about Loopt... again.

Added: As soon as I posted this, I went to my trusty Google Reader, and the first item I clicked on was oddly, A Minimalist's Guide to Using Twitter Simply, Productively, and Funly. Ha! Maybe it's a sign...

Greatest of Dwight vs. Jim

2008-12-18T20:46:00.000-06:00

Today was a co-worker's birthday and we all headed to Bosco's for a celebratory lunch. Conversation soon turned to television, and then specifically to my favorite show on TV, The Office. Out of the six of us there, three were Office devotees and one watched occasionally. We three had a blast recounting our favorite Office moments. Later, my friend Jamie sent me this video with some of the greatest moments of Jim pranking Dwight. Awesome. I'm not entirely certain whether this will be funny to someone who doesn't already watch the show, but I think it will...

My favorite moment, I've decided, is when Jim sends Dwight faxes from "Future Dwight". Classic.

Anyway, the rest of the conversation was about how there's nothing great on TV anymore. The only shows I watch are Heroes and the Office, and I go back and forth on Heroes. One of my coworkers was enthusiastic about House. Anyone seen it?

I need to bring back Linkage...

A little stocking stuffer for myself

2008-12-17T21:09:00.000-06:00

So I ordered myself a little gift today from Amazon. The DVD came out yesterday and I had to have it. One thing, though. Click that image above. Go ahead, click it. Does her neck look weird? This is the promotional image they've used on EVERYTHING, from the movie posters, to the CD cover, and now the DVD, but are they for real on that neck?! Does it not look a little... wide or froggish or something?

I'm the type of person...

2008-12-16T17:03:00.000-06:00

who does the same thing over and over, because that thing is most familiar and comforting. I order the same things at my favorite restaurants every time, I wear the same jammies, I watch the same movies, I sit in the same spot on the couch, I chew the same gum, and on and on.

I am also, despite being rather opinionated, pretty indecisive. My indecision sometimes collides with my familiar-loving self when I occasionally think, "Ok, I've ordered the noodle bowl almost every time I've come here for years, today I'm going to branch out!" Then of course, I can't decide what to get, mainly for fear that whatever I choose, I will be missing out on something else! Sadly, I almost always regret these kinds of decisions. When it comes to the last possible moment for me to choose, I subconsciously always try to get away from the same-old, same-old, and almost invariably regret it.

This is basically what recently happened to my hair. My hair had been long and straight for so long that I was ready for a change. It's was also pretty lifeless, even though it was healthy. It didn't hold a curl and just sat there, long and straight, forevermore. I was choosing between chopping it ALL off (think Katie Holmes), or going for a perm. (Why I felt like I had to go to either extreme I couldn't tell you.) I know perms sound so 1985 (been there, done that), but the Internet ASSURED me that today's perms are NOTHING like the perms of yesteryear. They are soft, loose, and much, much less damaging. I ultimately decided that a perm was more reversible than chopping it all off, and I could even chop it all off if I hated the perm. So... I did it!

And I hated it. Well, hated is a strong word, and I guess I didn't really hate it, I just really regretted doing it. The ends looked so damaged afterward, and it never looked right no matter what I did to it. Nikki assured me that I just needed a little length off... I wasn't sure, but right before Jerad's party, I went and had about 6 inches cut off.

And I now I LOVE IT! I spend less than 5 minutes on it in the morning and it looks better than it did before I had the perm! Yay PERM!

Photos of new stuff (plus, AWESOME rock-girl video!)

2008-12-14T22:26:00.007-06:00

Well, here we have the pictures of the new furniture in the living room and Addison's room. Addison's room would have looked better if the beds were made and there weren't, you know, kids asleep in them, but they add a certain cuteness, don't ya think!? The next plans on the agenda are painting the living room, and reflooring the entire house. Man, that sounds pretty awful to me right now, but it needs to be done!

Pearson and Addison have been sleeping in her new room, switching off who sleeps on the top bunk and who sleeps on the bottom. So far I've been able to keep them in line by threatening to move Pearson back to his room if there are any shenanigans. I don't know how long that will last, but so far so good.

In other news, Jerad's graduation (complete with SURPRISE PARTY!) was this weekend. I tried to get photos of the ceremony but was quite unsuccessful. I only got pictures of the backs of the heads of the people in front of us. Blah. Nikki got a video, and was also the designated photographer for the surprise party, so I should have some decent imagery from her to show in the next few days.

While Jerad's family was over celebrating the graduation, I did get the most insanely adorable video of Addison putting on a show. I know you guys are probably sick of Mamma Mia by now (especially local family), but it's her favorite performance piece and the go-to when she's looking to impress.

Also, about the book club, would we rather fiction or non-fiction? I have a non-fiction that I really want to check out (Brain Rules), but didn't want to bore everyone if you were looking for novels instead. Let me know and I will make my final pick!

Proud and awkward at the same time!!

2008-12-11T21:07:00.000-06:00

So apparently, according to my aunt, Adrianne, I was selected for publication in the Nie-Nie Book I told you guys about a while back. After some research and reading AD's hysterical post about me (LOVE YOU, AD!!), I found the announcement!

I feel so honored and so embarrassed all at the same time! I'm embarrassed mainly because I haven't been the best blogger lately... Sorry! I feel so bad that any lurkers that find their way over from the announcement post will find nothing interesting when they get here. Maybe this will motivate me to get out of my blogging rut and keep this thing updated with at least fairly interesting posts! YAY!

I hope this book can provide some support and comfort to Stephanie Nielson's family while they are going through this. I hope it shows them how many people are thinking about them and how many people care about her. It's been an amazing outpouring from the blogging community and I am so thrilled to be even a tiny part of it.

BOOK CLUB... And so much more!!

2008-12-10T13:44:00.000-06:00

Sorry, people, I've been unusually busy recently! This weekend especially, as I was incommunicado while in ATLANTA! My family and I ran off on an insane trek to Altanta to go to IKEA, which is, by the way, my Mecca. It was all very crazy (especially considering I was starting to get the kids' bronchitis at the time), but I am so glad we did it! We got new furniture for our living room and Addison's room. Addison has been overdue for a big girl bed for some time, and now she finally has one! I'll post pictures as soon as I'm satisfied with the arrangements in there. :) The living room looks pretty good so far. We got new couches and a new entertainment center. The wall color is horrid (I picked it from a 1 inch paint chip and have hated life ever since), the carpet needs replacing, and the walls are bare, but it sure is nice to have a couch with no holes in it!

One really fantastic part of the trip was being in Ikea with Jerad, and just realizing how similar our visions for our future home are. We see pretty much the same thing in our heads and it was so fun to have a chance to visualize it together!

Anyway, as for the book club, we should do it! Each person can pick a book that either they've been dying to read, dying to reread, or dying to share! Then, that person can host the discussion of the book on their blog! (I know, brilliant!) So, everyone who was interested, please post your selection in the comments and we can get started after the holidays! I can host the first one, and I will select my book in the next week or two. I'll give you guys some time to buy it or check it out from the library, and then some time to read it. What say you?

You know what we should do?!

2008-12-02T14:34:00.000-06:00

A book club. Seriously. A book club would be so fun! I've been inspired by Simple Mom's Book Club, which can be found here, and yes, I love that blog lately. Her list is great, full of personal enrichment books like The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Families and Last Child in the Woods. What do you guys think? We could join her book club, or make a list of our own! Who's with me!?

GRADUATION!!!

2008-11-26T10:35:00.000-06:00

It's getting closer and closer, HALLELUJAH!! Jerad will be receiving his Bachelor of Science in Nursing on December 13!! It's been a long, hard road for all of us, but none more so than Jerad. He's worked his butt off, and will be graduating first in his nursing class because of it. We're immensely proud, and completely relieved. There's more schooling ahead, but we're finally reaching one milestone, and that's so exciting! CONGRATS JERAD! WE LOVE YOU!!!!

Fun Giveaway at Simple Mom

2008-11-20T14:49:00.000-06:00

I found this really great blog, Simple Mom, as I was reading Parent Hacks today, and they're having a really fun giveaway for reusable shopping bags. My sister raved about the reusable shopping bags when I visited her last month, saying they were easier to carry, held more, and were more convenient getting into the house. Ever since then, I've been wanting to try them out. So if I don't win these, I will probably hit up Amazon for some soon!

Here's the giveaway link!

If you have 5 hours to kill...

2008-11-18T20:30:00.000-06:00

And want a GREAT laugh, visit Cake Wrecks. Completely hysterical, completely addictive site about cakes gone horribly, horribly wrong. My friend, Lindsay, posted about it on her blog a little while ago and I've been sitting here ever since!

Here's a great image as an example:

What in crap's name... well, anyway. I can't stop reading! SO FRIGGING FUNNY!!

Quick Trip to the ER, and Other Updates!

2008-11-14T23:19:00.000-06:00

Well, one second you're testing out video chatting from the laptop in the living room and the desktop in the bedroom... the next, a child is screaming and spewing blood from his noggin!

Pearson was running from our room to see his dad on the other computer with me on the couch, and somehow ran into our folding laundry room doors. He was screaming and unable to talk and I had no idea what happened until Jerad pointed out that he was pouring blood from his head. It was so scary. Jerad kept his head about him (YAY parent with medical training!) and thought he might need stitches... Pearson and I went to the ER, and 4 hours later, left with 2 stitches. Pearson was INCREDIBLY brave, and so patient. I am about 99% positive that he had the stitches with ZERO anesthetic. They put something topical on to numb it, but I really don't think it worked at all. They claimed he was screaming because of "pressure"... Ummm... ok...

Anyway, he was really good. If you want to see a close up of the wound, you can click here.

Also, I forgot to mention that there is a great video of the kids from Halloween on Nikki's blog. Go check it out!

As I mentioned before, when Pearson hurt himself, we were trying out Google Talk's video chat. It was really fun, but there's really no good reason to use it from our bedroom to our living room, 25 feet away. Check it out and sign up if you're interested! If you want to add me as a buddy, just let me know and I will email you my user name! Funtimes!

HALLOWEEN!!!

2008-11-02T15:57:00.000-06:00

Ever since Pearson has been old enough to say, "Twicker Tweet!" Halloween has so been my favorite holiday! They're so cute when they're dressed up, so unabashedly thrilled with getting all the candy, and so proud of themselves as they receive compliments around the neighborhood!

This year was the funnest yet, with the kids old enough to auto pilot the Trick or Treat route. They knew all the right things to say and do, and added appropriate "thank you"s and "happy Halloween"s! We had a Halloween get together with all our local family at Nikki and Shane's house. Grandma brought dry ice and cranapple juice to make "witch's blood," which Pearson is STILL talking about! We even roasted hot dogs and marshmallows over their fire pit in the backyard. SO FUN!! The night ended with a screening of The Goonies (yay!) and Pearson passing out in seemingly uncomfortable positions not once, but twice!

My camera's battery was dead, but here are some of the ones Nikki got. We tried to get a video of the kids going to a couple houses, but I'm not sure how they turned out. Addison would tell EVERY house that, "I'm a ROCK STAR!" and shake her booty when she said ROCK STAR! It was soooooo adorable!!

Maegan updates

2008-10-22T10:00:00.001-05:00

I'm updating Maegan's blog with her progress so check there often!!

http://simplyswain.blogspot.com/

Oh and how awesome is technology!?

-blogging from my iPhone.

Started Pitocin this morning...

2008-10-22T08:45:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday, Addison!!!

2008-10-21T00:25:00.004-05:00

Well, I wanted to make a big long post about the party, but I have been packing for my trip tomorrow (I am going to go be with my sister as she has her first baby!) so I don't have time to get into all the details... but suffice it to say that her birthday party was SO FUN! Halloween theme, costumes, blood, hay ride, cupcakes... it was great!! Here's a slideshow of the highlights. I dressed up, too, but I didn't get any pictures of me... I think my grandma did, though...

P.S. You can click the slideshow to go through it slower and bigger. Sorry it's so small!

The stupidest crap makes me happy...

2008-10-09T11:11:00.000-05:00

Take for instance, this YouTube video which changed the lyrics to "Take On Me" to literally match the video for the song. Oh, how I laughed and laughed.

If you are amused by stupid crap, too, hopefully this video will bring a little smile to your day!

Aaaaall byyyyy myse-e-eeeeelf...

2008-10-08T10:32:00.000-05:00

Jerad left this morning for the Dominican Republic and I am already bummed out (I know the military wives are already rolling their eyes at me). It's silly, I know. Especially since we've had stretches at least this long when Jerad was unavailable because of classes / clinicals / studying. But unavailable still means in bed at night, and in some cases, parts of his studying could even be done at the kitchen table, so at least he was around...

I'm so nervous about the nights he's going to be gone. I have a tendency to hear things when I'm alone and paranoid. Jerad used to deliver pizzas and when he closed the store he would be gone until past 1 in the morning. On one such occasion I actually called the police because I thought I heard the back screen door open.

BUT, this should be a great experience for him, both professionally and personally. He's going to be administering medical care to underserved people in the Dominican. I know it will be very rewarding for him.

Anyway. End whine.

Videos should be working now...

2008-10-03T11:18:00.001-05:00

But I've been wrong before...

Pearson Soccer Video (updated)

2008-09-30T23:29:00.004-05:00

Here is 13 full seconds of Pearson playing soccer! Trust me, if you're not a mom or dad of one of the kids on the field (at that moment), 13 seconds is plenty of 4 year old soccer! Of course, I am one such mom, so I'm glowing with pride!

I think these videos should be working for everyone now. They were working fine in Firefox, but when I checked Internet Explorer, they wouldn't play. That should be fixed. FYI, on the one below, you're going to want to pause it AS SOON AS it starts playing to give it a moment to load. Otherwise, it will keep hanging up because for some reason it won't load as fast as it plays. Then you can watch it and wonder if it was worth the effort! HA!

Everybody's a critic.

2008-09-30T23:24:00.000-05:00

Help for Nie-Nie

2008-09-30T20:30:00.000-05:00

If you're in my family, you have certainly ready about Nie-Nie on my aunt's blog or my cousin's. She's a fantastic blogger and mommy who has suffered a horrible plane accident with her husband, but they are recovering slowly. Her blog, the Nie-Nie Dialogues can be found here.

The response from internet friends and strangers has been overwhelming. You can't read this woman's blog and not be touched by her and her family, and feel for all of them who must be going through so much right now.

Well, there's a book being published as a fund raiser for Stephanie Nielson (Nie-Nie) and her family and they are asking for funny blogger submissions for the content. Unfortunately, the contest ends today, but if you have a post that you want to submit, go ahead and send it in. It's such a worthy cause and I can say without hesitation, ALL of my fellow blogging friends has had several posts that have made me L.O.L. The contest details are here. Check it out.

For myself, I would have loved to have written something original, but on such short notice, I submitted this one.

P.S. Forgive the mess. I will find a template I like... someday!

Bummer

2008-09-15T20:20:00.000-05:00

Pearson, to Kirby the dog: Sit. Sit. SIT.

Kirby finally sits.

Pearson: Down. DOWN. Puppy, DOWN.

Kirby lays down.

Pearson: Do a flip. Come on Kirby, do a FLIP!

Me: Pearson, Kirby can't do a flip.

Pearson (very sincerely disappointed, with no hint of humor): Awwww... If she were a dolphin she could.

Scary Storm A-comin' [Junk]

2008-09-12T18:34:00.000-05:00

There's some serious doom and gloom news coming in about Ike... There are crazy lines for gas around here and projections for the storm are not good. I hope everyone in that area is smart and evacuates. I really can't imagine leaving your home and nearly all your belongings not knowing if you will ever, ever see it again. I hope it's not going to be as bad as they're predicting...
My computer is on the fritz AGAIN. This time, random programs just don't open. Media Center, Picasa (which I use for ALL my pictures), and a few others just freeze the computer for a few minutes when I click on them and then still don't open. So don't expect any pictures on here until I can figure it out, which I realize reduces an already meager incentive to visit...
Sarah Palin rocks. She's not perfect (she is, after all, a politician), but what I like about her, I like a LOT.
Fruit snacks can be quite delectable if you're in the mood for them, especially cherry ones.
Pearson started soccer GAMES last week. It's completely adorable how they can only barely pay attention to the game while they play. Pearson plays really well for the 3 minutes or so at a time that he's interested! He's never had a stellar attention span, but I hope things like soccer can help that improve. I have a few fun pictures of soccer, but I can't post them for reasons previously mentioned. If I have time next week, I will try and upload them from my office (shhhh, don't tell).
I read an interesting article about vegetarianism the other day. I don't know if I buy every claim in the text, but it did make me think harder about my meat eating ways than I ever have before. Ultimately, I doubt very seriously that meat is something I would be willing to give up completely, but I definitely see the value in limiting my intake a lot more. We already do meatless meals at least once or twice a week, and I can see taking that a bit further if I found more meatless recipes we all enjoy.
Jerad will be on a nursing trip to the Dominican Republic on Addison's birthday next month, so we were planning on doing an early party for her... until today! I think we're going to do it later in the month and make it a Halloween Costume Birthday Extravaganza!! YAY!! The possibilities are endless!
"What would you do-o-o for a Klondike bar" has been in my head ALL FREAKING DAY. And now, if my evil plan works, it will be in yours.

Lake trip

2008-08-25T17:54:00.002-05:00

We had the pleasure of going to the lake this weekend with Grandma and Lee, and had a great time! Here are a few pictures from our trip, but I must admit, I was not a good photographer! I missed some of the best moments (like Addison being Grandma's shadow all weekend, or Jerad pulling off a 360 on the knee board), and managed to get quite a few of people's feet and the backs of their heads. Oh well.

One thing you won't see included there is the picture of my eggplant purple rear end! I fell off the back of the boat when I was getting off to knee board and banged myself up REALLY bad. I have never seen a bruise as bad as the one on my rump and hope to never again. Grandma challenged me to blog my butt, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. We all got a laugh when I sent it to Nikki off my phone and still can't believe I did that! Ha! Now there is a picture of my butt cheek floating around the web!

Southwestern Falafel

2008-08-17T06:48:00.000-05:00

Tired of the same-old, same-old, the Glasscocks and the Morrises have started a dinner club so that we can try new recipes when we get together. We are going to alternate weekends of finding and trying something new. Our family started this weekend with this dish:

Southwestern Falafel with Avocado Spread

It's an easy (not to mention healthful and cheap) dish that everyone really enjoyed. Even my kids ate it pretty well! The avocado spread (guacamole) is SUPER tasty and is great with the leftover baked tortilla chips.

4 out of 5 stars. (Really liked it.)

If you use iTunes:

2008-08-14T19:43:00.000-05:00

Then share with me!!

More info here...

If you decide to sign up, please shoot me an email with your username so we can share libraries!! It's also a SWEET iPhone app!

About my Lovies

2008-08-14T12:10:00.001-05:00

Regular school starts back up for the kids on Monday, and we're all excited about that! Pearson and Addison are both looking forward to their familiar school and environment. This year, the kids will start out with several visiting teachers from Brazil that are here to intern and explore and apply their Reggio training. In order to introduce the students, the parents have been asked to share some information about what makes each child special. I liked what I wrote, so I thought I would share what I think makes my wonderful children special:

Pearson

Pearson is my creative child. He enjoys coloring, drawing, practicing writing, making believing, and telling stories. He loves toys that have endless imaginative possibilities. K'Nex are a favorite now because he can make them into anything he can dream up, from a sword, to a boat, to a castle. Pearson is also very smart, very energetic, and VERY observant! He questions endlessly with a real desire to UNDERSTAND the things he asks about. Pearson is also very compassionate. He wants the people around him to be happy and is very affected when he's around someone who is sad or upset.

His wheels are constantly turning and he is a very determined child. He's been relentless about learning to swim, the same way he was when he wanted to learn to spell his name or learn the phone numbers of several family members! He reminds me very much of someone who could be a writer or an inventor.

Only Mom and Dad know: that Pearson doesn't like to brush his teeth, loves baths, and talks to his blankets!

Addison

Addison is full of life, happiness, and personality. She's never met someone she couldn't charm. She's incredibly affectionate and loves expressing to the people she loves that she loves them! Addison is very social and outgoing (though she sometimes has a shy spell at first). We like to call her "sassy," but I really think that sassiness is self-confidence. She's someone who knows her own mind and goes with it. It's something that I admire about her, but it certainly has its downside when her ideas and your ideas don't mesh! Addison is very playful and mischievous. She is always having fun and is almost always sunny. She loves make believe with her brother, and any kind of game.

Addison is very athletic. She's always been ahead of the curve when it came to physical milestones. She was walking before 9 months, and running shortly after that! She's done some trial gymnastics classes and you can already tell she's got a gift for sports. We're going to enroll her in gymnastics as soon as we find the right class and schedule for us. She reminds me very much of someone who could be a teacher or an athlete!

Only Mom and Dad know: that Addison loves brushing her teeth, isn't scared of the Dentist, and makes up the best songs!

What to write about?!

2008-08-06T20:13:00.000-05:00

Wellllll. I need to update this thing but I don't know what to write about... So I guess the always-there-for-you "List of Junk" will have to do!

1. Renamed the dog. Again. It's Kirby now and forever! We had it engraved on a tag to hold us to it! Her nose has been turning black and now the pink is almost all gone, so we changed it.

2. Pandora Radio. Greatest. Invention. Ever. I love you, Belinda Carlisle.

3. Sorry about starting another blog (my weight loss one) and then never, ever updating it. I know what you're thinking (Lindsay), "But you never update THIS one..." True. But I'm actually SORRY about that one. I'll just update here that I've been doing Weight Watchers since the end of May and I've lost about 12 or 13 lbs. I'd like to lose another 8 or 9 at a bare minimum, and would need to lose another 6 on top of THAT to meet my original goal... SO. I feel so much better about myself already, so I am thrilled with my progress. I've been a little lazy about it the last couple of weeks, but I am going to get back on track so I can finish losing.

4. Pearson starts soccer next week. Yesterday we went and purchased all his gear (shoes, shin guards, ball, socks, shorts) and he was so excited to get it on. He wore it most of the night last night and then insisted on wearing it to Grandma's house this morning. But, you have to admit, he looks pretty freakin' adorable in it.

5. Twilight. The new book came out this last weekend, and being the cheapskate I am, I've been waiting to get my hands on Nikki's copy so I wouldn't have to shell out for it. (I know, they've already revoked my True Fan membership for this stunt...) Well, today's the day. I will start reading it tonight! WOO HOO!

6. I am pleased to inform the 7 other people on the planet who watched The Next Food Network Star this season, that Adam (runner up) got his own show, too! He's who I wanted to win the whole time so I am happy about that. That leaves the other finalist, Lisa Garza, as the fem-bot out, since she's the only one without a Food Network show now. Sad.

7. I got a new bag a couple weeks ago. Jerad calls it my "Overnight Bag". Yes, it's large, but because of its internal compartments it's also incredibly functional! I haven't had to dig for anything since I got it! Hmph.

8. McCain is finally up in the polls! That was a very generous "!" because I am no McCain fan. He is, however sadly, the best we have... Where can you buy "Reluctantly For McCain!!" bumper stickers?

9. I am probably the only one, but I love Katie Holmes's new haircut! The rolled jeans are another story entirely.

Mamma Mia, here we go again!

2008-07-20T09:49:00.000-05:00

Nikki and I went to see Mamma Mia last night despite the overwhelmingly negative reviews the movie got... AND WE LOVED IT! It was so fun and so cute! Plus, of course, the music! Could Abba songs BE any more fun!? Meryl Streep is so good in it, Amanda Seyfried is suprisingly adorable (and talented), and who can argue with spontaneous singing and dancing numbers?!

Even as I write this, I am rocking out to the soundtrack I had to rush home and download! I really am suprised that reviewers haven't liked it. I can't think of what they would have expected... Are they unfamiliar with the musical or Abba? Surely they had to know it would be campy and light. Slate did give it a positive review, which I thoroughly agreed with, especially this part:

Anyone who's ever wept along to their car radio will thrill to Streep's passionate delivery of "The Winner Takes It All" on a rocky outcrop (even though the song's content has little to do with the narrative it's supposed to advance). And anyone who's used a hairbrush as a microphone should get off on the showstopping "Dancing Queen" number, in which an entire village of Greek women follows Streep and her cohort to the ocean Pied Piper-style, affirming their God-given ability to dance, jive, and have the time of their lives. The rest of you—well, you can always stay home and frown.

SO FUN!

While we were gone, the boys stayed at Nikki and Shane's with the kids. And this is what we came home to find:

Video of the scene can be found here.

My iPhone and me...

2008-07-15T14:01:00.000-05:00

My iPhone, my iPhone
Wherever I go, heeeeeeee goes.

My iPhone, my iPhone
My iPhone and meeeeeee!

I know I've been absent for even longer than usual... but this time I have an excuse! I've been holed up with my new iPhone!! It's the coolest thing EVER! I can't believe I ever lived without it! The internet is freaking rad on this thing, and the apps that you can add are SWEET. Do I sound like an adolescent? I KNOW! Then I guess you don't want to hear about me standing in line on release day or cheering every time I figure out something else this sucker can do! Ha. Don't worry, my husband has made enough fun of me for the rest of you!

Aside from general awesomeness, I am most excited about having an mp3 player again (mine broke a long time ago), Loopt (a friend locator thing), and how easy it is to use productively. Although I may forget sometimes, this is technically a company cell phone, and I find myself using this one far more effectively than I ever did my Tilt. It's easier and faster to get the information I need, from emails, to contact information, to a look at a website, than it ever was before. So I use it more. Win-win!

It's not perfect though, lest you believe I drank the Jobs Juice. Noticeably missing are copy and paste, more options to preserve battery life, and Flash support. But I love it just as much anyway. :)

I also majorly screwed up and got a white one. The white one is super cute, but SO not me. I think I was high on Mac fumes when I agreed to it or something, because I never really wanted a white one. But I planned on using a cover anyway, so it doesn't really matter.

Pictures!

2008-07-09T20:51:00.001-05:00

I call this one "One of these things is not like the others"

I call this one "Sugar Crash"

I call this one "The dental hygeinist promised me stickers"

I call this one "This way to the food"

I call this one "I will bust my mouth in 3... 2... 1..."

I call this one "Fireworks: Carefully Considered"

Drumroll, please...

2008-07-01T11:11:00.005-05:00

Sorry to leave you hanging on the puppy's name! The truth is, we named her about 12 different times! It was Kirby, Riley, Cocoa... and a few others that I can't even remember right now. None stuck. But this morning when Addison said, "Pinky, no ma'am! No biting, Pinky!" I said, ok. Her name is Pinky. She's going to be a fluffy little lap dog, so Jerad will just have to get over calling her a fluffy little name!

So, here are some more pictures of the puppy. She's as sweet as can be! We are crate training, and she comes to work with me. This first picture is of her sleeping in her crate in my office. She always sleeps on her back, it's so CUTE!

Then here are some pictures taken the other day in the car. Addison found her busted sunglasses, and the missing lens didn't seem to bother her a bit! If you're wondering what the heck Pearson is doing with this hands, those, my friends, are WALL-E hands. We saw it over the weekend and we LOOOOOVED it. If you haven't seen it, GO! It's FABULOUS. And be sure not to be late, because the short before the movie is the funniest one EVER.

My freakishly brave child... PLUS a new member of the family!

2008-06-22T21:57:00.002-05:00

First off, you HAVE to check out these videos of Pearson from the pool!! He saw Nick and his friend diving and was like, "Hey mom, I wanna do that." I wasn't so sure about it, but we decided it couldn't hurt... he's in a life jacket after all. What I did NOT anticipate was him being so freaking brave and wanting to dive over, and over, and over again! We couldn't really believe it! See for yourself:

And, in other news, we got a PUPPY! It was a rather spur of the moment decision made just yesterday when we met this little cutie:
She is a mixed breed shih tzu with terrier. The kids are in love and frankly, so are we! We haven't yet named her, so suggestions are both welcome and encouraged. Try to have them in by the afternoon tomorrow because she's going to the vet and we have to have a name by then... Jerad has forbade me from naming her Pinkerton (aka Pinky - look at that NOSE!), so there goes my one good idea.

I'll try and add some more pictures of the kids with her ASAP!