The Newton Gazette

Weekly Update

2012-02-11T23:29:00.000-07:00

Rob

Sadly, my plans for getting this done on Saturday failed. Yeah, I was
actually planning on having it done for Saturday so that I could get
it out on Sunday morning for a change, but pesky life keeps getting in
the way. For the most part, this week was really standard and boring.
The biggest change from standard protocol was that the kids didn't
get their homework done on Wednesday, so we missed D&D night again,
this is three in a row now! It seems like they are able to carry on
without us, which is actually pretty good - I don't have to feel
pressured to make it. I did start getting some forward progress on
refinancing the house this week, with the new credit union approving
the loan, pending my paperwork checks out. Basically, I just have to
get copies of the mortgage note, divorce decree and divorce agreement,
saying that I own the house, and it should be all set. Two months
without a mortgage payment, and then around 400 bucks a month less
going to it! On top of that, it means my interest payments will be
higher, so my tax deduction will be bigger, at least unless that tax
benefit is taken away.

I got most of my W2s and other tax forms needed, so I started entering
the information into H&R Block - looks pretty grim so far.
Apparently, I am outpacing a lot of the 99%, but I don't have Cayman
island accounts and huge capital gains to keep me fiscally sound, so I
will be paying roughly 35% of my income in taxes, all told. I thought
it might be as high as 30%, but this is just painful. If that isn't
enough mind-numbing bureaucracy for you, I also got notified that I
need to renew my security clearance, so I have a decade of employment,
familial, residential, financial and social to document... Be prepared
to hear from the Government about me, they might want to ask my
siblings about me, just tell them that I can keep a secret - it's even
true!

As to getting this done on Saturday, I was hoping to not have to worry
about it on Superbowl Sunday, but Allison and her friend were coming
over to watch the game here (why get an awesome new TV if you can't
show it off?) and I had mucho cleaning to do. I didn't get much help
from the kids, so Saturday was a hellishly draining day of chasing
messes down, and trying to distract Archer enough that he would not
make new messes. In the end, I got the house mostly clean, at least
enough that I wasn't embarrassed. I would rather not talk about the game itself.

Stupid Giants.

Carrie

Let's see........Last week was hectic to put it mildly. Chase got a stomach bug Sunday. Kayla got it Tuesday. Monday they ripped out the old oil tank and installed a new one. Tuesday they started putting in new doors and windows. All while I had kids puking. Fun times. Poor Kayla had to move room to room while they installed the windows. I cannot believe how many bugs my kids have had this year!! Insanity. Everyone was better Thursday :) My windows and doors are beautiful!! Super happy with the kitchen especially. The contractor who did the work also looked at the roof for us. Water spots on the ceiling in three places :( Come to find out we need a roof. Not very excited about that. I think I don't want to be a homeowner anymore. It's not all that fun :(

Sean finally had a whole weekend off!!! Friday our friends Dominic and Kristine brought their baby Gabriel over. Love getting a baby fix!!!! Saturday Sean took the kids to the airplane museum. He needed a daddy-kid day. Saturday night Keving (Sean's brother) and Lucy came over. They're looking for houses in Lebanon!!!! Sunday I took off with Heather and Laura to Providence. Laura saw Kurt to get her hair done and Heather and I went and ordered our bridesmaid dresses (FINALLY)!!!!! The wedding is in April. Waited long enough. Then girl scouts, then Superbowl. My friend Crystal and her family came over for the game. Good busy weekend. Lot's of company! Rare around here. As for my goals, I am right on target. -2 lbs. a week. Of course it doesn't come off where you want it to. But I'm increasing my workouts this week, adding in more cardio and reps. Yesterday I killed it!! :)

Kurt

Last week was a week of THRIFT SHOPPING. Sunday I found a pair of brown leather pants for $40! Then my most favorist jacket in Boston for $50. Later on that week I was in NYC for a friends bands performance. I wore another thrift find...a purple women's jacket.

I took some pictures on a rooftop

I then found size 14 men's cowboy boots to paint for my statue cause my others are too small. Especially when my feet swell while working. And I got a pair of jeans that are treated and LOOK leather.

Woohoo

This week is PACKING so I can store stuff in carries basement. Because she is apparently my parents

Kim

This guy is a stud.

We loved watching the Giants win in the Super Bowl. (Sorry Rob but you must know I hate the Patriots and always have...long before you loved them.) Jake picked the Giants at the beginning of the season as "his team". He tends to be incredibly lucky like that.

The rest of the week kind of sucked for me since I was sick, as in lost almost two whole days to illness. That's pretty rare for me. I felt REALLY badly on Tuesday and Thursday. I'm still kind of cruddy (wondering if I now have a sinus infection?) but so much better than Thursday that it's hard to complain.

I've been wondering lately what I really accomplish in a week--it so often feels like nothing--that I've spent some time trying to decide if I need more structure in my life. Now, for those of you that know me well, that should be funny. It took me a bit to realize just how funny.

I make a new recipe every week. I serve fish once a week. I serve homemade soup once a week. I do all my laundry one day a week. I clean my entire house one day a week. I volunteer at school one day a week. I attend church once a week. I bake muffins on the weekend. I hold FHE every week(which really means planning a great dessert once a week.) I do yoga at least twice a week. I walk with Lori in the morning(except when I'm sick!). I read a book for book club every month. I attend multiple PTO meetings every month. I pack lunches every morning. I make a dinner menu every week. I shop every Monday and fill up my gas tank, whether it needs it or not. I go to the library once a week.

Zuppa Toscano-This week's new recipe and soup all in one. Delicious.

Maybe the problem is not LACK of structure but just the opposite. Maybe I need to throw caution to the wind and have a week with NO structure to see how that feels. Maybe that would help me see how much I really am accomplishing. Maybe not. That just sounds crazy. And a little irresponsible.

Likely, I just need to be more mindful of the little things I do to help out my peeps. After all that's my main job right now...I helped Ben with a "time line" of his life last week. Took Jake for his driving test. He passed and can get his license next week if we can find the time. Helped Rachel master her 71 phonograms-whew, I'll be glad to finish 1st grade forever. Helped Dave out with his Deacon's quorum combined youth activity. Picked up the repaired french horn. Comforted Rachel's broken heart. Supported Ben for baseball tryouts. Avoided mortally wounding a disrespectful teenager. Celebrated the kids' accomplishments, including Ben's third award for all-around awesomeness at school.

All this while I was sick. I'm rocking this job. I'll do it again this coming week. Enough said.

Weekly (?) Update

2012-02-11T22:08:00.000-07:00

My fault. I was waiting for an update from Rob (which arrived on Thursday, 2/2) and then I lost the rest of the post somewhere in the blogosphere. I kept thinking I would be able to find my clever and witty text along with Carrie and Kurt's charming updates and then I would post it. It is not going to happen. My sixteen-year-old has it right. I am technologically challenged. Oh well.

So here it is (minus my long-winded contribution)--The Week of January 30th(give or take)...

Kim

I've seen this on Pinterest (which tells you something about how I spend my week) and it kind of sums up my entire life for you...

My daily routine: Get up, be amazing, go back to bed.

Carrie

My goals for the week complete, my boys got their hair done at Little Klippers in Colchester. They have an airplane chair!!! They look so cute, although Chase looks so big!!! And he is! We moved him to a big boy bed this week!! Freecycle rocks!! Free car bed :) Mom came to Providence with me and the monsters Saturday to get the girls hair done. Hailey has pink and purple highlights. Kayla got her hair dyed too!! It's a beautiful auburn :) Crazy young but it's in their DNA!!! My exercise has been awesome!! I'm feeling a little superhero like. I lost 2 lbs. :) I picked up a scale, balance ball and some weights. I overdid the workouts last week and needed a massage, so I came up with a four day a week plan. I'm sleeping so good!! I feel amazing. 46 lbs. is my goal. Hopefully in 23 weeks I'll have reached it!!!

This week is starting with Chase throwing up, the oil tank is going in and the old one coming out. Hopefully I'll have a time frame on the windows and doors :( Special orders ugh. Bump the elliptical time up 5 minutes. And take Kayla to the dentist. Have a sparkling week :)

Kurt

I walked in a runway show

I made a cell phone case

I want to bring my CDs to a store to sell them

Rob

Sunday, Thursday... they are so much alike, it is easy to confuse
them. Ugh. You take a few days off from your life and next thing you
know everything is forcefully moved around on you.

So I didn't have really anything to add the week before last, people
got sick, threw up, ran fevers - life goes on etc. Last week I made
my trip out to D&D Experience in Fort Wayne, IN on Wednesday, getting
home (insanely tired) on Sunday night. Not really much to crow about
in the days leading up to it, except for maybe watching the Patriots
win another playoff game, ensuring a spot in the Superbowl, only to
have the Giants beat the 49ers and get a rematch of 2007 - and we all
know how that ended :( . Last year I had brought McGuire with me to
DDXP, and it was an absolute blast getting to spend all day playing
with him for a long weekend. This year, stupid school had to get in
the way of having my eldest son along with me, since he had mid-terms
that week, and I couldn't in good faith pull him out of midterms to go
have fun with his Dad. As such, I got them off to school on
Wednesday, then took off for my trip.

I had a nice little scare on the way out, as I realized that I left
the house at 9, to get to the airport at 10, to catch my plane at
11:30 - and then noticed that the plane left at 11:10. And the
parking lot was closed. So I had to go to one of the far-away parking
lots, and practically run to the terminal - thankfully security was
empty and not a huge hassle, and I got to the terminal as they were
seating group 4. I had the crazy good fortune of being in a row with
3 other people, a lovely woman in her late 40s at the window, an empty
seat, me, the aisle, a beautiful Indian woman, an empty seat and some
guy who fell asleep on the window as soon as he sat down. No crying
babies, no kids kicking my seat, no rotund dude spilling over the
armrest into my lap; I count that a win. When I got the Chicago to
switch planes, I actually saw one of the guys who works with Wizards
of the Coast, and we chatted for a while - he even recognized me from
last year, and asked about my son not coming. There was also a
super-cute college girl sitting near me, we kept having eye-contact
moments with a smile - I know I am a dork, but it made me feel good to
get a smile from such a cute young woman. Steve (yep, the same gangly
kid from Lebanon growing up) and Heather picked me up at the airport,
and we went over to the hotel to get ready for the coming 4 days of
gaming.

I was scheduled to run games for the first 4 slots of the show, but
they were adventures that I ran at GenCon last year, so I was very
comfortable with them. They went really well: people had fun, dice
were rolled, monsters were killed. Not the best set of players ever -
a handful of people who liked to meta-game the encounters a bit more
than I find fun, on either side of the DM Screen, but it didn't go too
badly. The next day I was playing all day - the big Battle
Interactive, preceded by a rescue mission into a fortress full of
creepy eel people. I played my "Knight in Shining Armor" Paladin for
both, and got a really great DM for the first adventure. She was new
to DMing at conventions, and I had helped her out a little on
Wednesday night. She ran the game really well, the table had a good
interplay and everything was really fun. The big Battle Interactive
this year was to defend a city populated by Sea Elves, and I was
seated at a table with Steve and Heather - plus a husband-wife couple
that I really wish I had never met. The adventure itself was great -
lots of cool battles, good challenges, interesting combats and a
choice of where in the city we wanted to help save. The party was a
bit of a mess and the players of two of the party members had no
interest in listening to anyone or working as a team. The DM was
inexperienced, but also unfamiliar with the rules and the adventure,
and was seriously lacking in "table presence". I will get another
chance to play it with my local group at the end of February, so I
look forward to a better experience then, but the table was a low
point of the weekend, even though I liked the adventure.

The next day I was playing mostly games set in the desert world of
Athas, where the gods are dead and metal is rare. We got lucky in
that the adventure was run by one of the people in charge of the
campaign, and sitting with us were two D&D adventure writers. My monk
just barely got out of that adventure with his skin intact - literally
as close as one can get to having a dead character without actually
dying. It was great. By this, the third day, there was some really
good feedback about the adventure I helped write and was premiering at
the show. Sadly, one table apparently ran it completely wrong, thanks
to a bad DM, but most people called it the highlight of the trilogy,
which makes me feel great. Saturday I also had a chance to be in the
first public playtest of the newest edition of D&D, there is an NDA
(Non-Disclosure Agreement) so I can't say much about the actual
details, but I really dislike the direction they are going - sharply
backwards. The game itself was really fun, since we had one of the
key guys at Wizards running the table, and a couple of web-comic
authors at the table with us. There were hijinks, outright Orcish
brutality, slave girls, fireballs and lots of laughing. On one hand,
pure role playing fun, on the other hand, not a game that I have a lot
of interest in playing much.

Sunday was the last day of the convention, and I took the hotel's
shuttle back to the airport. Free wi-fi and a long gap between the
shuttle and the plane meant I finished season one of Downton Abbey -
SOOO good! Back to Chicago, and the same cute girl from Chicago->Fort
Wayne was on this flight, too! Turns out she was home for a long
weekend, then going out to Montana - college, as I assumed at first,
and warm fuzzies from a smile of recognition. I'm such a dork.
Flight back from Chicago to Boston was not as good as it could have
been. Two rows in front of me was a small family: father, mother
across the aisle from each other, and their perhaps 9 month old baby
on Dad's lap. Crying. The whole time. Oh, and someone puked just
after we got airborn. I would have guessed the baby, but the smell
had me gagging every few minutes the rest of the flight, every time I
caught a wiff of the puke. I hate that smell, even more than the
crying. Anyway, I got home in really good time - plane landed a bit
early, got to my car quickly and easily, no traffic. I saw the kids
off to school on Monday, and that was the past week.

I will try to get next week's actually at the end of the week, but who
knows with me...

Weekly Update

2012-01-24T05:57:00.001-07:00

Rob---catch you next week

Carrie

Update.................After a round of strep throat for Hailey and 3 missed days at school, I get a call saying she got her finger hurt. Her hand was behind the big heavy doors when someone knocked into it. Her pinkie was smashed between the wall and the door :( Not broken luckily but I got to see she left a mark on the wall, a legacy!!! Poor kid's had a run of bad luck. I feel like I'm grounded when I have sick kids! But I dyed H
We finally got some snow!!!! Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday :) It was so nice to get out there and play in the snow. I'm quite the princess about the cold. But if there's snow, it's all good. The kids made "snowcones" with strawberry syrup and maple syrup. Chase is finally liking the snow!!! He didn't want to come in. I guess his leg span is a key factor, last year he couldn't walk in more than an inch :) Kayla and Chase lasted hours longer then Hailey and Trent. Trent lasts about a half an hour and says he's cold :( He's OBSESSED with Super Mario Brothers!!! I've taken to hiding the games for the wii. It's bad!!! Kayla went ice skating with a friend. Her butt wasn't too sore :)
I got dolled up with my friends to go Styleweek Providence. We picked Kurt up on the way and got to watch tons of beautiful anorexic girls work that runway!! Good times. As for me.....I started a pretty good workout routine. I'm almost sore all the time :) Sean's sit up app on his iphone is coming in handy for me too. Two days into that, 141 sit ups later!! Hailey's changeover to vegetarian has made us all eat a little bit better. Not that we ate that bad to begin with, but it's easier when I HAVE to focus on healthy. I've already lost a little hip, which is amazing to me. I need to get a scale now to keep track of my progress. I feel empowered!!!!! Goals for the week: continue my new lifestyle, get boys haircuts and get girls haircuts.
Sorry, I'm a little picture happy :)

Kurt

What DID I do this week. I finished my shoes.

I started working again on my belt...

I've web doing a lot of photo uploading on the app INSTAGRAM....just a fun app to waste time and share art.

This week I really need to FINISH THAT BELT. I actually want to start separating things to be packed. And desperate clothes that I am actually going to wear. Edit my stuff for my moving/travels. My lease is up end of Feb So the new chapter BEGINS!!

Kim

The sixth-grade Chinese New Year party was a hit. I wasn't sure 11- and 12-year-olds would have fun playing games--no media. I'm not sure they thought it would be fun either. But it was! It really was fun. I served dim sum and had them start with playing the guess who game. They ran a game of charades and then played a chopsticks game and then twister. They laughed and talked a lot and ended with a somewhat silly game of poker. Only three kids knew how to play sooo....not really very competitive. Mission accomplished. These kids DO have "people" even though middle school can make you feel alone.

I finished Masie Dobbs for book club and am wondering what there is to discuss...I'll have to work on some questions. One of my goals this year is to read more and I've already finished 5 books in the new year. I doubt I can keep it up at that rate but I LOVE to read when it's cold out.

Carrie has inspired me to do better at exercising. I'm walking with Lori again so that's good. Talk about cold though--who-eee. It's been windy here. Sucks. I have the ongoing goal of filing and organizing papers--maybe a once-a-week commitment would help...we'll see. Maybe Thursday...And I NEED to update the blog with Disney and birthday pictures.

Weekly Update

2012-01-18T05:56:00.000-07:00

Kim

I made the banner on my new Silhouette Cameo that I got for Christmas. Perfect timing. So much fun.

Rachel's party was the week's big event and took most of my time. Things turned out mostly the way I'd hoped and she had a great time so that's the best part. I had help from a young woman from church (who was Rachel's primary teacher last year) since I won her "party planning" services at the service auction in October. She was very invested and helpful even if she didn't realize she was dealing with a bit of a party planner to begin with...it's always interesting working with someone who doesn't exactly get what you're thinking. After my needless worrying, there were 13 guests at the party. We served spaghetti and meatballs and played lots of games. I love a good theme! Our neighborhood has lots of really sweet kids. It was impressively under control. Nearly all the kids gave Rachel some kind of craft project as a gift. It's cute that they know her so well. She's been in heaven crafting it up.

Rachel is already thinking about next year's theme. "Under the Sea" is her initial thought. We'll see if I'm up for another home party by then. Somehow this fall I managed to commit to a Little House on the Prairie party for Rachel when summer comes. It will be fun to plan a party in the warm weather but I may not be able to face "Under the Sea" come January unless it's at a local pool...

This coming week I need to take down the decorations, return a bunch of borrowed stuff and gear up for the Chinese New Year party I'm hosting for Ben and his friends. I'm trying to keep it low key but that's harder than it sounds. I can get carried away. I also need to get started on my book club novel, Maisie Dobbs.

Rob

Monday Archer and I stayed home; he had a total meltdown and I
couldn't send him into school like that. He wound up getting some
sleep, and was a lot better afterwards. Tuesday, McGuire stayed home
from school with Allison because he was feeling terrible. Wednesday
everyone did their appropriate thing, until we left D&D. Our

Friendly's was closed!?! Apparently there was a rash of stores
closed, again, and this time our weekly meal-house was one of the
victims. Friday night Archer had his friend Logan sleep over, but
Archer wound up puking on Saturday. He was running a fever later in
the day, so he wound up napping on the couch with me while watching
some excellent playoff football. Sunday he was still sick, so we
stayed at home and rested. Monday, since Archer was feeling better,
McGuire wanted to have the Sweenys over. They took turns playing
Dance Central 2, then watched Willow and finished with a little Rock
Band 3. Poor McGuire caught whatever Archer had last night, and woke
up at 4:30 vomiting. Hopefully next week will be posted on Sunday,
and have less bad stuff.

Kurt

Wow...what a week. On Tuesday night I headed down to NYC to hang out with my good friend Taylor. He is an actor who I met while he was doing a deaf play in Hartford. Carries kids actually saw his play when it was touring. We ate at an ALL macaroni and cheese restaurant. It's like/or is a chain restaurant and the place is shaped like a C (like macaroni)

Wednesday morning we went to THE NEW MUSEUM to see Carsten Höllers Exhibit. It was all about sensory deprivation

and changing the way you look and use the space around u.

The main attraction was a slide that was built through the ground just for the exhibit

and a shallow pool that one person at a time goes in to nude (there are walls).

I was most excited to see his life sized resin cast animals that are BRIGHTLY colored....

I had read about them in an art book that I got for christmas right before I heard about his exhibit!

I then got to do a NEW character at TEN31 that was more of a yoga/contortionists performance.

I'm the unicorn...on the left.
I have also been editing the film non-stop. There is a little "commercial" on my YouTube page now.

And all through this I started making some shoes

Carrie

So, I've been busy helping to plan my friend's jack and jill :) Sean's truck is all better. I replaced our new computer that crashed. Replaced our dinosaur tv in our bedroom. Got new books and a calendar finally! And did all of that with gift cards so I hardly spent money!!! Love that :) This week I'm going to take the boys to their favorite museum, and gear up for the fashion show on Sunday! I'm going to miss going to them in Providence since Kurt is moving on. :( Have dinner with friends of ours who has a little guy. Baby fix!!! My pilates is going well and the elliptical is still keeping me running!! Got to keep that up. That's all for now. xoxoxo.

Weekly Update

2012-01-09T09:10:00.084-07:00

Kurt

Editing......editing...editing.

I had a fitting for a new costume at Ten31 productions

It's very cirque du soilel/acrobat style.

We will be wearing silver elk and unicorn masks
I also went to a David Bowie themed dance night. Tons of fun but no photos yet. Ok. Gotta get back to editing. I only have two weeks

Carrie

This week I got a call from Trent's speech teacher telling me he's graduating the program :-) I'm so happy with how far he's come!!! He also is starting with sight words and learning to read. Time flies!! Trent is the ring bearer for my friends wedding in April and he is super excited. Chase is potty training, on his terms of course. He'll be 3 in April!! As long as he can run around bare butt he'll go on the potty and asks for a diaper sometimes. If he's like Trent, he'll decide on day to stop wearing diapers and that'll be that! Kayla has come out of her cocoon lately. The phone rings more for her then me!! Another social butterfly. Hailey has been busy with friends, homework and newspaper club. She has 3 articles to do for the next middle school newspaper! Oh and she is a vegetarian now. Her love of animals is far greater then her love of steak!!!! Phase???!! Sean started his foreman job again. Long days :-( I helped plan Laura's jack and jill with Laura and Heather. On the way there our truck told me to shut the engine off, no oil pressure. Heather and I had to sit and let it cool down a few times. Total of an hour and a half!!!!!! Dad came and looked at it for me!! The good thing is Sean has his work truck. It just needs an oil change but wow, that sucked!!!!! And our new computer crashed :-(. Best buy is exchanging it for us today though :-) on a better note, I think I found a laundry system that will work for us!! And I started pilates again. Love pilates!!!

This coming week........start selling girl scout cookies, stick with my 2 vigorous laundry days, continue pilates, get a massage. Get truck done today, van done this week, get vegetarian cookbook. PTA, bridesmaid meeting, get bridemaid dress. I'm sure there's more in there too!!! This Is My Life :-D !!!!!!!!

Rob

Day late, which sucks; but I have a hard time getting these typed up
when the kids are buzzing around, wanting my attention, or just
refusing to sleep. Archer finally gave up and went to bed at 1am, so
I didn't have a chance to get to this. The week was a little meh,
overall. Sunday we all slept in, since we were up late on New Year's
Eve - we had some friends over to play D&D. It could well end up
being our family tradition. I didn't see much football, you know,
with the lack of my television and all that, but I did watch one of
the later games on the tiny, 20 year old TV in my bedroom while I did
laundry. Allison came over to spend some time with the kids, they
seemed to have fun.

Monday was the highlight of the week: Carrie and her kids came up,
bringing the Xmas gifts from Colorado. The boys were appreciative of
the clothes, and even more so with the gift cards - they were quickly
turned into the new Mario Kart for the 3DS and a gaming headset. The
flashing helicopter that Kim sent me was a big hit - almost literally
a few times. I also was able to get some funds towards my new
receiver - once I do the research on what I want :P. I nicked my
fingers for a split second with the rotor blades, not a good feeling,
but no blood drawn. Later, McGuire walked into the path of a downed
chopper, and felt the blades against his ankle. The big scary moment
was when Trent was looking at it on the counter, and Archer asked if
he could play with it for a second. I told him not right now, which
he interpreted to mean "sure, grab it". When he did, he bumped the
throttle, making the blades start spinning within about 6 inches of
Trent's eyes. I was very much not pleased, and chewed Archer out over
it. Near-blinding aside, it was a great visit, even without a fancy
TV to show off. The rest of the week was work, school, homework,
insomnia and some sleep. Booooring - sorry.

I take that back, a little. Wednesday, my main complaint for the last
month finally got resolved. On Tuesday, I asked Best Buy about
returning the TV, even if it had been "serviced", and since it was
still within 30 days, it was no problem. I called the service center
on Wednesday morning, and after getting some flak for wanting to just
pick the TV back up, and informing them that Thursday was too long to
wait, I got hung up on... But the TV was put back together when I got
there, and I was able to get it back to Best Buy without a problem.
By bedtime, I had a replacement, fresh out of the box, hung on the
wall. It is almost odd to not have something to complain about,
almost. I put links in the last post, links to pictures of the living
room as I moved everything around, and a couple with the TV on the
wall. I am attaching them this time.

Saturday was nice in that we literally didn't do anything. I think
maybe one load of laundry got washed.

Kim

Jake at Cooper Mountain. Enjoying the day.

I got Christmas totally put away with Dave's help. The kids went snowboarding/skiing with Dave, including Rachel. She took lessons and had a GREAT day. I got through a MASSIVE filing/To do pile while they were gone. Did not practice poker. Started to plan for Rachel's birthday party. Cleaned the church bathrooms...seems like we did this not so long ago. I thought it was only twice a year...hmmm. Some people must not be pulling their weight. Enjoyed a mellow schedule without much going on...just in time to receive the soccer training schedule. It starts next week! Phooey.

Ben learning his S-turns in his new gear. Looking good.

Rachel learning to "shred" as her brothers say.

Rachel was concerned about the red rental skis with her outfit. Glad her instructor was a woman who understands such things and was able to commiserate.

This coming week will be crunch time for Rachel's Jungle Party. The invitations are out and of course I'm worried no one will come...she invited her ENTIRE class of 19 kids and I'm worried about NOT having anyone here. Why? Who could say(a professional might be warranted here)...irrational, but true. I always worry about that.

Should be fun preparing for the party. I have big crafting plans. We'll see what I can accomplish while still managing other mom duties.

Weekly Updates

2012-01-02T20:56:00.001-07:00

Kim

On Christmas evening, Jake and I started to feel sick. We didn't enjoy the delicious pork roast that Dave made...I threw up and then we felt cruddy the whole next day. I did read the new book I got for Christmas though...Tuesday Ben and Rachel were feeling badly. Wednesday it continued for Rach. Thursday Dave started feeling poorly and by Friday night he was seriously not well. Saturday night Sadie-dog had me up to let her out SEVEN times. She NEVER does that. This is the first time we have ALL been sick in the same week-including the dog. Whew. Glad there are not more of us.

Ben went skiing on Thursday with Evan and had a really great day.

Jake turned 16 and celebrated with a couple of his friends. Can that be right? I have a SIXTEEN year old!?! He received a bunch of great gifts in spite of just raking it in for Christmas, but the gift that has my interest the most is the poker set. We had a "friendly" game on New Year's where Jake killed us. How does he know how to play Texas hold 'em so well?

This week I will put away Christmas decorations. Sterilize my whole house. Make invitations for Rachel's birthday party. Start making decorations for her jungle party. Maybe brush up on my poker skills online...

Kurt

I'm on the set of a video shoot so this is short and sweet

Trainwreck...

A bunch of gender bender performers get together

The House of Cach video shoot

More to follow.

I've got a lot to do this week...editing video...I'm also seeing the current exhibit at the new museum in NYC. Check it out online

Rob

It's been a nice, relaxing couple of weeks. I feel like I can't tell
what day it is, with the kids off from school and minimal work during
the break. I has also been largely uneventful, in a good way. We did
the usual Christmas thing, no reason for divorce to change any of
that. We wound up taking two cars to Carrie's for Xmas Eve, which let
me and the boys stay there way too late. There was some concern that
we wouldn't get home in time for Santa to get the gifts to the right
place, but we made it with 15 minutes to spare. Christmas morning
was an exercise in torture for the boys, I wouldn't let them go into
the living room until Allison came over, so we wound up hanging out in
my bed for 20 minutes until she could get here. Archer was
off-the-charts happy to get Skylanders for the PS3, McGuire was
psyched to get an automatic Nerf gun. The rest of the gift-giving was
nice, lots of little gifts for the boys, I got a Dunkin Donuts card
from Allison, and got her an hour massage. We packed up the kids and
headed up to Maine to see Allison's parents. The kids got their usual
complement of snack foods and a giant jar of pickles, plus a great
collection of science kits. Those will go nicely for some long
weekends. The rest of the week was sleeping in late, staying up late,
video games and tv.

I had an "exciting" Wednesday, dropped off my TV to get it fixed,
and took my car in for repairs. My brand new TV? oh, one of the
boards is broken, making the picture screwed up? That's no problem, I
will just call warranty services - they even refer me to a local
repair place. Oh, by the way, 42" TVs are carry-in service only,
whatever. Drop the TV off on Wednesday, they try their best to rush
it, so I can pick it up without having to lose time at work. Thanks!

As it was getting late on Wednesday, I call them up to ask about it.
Oh, maybe have it back by Friday? If not then, Monday. I ask why I
wasn't told that this was likely to be a one-week thing, and the guy
got that offended tone. I didn't say it, but Wednesday, Thursday,
Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday are six days, and a week is still
seven days, right? So if it takes 6 days to do this, isn't a week a
good estimate? Grouchy old repair tech tells me that the problem is
one of two boards, and once he knows which, he can order it. If it is
in stock, they will order Thursday, and get it in on Friday. My car
came back to me in time for Encounters, 1400 dollars later, but my
Check Engine light was finally off, for the first time in almost a
year.

I hear nothing about the TV on Thursday, so I hope for good news.
Meanwhile, I went in to work for Thursday and Friday. Of course, my
check engine light turns back on on the way home...

Friday, I call the TV place, Scratch Monday, Tuesday... That's fine
right? The part was in stock, and it arrived on Friday. He will work
on putting it in Friday, and it can be picked up on Tuesday, since
Monday is the holiday. I am so, so furious right now. I get to spend
my commute home probably being on hold with Panasonic telling them
that their product is crap, and they should do at least a little bit
of work to ensure that customers aren't buying broken goods.

Saturday was good, though. I ran some D&D in the morning, the Lair
Assault program, and managed to not kill any characters, but got close
enough to scare them all. Then we went home, got the house cleaned up
and had the Sweenys over and Ethan to play a long D&D adventure in
what is shaping up to be a new New Years tradition here. We saved an
Oriental town from losing their virtues while fighting off the Five
Deadly Shadows, in an old-school Kung-Fu adventure.

Allison came over and spent a good chunk of Sunday with the kids,
spending time with them while I worked on laundry and watched the last
week of the 2011 NFL season. Quite a few exciting games, and the
playoffs were finally set, so the next few weeks should prove to be
very interesting.

That's all I have for the week, hope everyone else had a good one.

Carrie


Carrie's "New" Van

My last one was lost is cyberspace!!! Anyway, Christmas was awesome!! Best one I've had since I was little. Everyone was so happy this year and I'm feeling like the luckiest person on earth lately. Kurt even stayed the night and hung out all day!! I helped a friend in need of a Christmas miracle. It felt so good to pass along some cheer. We bought a 1969 VW bus!!! I'm in love with her!!! Sean's been working on fixing her up a little everyday. I'm reading like a mad woman!! Read 6 books this week. I can't stop!! Just picked up more from Rob to last me this week. New Years Eve was fun. My friend and her family came over. She has 4 kids as well. Nerf war, just dance and lots of screaming and duct tape crafts happened. This week is back to school. Wish we got to do more on vacation, but three of the four kids got sick at some point over the week so we were grounded. Sean goes back to his foreman job this week as well. Hope to get the house a little more organized this week. New windows and doors are going in super soon. Need everything in it's place first!!! And must read!!!!!! :-)

Weekly Update

2011-12-26T07:00:00.002-07:00

Kurt

The beginning of the week was a Ten31 job. The video doesnt really show the snow well(Sorry, Kurt. I could not figure out, for the life of me, how to post the video) ....but the girl i was working with Simara and i were birch trees in the snow....at one point we really had a "moment" slow dancing in the snow..it was very magical.

There is a woman i work with named Lois....she is the person i get along with most. I think she is the best person there because she makes everyone who works there or is a client, feel like the most important person in the world. She liked one of my paintings that she saw on facebook so I gave that to her for Christmas....she is a Jew....but thats ok :) She was very moved by it and was almost in tears. It was the first time this season that I got in the Christmas spirit, and in a way felt the way that she probably feels when she makes someone feel so special.

Christmas was fun with the Goins...all the kids had a fun morning. I was glad i was there, but it was an EARLY morning. After the Goins' i went to my friend Katies families house. they have an open house every year and i know everyone in the family...the best part was playing that game where you write a famous person or character on a sticky note and stick it to someones forehead...we played about 7 rounds of that....a very simple game, but very fun!!!! I then drove the 2 hours home with a headache and feeling nauseous. a TRUE Christmas tradition for me! :)

This coming MONDAY and Tuesday i am filming the HOUSE of CACH promotional video! so i REALLY need to get as much done around the house with cleaning and projects so that on Wednesday i can concentrate on EDITING!

Kim

We had a great time in Disney World. The parks were not all that busy and the weather was BEAUTIFUL. I'm glad we decided on Florida for this December trip-the weather was so much warmer than California. And Disney really does know how to make things magical...

The trip was a huge surprise and a great way to spend our week before Christmas although we missed out on some of our usual "traditions". We arrived home around 10pm on Christmas Eve and found new pajamas waiting for us. Thanks, Grammy!

We made it to church for our 10am sacrament meeting and enjoyed a lovely program. The irony of it is that much of the world ONLY attends church for Christmas but we attend every week. When we have to attend on actual Christmas, we (especially my kids) feel like it is an imposition. Ironic, and a little annoying. Whatever. We made it happen and in the end everyone agreed it was not TOO disruptive to our pajama-wearing, gift-unwrapping, laze-around day.

I'll post more on our trip later next week when the kids are back to school. (That's not until Thursday, January 5th actually. Can you believe it?)

Carrie

Some pictures that Kurt sent...

Weekly Updates

2011-12-20T06:51:00.002-07:00

Rob

Monday was just school for the boys, and work for me. I sometimes think people act like they hate Mondays just to have a good way to ignore the mundane nature of them. They even sound the same "Mundane : Monday"... Interesting. I really don't remember there being anything remotely interesting on Monday. Actually, Tuesday was not any better. I think the most interesting part of Tuesday was that McGuire told me he was getting a Saturday detention for being late to school too much. I left a... heated ... yeah, that works, a heated message with the Jr. High Principal. I sort of felt bad about it right away, I let my temper get the better of me, I just meant to ask him what I am supposed to do?

On Wednesday, Archer had a nice little atomic meltdown in the morning, for no good reason. I try to get him dropped off at a friend's house so that I can get to work early on Wednesdays, but his little freak-out meant I saved almost an entire 30 seconds, and it embarrassed me in front of his friend's mother. I was leaving work early that day anyway, to see my doctor in the afternoon. Traffic was lighter than expected (a Massachusetts first!) and I was relaxing in the parking lot when the Jr. High Principal called my cell. I apologized for my rude and vulgar voice mail a few times, and we came to the fact that there isn't really any concession that can be made, but that McGuire needs to be responsible for his own wake-up time. Really helpful. Doctor appointment was good, I have such a major crush on her, so I really don't mind going in. She finally is starting to understand that my sleeping 5 hours a night is just what I do. She is worried about everything I have on my plate, but I explained to her that I am dealing with it all as best as I can. So am I stressed out and sometimes overwhelmed? You bet. Is it bad wiring, or a chemical problem in my brain? Nope, just life...
After that, I met up with the family at The Whiz for D&D: two totally full tables, with 2 of the regulars not showing up. I was able to play again - having other people DM Encounters is really working out well, and my pixie was as annoying as ever. We had a new guy show up to play, father of 4, knew his way around a RPG, but not super knowledgeable on the new edition. He was a fast learner, and didn't mind getting playing tips from a 14 year old. He was very impressed with Archer's mastery of the game, which makes me pretty proud. I don't consider the rules too complicated, but part of that is probably due to having two very smart kids. If we had more physical space, I could easily see a third table as a most-week option, but there just isn't the room.

Thursday was McGuire's Winter concert. I still don't have a real working camera, and Allison forgot to bring hers, but it was a good concert. McGuire finally got a hair cut. It was just too much to take care of, so he is mostly buzzed now - luckily he has a really good shaped head, so he looks really good with the short haircut. He had to leave the concert right after McGuire's sets were over, because he had gotten a lot of homework that day, and wasn't done with it. After the kids were in bed, I was finally able to finish the story of Assassin's Creed Brotherhood (so, so good).

Friday I had a dentist appointment in the morning. Thankfully, Archer cooperated with me so that he caught the bus, which let me get to my appointment on time. No cavities! I really wish I had always taken as good care of my teeth as I do now, but oh well.
Work was fine, and after work I went out to dinner with my friend Jen, who was in MA for business. We went to an Irish restaurant near my work, since it was on her way home. It was pretty good, but I swear I had 20 pounds of mashed potatoes with my dish. We left around 8, so I got home in time to get the kids into bed and play Gears of War 3 with my on-line friends. I had to end earlier than usual, so I could bring McGuire to detention in the morning.

Saturday was pretty lame. Drop off McGuire for his punishment. He and I were joking about getting there late, just for the irony, but they spelled out that being 10 minutes late would result in a 3 day school vacation... I mean out-of- school suspension. I went back home, did some cleaning , took a little nap with Archer, then picked McGuire back up, and we all cleaned the house together, getting ready for Mary-Ellen to visit. At the end of the day, I brought the garbage outside, and realized no one had checked the mail, so I went down to the mailbox and got the mail. One totally shocking piece of mail was from the court system - I was expecting a new court date that we could have to miss. Instead, it was a sheet that looks like a judge went over our case file and signed off on the divorce. Allison and are officially divorced!

Sunday we woke up early enough to do some last-minute cleaning before Mel and Bediaco arrived. They came over, and we went to "lunch" - not realizing that Puffins only serves breakfast on weekends. It was a good, tasty breakfast anyway, so no problem, really. We played Carcassone on the 360 (easier to let the console do the scoring), but when we finished, the kids scattered to the wind, so we didn't wind up playing a second game with the actual cards. The rest of the day was pretty tame: watched some football, didn't even go onto the computer.

Kurt

I did a makeup test for a short film that I am creating. It's for HOUSEofCACH. HoC is a jewelry company that I work for. We are making a promotional video. A story about a relationship between a man that keeps turning into a goat and a model who keeps changing her jewelry. It is being filmed in a beat up house from the 1950s.

I've been trying to finish off as many projects as I can before I move. I've been ordering a lot of things online which I've never done before. Metal spikes and studs, animal teeth, bodysuits. It's been very fun! I finally had a place to wear my new mask....goth night at club hell.

Last night I went to the ZINC SALON Christmas party. We ate at ZINC restaurant in new haven and then went to a cigar bar where everyone was smoking cigars and cigarettes. It was hard to breath at first but u KINDA got used to it. My clothes REEKED the next day. It was funny to think about how that was the way it was in bars at one time. It's much more pleasant to me in the current state

This week I have two people coming to look at paintings for sale at my house. I sold one today!! So my goal for this week is to clean the house ;). Oh. And make a replica of Marcel the Shell. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VF9-sEbqDvU&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Carrie

This week has been full of activity. Hailey's first band concert was good. Her grade has only been playing for two months but did really well. She likes her saxophone very much. I had extra kids over everyday this week. From 2 to 4 extras!! Good kids though. Made cookies everyday. And got our real tree today :-). Making cookie trays with Mom tonight. My friends took me out to celebrate my birthday, and I'm moderately decent at darts!! It's flown by.

This week it's finish Christmas preparations. Trent and Kayla both have parties I'm bringing baked goods in for. I'm really in the holiday spirit!!!!! I've been thinking back over the year and realizing how much I have to be grateful for, more and more everyday. I'm thinking of ways to pass my good fortune along, and I don't mean moneywise!!! I'm open to suggestions if you all have any!!! I need a service project!! Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!

Kim

Can I just say that I feel like Wonder Woman? Christmas shopping-check. ALL wrapping-check. Shipping-check. Teacher gifts(three kids at three school-a lot of them)-check. Neighbor gifts-check. Gingerbread houses-check. Band concert-check. Laundry-check. Dog healthy and groomed-check. Bout with stomach virus-check. Packed and planned and executed biggest surprise to date-CHECK.

Dave and I decided to spend the first week of Christmas break and his week off doing something fun. That took on many faces as we looked at planning it last weekend. Finally, on Monday we committed to a week in sunny Florida. We are enjoying Disney World and planning a trip to Cocoa Beach and Universal later this week. We booked this trip Monday and got everything ready without the kids knowing about it. Until we arrived at the airport's long-term parking, they thought we were doing something in Denver. It was an epic surprise.

Holy cow. A trip always takes a ton of work to be prepared but this last-minute, right-before-Christmas thing, as a surprise...wow. I'm very impressed with myself. And with Dave. He nearly finished his "construction" project on his own and had to work like crazy at work to be able to leave Saturday. We did it. It was totally worth it to be able to surprise those kiddos. Jake will always remember this trip. He's really wanted to come here for a LONG time. Ben and Rachel will always remember the surprise.

I've said it before, but it's worth repeating. Jake is a much nicer teenager than I was in my family. He's not perfect, in fact he drives me crazy all the time, but he is sooo much happier to be with his family than I was at his age. I have pictures of me at 14 or 15 at Disney World on a family trip with a scowl on my face in every picture. Attitude to spare. Yikes. Jake kind of likes us. Not all of us all the time, but he knows how to make us all laugh and he can be found laughing more than scowling in our pictures...

I'm glad we could be spontaneous and throw together a great trip like this! We are so blessed. Here's to great family memories--limited scowls, please...

Weekly Update

2011-12-13T03:59:00.000-07:00

Kim

I really got a handle on Christmas to-do projects this last week and I officially spent more time at home than in the car and out and about. I wrapped 90% of what needed to be wrapped and helped Dave with a minor construction project...maybe it's not so minor since it's not done yet. I made a creme brulee cheesecake to celebrate Dave's birthday and delivered our Sub-for-Santa gifts.

This week is the kids' final week of school before a LONG winters' break. I will get the teacher gifts wrapped up and delivered. I will mail off packages to family. I will likely finish wrapping. I will get all our Christmas cards in the mail. I will attend a Relief Society party and a middle school band concert. Go french horns! I will absolutely finish all my shopping. I like giving myself a hard deadline. Last year I had everything done by December 21 and it was lovely.

Then there will also be the usual mundane like laundry, groceries, vet, wait around for delivery of a safe, blah, blah, blah...here's to a productive week!

Rob

This past week has been the adventure of a television.
Monday I get a phone call while at work from Allison: the TV has apparently given up with the whole "displaying pictures" thing. She tells me that the sound is still working, but the picture is gone, regardless of the input option. While this really sucks, it drives home my hope to get an upgrade to the home theater. Tuesday I decide on a TV to get, and put the order in with Amazon, delivery expected on Friday, between 3 and 6pm. Since I ordered a flat-screen TV, with plans to mount it on the wall, I knew that the remainder of the week would be a lot of hard work, getting ready to change the layout of the room.

Most of the goodies that I ordered along with the TV arrived Thursday, so I had a nice pile of boxes, just missing the televsiion, so Thursday was TV moving time. After work, I got home and started with the task of rearranging my living room. The first step was taking the huge and heavy TV out of the entertainment unit. See here. That wound up being one of the easiest steps of the night. I put the TV onto a small tabble, so I could watch some football while handling the rest of the room. Step two was to clean out the corner where I would be putting the entertainment unit. Sadly, I neglected to get a good picture of just how bad it was before hand, but if you have seen pictures of Stalingrad towards the end of WWII, you have a good idea. When it was clear, I got the picture. Next up was to move the actual entertainment unit over to the new location. Looking at the picture of where I took the unit out of, I don't know how I managed to move it - there is a lot of stuff all over the place most of the night. When you see where the entertainment unit ended up, you can see at the bottom of the stairs about 50% of what was in the corner where the unit ended up.

Friday, with the room pretty much ready, I left work early so that I could be home in time to accept delivery... which never came. I called Amazon at 6:02 (yeah, I got impatient) and they confirmed that there was a problem with the delivery - it was now scheduled for December 16th. Naturally, this was not going to be alright with me, so I went on a bit of a customer service quest to get it fixed, or as close to fixed as I could. After some communication, I got Amazon to try to get it sped up to a Monday delivery, along with a 45 dollar credit. I felt somewhat better, but after thinking about it for a while, decided to go with a local delivery. Dad offered to come up with his truck so we could get it Saturday, and I got it up that night! While watching Back to the Future on TV, I finished getting the room organized and mostly set up.

Sunday was pretty much spent relaxing around the house, McGuire had the Sweenys over, and Archer is slowly working on his homework - still is now, actually. He may never be done - may God have mercy on his soul.

Kurt

This week I got good news. My computer just needs more memory. And that is it. Plus it's only about $25. So it is ordered and on the way. Now I can do more creative stuff on my MAC, which is the point right?
I went down to NYC on Thursday to see YELLE in concert. A French dance/pop group. AMAZING, very fun. I killed to faggots with one stone by doing my fitting with designer Ben Chmura. I will be walking in his Styleweek show in January. The stuff is super modern street wear. I'm VERY excited and inspired by his clothes. Lots of treated fabrics.
Then last night I was THOR with a VALKYRIE at Harvard. It was a graduate student event that took place in their cafeteria which looks like its straight out of Harry Potter. We were at the entrance....we were in the middle of the dance floor....it was great

I came up with my next concept for performance art. Under the name Kurt Fowl in the subways of NYC I would like to be bird like characters that hand out notes to passerbys. So I've been writing little quotes to make people think or feel positive about their day. I need to work on those costumes. I ordered a body suit that I will paint.

This week I'd like to sell some paintings. I've sent out messages to people that I am selling them dirt cheap. Other than that I have no goals. I've done much as of late. I should make a goal for myself to REST!!! (which prolly won't happen)

Carrie

NYC was awesome!!! We stayed at the Trump Soho, corner room on the 37th floor. I got to look out over the city all the way to the Empire State building. Beautiful!! Soho was the perfect place for us to stay and shop and walk. Love the cobblestone streets!!! Except in heels. I still suck at heels, but I shopped and walked in them for 3 hours, an all time record for me :-) The Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall was spectacular, the backdrops alone is worth going for! Got some Christmas shopping done but could have and should have bought more. So many perfect finds. If we had more time I would have gone back to a few shops. Really wish we were filthy rich at a few swanky boutiques!! Blissful, although I started gushing over other people's kids probably freaking them out. I missed my babies!!

As for the rest of the week, it feels so long ago. Who cares if I'm thirty!!! Hailey had her chorus concert. She was heard through the whole concert, and the 5th and 6th graders were really good!! I made fudge for the PTO to sell and it was a hit. Kayla has been on and off not feeling well so she got a little extra Mommy time last week. Chase is counting and signing ABC's a lot, as Mom can tell you. He did it for her from 4 to 530 am!!!!!! Lucy brought the kids to the Congregational church and they were in the Christmas Pageant. Trent was a donkey, Kayla a sheep and Hailey an angel. Wish I saw that!!! Sean left his job as foreman to go back with his old crew. He is very happy!!! He would have been laid off till March otherwise and now he's getting 20 hours of overtime a week again. Good timing!! I'm such a lucky person!!

This week, finish cookies!!!! Drop clothes off for donation, wrap presents and finish shopping. Chaperone movie night, muchto Hailey's dismay, and show my babies how much I missed them by playing playing playing!! Starting tomorrow, cause I'm exhausted!! :-)

Weekly Update

2011-12-06T06:23:00.000-07:00

Kurt

This week has been one with a lot of dealings with inside feelings and emotions. Ugh, haven't those been deep enough for so long that they are blackened charred coal and long forgotten.
Going through a break up and living together situation.....listening to how I am viewed by someone who is angry at me and thinking about the effects of my actions. We all feel that we are in the right even if we empathize. Anyhow, lots of reflecting. That's enough for THIS medium.
I performed at the Pierre hotel in NYC on Friday. It's right 5ave on central park. We were four silver/winter trees at a private event. The ballroom we were in was in a scene in Scent of a Women.
On the drive back to RI with the Ten31 group I had an amazing conversation about creativity. It's actually been an amazing week. Reflecting a lot on art.

On Saturday i was back in NYC and saw a great performance by the band HI FASHION. The female singer in the band is also a casting agent. She was the person who cast Jon on Project Runway. She is super nice and kind of reminded me of my friend Lind-z. They are FIERCE performance art and fun music. Check them out on FB.

Ok....so I got new contacts. Have an appointment Tuesday at APPLE to get more memory for my computer....or see if I need to buy a new one......and I MUST go to Carmax about selling my car.

Carrie

This week.......I got my hair done!! Love it! Kurt is a genius. Didn't get the girls in for their hair though. Made three batches of two kinds of cookies :-) Started an anti~ video game movement, since Trent doesn't seem to be focusing on anything else!! We played trains, made playdough, pizza and pretended angry birds didn't exist. So far so good. The boys liked making cookies, playdough and pizza so much they thought they'd get up this morning and make more all by themselves!!! Flour everywhere!!!!!! But it's ok, they love being in the kitchen and it was really cute!!! The tree lighting is tonight and Kayla will serve some thumbprint cookies with Girl Scouts.

This coming week......ends my 20's. I'm sadder then I thought I'd be about it. I have everything I want so age is just a number, yet it sucks. My birthday night will be spent watching Hailey's first middle school chorus concert :-) Then Friday through Sunday, Sean and I will be in NYC alone!!!! First time leaving the kids, so a little strange, but we're going to be super close. I cannot wait to wear heels and dresses and makeup and explore. We go every few months with the kids but haven't been alone since high school!!!! Christmas Spectacular, horse drawn carriage ride, nice restaurants and shopping in Soho!! My bathtub will overlook the city at the Trump. I want to go pack just thinking about it!!!

Goals this week.....cookies, license renewed, record story for the kids to hear while we're gone, stick to the no video game regimen and get our real tree. Although Chase knocked over the fake tree twice so I'm not sure why I'm pushing for torture :-D. Just kidding!!!!!!

Kim


Ben is dressed up as a banana. He stood on the corner with a sign to drum up business. His idea. So cute.

I held the garage sale last week, as promised, in spite of freezing cold temperatures (like a high of 22 degrees Fahrenheit). It was not hugely successful, due to the cold, but it was good to get it done! We only raised $153 so I have approached a local donor (in my house, local) to make up the difference (a hundred bucks) to get ONE SMILE fixed. Rachel was disappointed that we hadn't done enough for one smile until I told her we might know someone who could help. Nice save, Dave. I was so grateful to have Lori's help! Did I really let her talk me into doing it all again in June, though?!

Dave had the week off last week so we went back to the shooting range and shot a couple 9mm. I'm really not bad but the indoor range is so stinking LOUD! I used to think I hated the sound of popping balloons. This has been like immersion therapy for that phobia. Balloons have nothing on shotguns and colt .45s. One of the guys there told me I should switch to decaf after seeing me jump at each shot. If he only knew...I'm that high-strung on water only.

We also made it over to IKEA. Dave was impressed.

This week I have to pack away everything from the garage sale and store it. Wrap gifts for our Secret Santa family. Finish decorating for Christmas. Make ceramic ornaments with the kids. Help a friend clean after her move. Sad. Tackle the filing situation. Figure out teacher gifts. Actually a gigantic TO DO list...but a commitment to drink more water, floss, and exercise.

Rob

Ascension Teacher

Sunday - I was running a D&D adventure, so of course I overslept, and got to the store 20 minutes late. I really need to stop sleeping in until 11:30 on Sundays. The adventure went well, no players or characters died, and quite a few of them leveled up, which made them very happy. We had gotten a new board game (Wrath of Ashardalon), so after the game, we were looking at it, and the Sweenys

Monday - Standard boring Monday. I don't think anything of value happened all day. Certainly nothing that stands out a week later.

Tuesday - Tuesday, my old nemesis. Most people dread Monday, but I am telling you, Tuesdays are the really dangerous ones. They are the serial killer of the week - Wednesday always said Tuesday seemed like a nice, quiet day, kept to himself, never seemed dangerous. But one day... *snap!* and Tuesday is on a rampage! We always suspect Monday, but Tuesday sits there waiting for our guard to be down and then it pounces. This Tuesday was boring, though. For now... Actually, Sons of Anarchy had part one of the season 4 finale, so that was good.

Wednesday - Dad was going to come up to bring the boys to D&D. In an odd way, it was really good that he couldn't, if he hadn't spotted the oil tank leaking in the house, it would have been a major disaster for him. As it was, he was able to take care of the near-calamity, and I was mildly inconvenienced with having to leave work an hour early to bring the kids to Encounters. I guess we could have skipped it, but it was Ellie's birthday (sixteen) so we had to go. She got permission from her parents to join us at our weekly Friendly's outing, but then she wanted to eat at the 99, so we did that instead. The best part was that her parents paid for us! As usual, McGuire's meal cost about 50% more than mine, the kid is really starting to scare me.

Thursday - it was a day. Named after Thor, if you were wondering. Most of the days of the week are based on Norse Gods. Tuesday is Tyr's day, Wednesday is Odin's day (hence that odd 'd' at the beginning), Friday is Freya's Day... I think Monday and the weekend days have Norse origins too, but looking that up would make this update even later, so I will skip it.

Friday - sort of accidentally started celebrating McGuire's birthday early. The one thing that I remember happening on Thor's day was a letter in the mail stating that McGuire had been late to school enough to get a detention. So when we woke up 15 minutes before he would be late (like we had no chance of getting him there on time), I decided to have him "be sick". Of course, then Archer oversleeps, and begs and begs so that he can "be sick" too. I figure "why not?". I am already way out of the running for father of the year or perfect attendance, and my kids are smart enough to miss a Friday. I went into work late, and left early to make up for it. I'm such a bad influence sometimes, honestly.

Saturday - I gave McGuire his second birthday gift from me (third if you count the Friday illness) - his own copy of Battlefield 3! Ironically he played some on my account Friday, but he loves the game, so now we can play together, which I love. We mostly played different games Saturday and cleaned up some of the recycling for the rest of the day.

Sunday - McGuire's Birthday! We went to The Whiz so that McGuire and Archer could play in D&D Adventure. While they were battling a sentient lake (?) I learned how to play the new Penny-Arcade board game - it plays a lot like Ascension which is cool. I was taught how to play that by this Ascension Teacher at GenCon last summer. After we had our gaming time, we went home and I had a chance to look up a Mexican restaurant in the area. McGuire really wanted Mexican food, but he suggested a Qboda, which is like Americano Burrito-ville. Fairly tasty, but really just a fast-food place that serves what Japanese comics would draw as American Burritos. I found a place called Plaza Azteca in Worcester, about 15 minutes away. Allison came over to join us, and McGuire got his first of his presents from her - Total War: Shogun 2. He started the download and then we went to get our meal. Really good Mexican food, and McGuire got a small sombrero and free flan for desert. After that, we went home, and he had Key Lime Cake and got two books from his mom. He had a chance to even play his newest game before bed, so he was happy. Pictures of McGuire in a sombrero, or pretending to eat his cake whole are attached.

Weekly Update

2011-11-29T06:38:00.001-07:00

Rob

Thanksgiving week! Finally a short work week, and a short school week, and a week where I know at least one meal ahead of time. Allison and I decided early in the week that she would take the kids to her parents' house, since her sister would be in the States from England for the holiday. My feeling was that since Allison will not put up with her father being a jerk to the kids, it would work out fine. I went down to Groton for dinner, but only stayed a little while after that, because I wanted to see Carrie and Kurt, too, in Lebanon.

At Dad's, the Kindle Fire was the hit of the day. People oooo'ed and aaaaah'ed over it, remarking how cool it was, especially at the price! Ben and Tyler, Joanne's grandkids brought their 360 over, so rather than watch football, I got to relive the joy that is Beavis and Butthead. Those 20 minutes felt like hours of listening to morons chuckle - I was never really a big fan of that show, and it has not aged well. The food was good, though, and it was nice to see Dad, but I left the house too late to go to Carrie's ahead of time, so I went afterwards.

I got there just before Kevin and Lucy left, which is too bad, cause I like them. Chase and Trent were already mostly ready for bed, too. Chase still acts like I have spikes growing out of my face, but Trent is warmed up to me by now. They were just getting the Rock Band going on the Wii - kind of a specialty of mine. I had to calibrate the system, it was making it impossible to play well, and I missed my huge song collection on the 360 so much that I bought a 20 dollar points card and hooked the Goinses up with some new tunes. Seeing Carrie's girls and boys made me miss my kids both a little more and a little less. I will just call that a net gain.

I got to work on Friday - sometimes being a contractor SUCKS, and the kids came back on Saturday to a mostly cleaned house and a mostly rested father. We then went to play D&D at the local game store, and they went over to the Sweeny house afterwards for pizza and board games.

"Its like the only picture I took this week, showing Archer how much his hair goes out in the tub. I don't know why he looked so horrified, bu we were all laughing about it." -Rob

Carrie

On Friday Carrie wrote: Since we're going north to no mans land tomorrow, I thought I'd update early. This week I went and saw Kayla with her friends all pilgrimed up. Some of these parents really outdid themselves with costumes!!!! Thanksgiving was nice!!! I cooked for us 6 plus Kurt. Kurt took family pictures for us. We played Twister, I almost puked on Kurt!!!! Then Rob stopped over for some Rockband!!! Wish you were here for that Kim. We all should be banned forever from a microphone :-) Sean is playing a reunion show with his old punk band tonight. Then Vermont for a thanksgiving meal with Mom. Hopefully some cookies and playing in the snow. My goals for next week.....to get my hair done, girls hair done and cookies!!! Always cookies this time of the year :-)

Kurt

Thanksgiving was a lot of fun this year. Being with just carries family was really nice for me. I made bracelets with Hailey and Kayla and played Angry Birds with Trent. We played rock band together but had the most fun with a full on game of TWISTER. What a classic. I don't even REMEMBER playing when I was young although I'm sure I did.

Last night I was given a ticket to see SLEEP NO MORE in NYC. It is based on Shakespeare's stories. The play is interactive and takes place in a five floor building. The audience all wear white masks and are not aloud to speak. You are encouraged to be curious and explore all five floors how ever u see fit. Unmasked actors make their way through the vignettes and if u want to see AMAZING performances then u follow. I spent the full three hours exploring the different places. It is a combination of performance art, dance, choose your own adventure, disguise, voyeurism, and reading emotions in people just by watching their face and reactions. It was to this date the most special thing that I have experienced.

I plan to have Carmax give me an estimate on my car this week. I would really like to save more money

Kim

I wrote my post on Sunday and can not find where it was saved. Great. As Jake would say, I'm technologically impaired. He's fifteen and also says I'm "ancient". Just wait, Jake. You'll get yours someday.
Last week Mertz and Bertha came for a visit and to celebrate Thanksgiving. We had a fun time together and great weather. On Thanksgiving we went bowling in the morning (a family tradition) and after a low-key, delicious dinner, Jake and I hit some pre-Black Friday sales. We left just after 10pm and arrived home around 3am. It was insane out there but Jake calculated our savings for me at around 43 percent so I can't complain. Plus he is great company. In addition to teasing me, he is just plain funny and smart. I'd give up a little sleep anytime to spend some time with Jake.
I got my hair done on Friday. It's a bit too dark.
On Saturday, Rachel and I took Grandma Bertha with us to see the Nutcracker. Another tradition for Rachel and me.

On Sunday, I taught Relief Society for the last time. I got released and called to be the Relief Society Publicity Specialist. Sounds like a made-up job, right? Whatever. I'm sure I'll be awesome. I do have a degree in advertising....
Next week: hold the freaking garage sale. Get everything ready for it. Promote the RS Christmas party. Make neighbor gifts and teacher gifts. Wrap. Go to the temple with Dave. Get a pedicure. Make Ethiopian Chicken.

Until next week...

Weekly Update

2011-11-22T22:17:00.000-07:00

Rob

Typing this on a kindle fire, cause this week was apparently consumer week. I had preordered this a while ago, like when they were first announced, thinking it would be a good birthday present for me. I have to admit, it is pretty sweet. Not a lot of kindle.books on it yet, but I really don't get all that much reading anyway.I have a picture of it sent via text, note that most of the apps are games... It is just my nature. Not too much going on kid world, McGuire missed his afterschool program one day so that he could be home for Archer. We opened a savings account for Archer and got him a dozen pair of socks, clearly the high point.lint of his week. Sunday I got the latest Zelda game, see the picture? It is awesome so far. I am tired, fhouh-another picture to prove it- typing on A touch pad is sort of annoying.

Till next week

Kurt

I finished the painting!!! I used silver red and gold. Red and gold are pretty much my last choices. Red and yellow are my least favorite colors. But....as I was out of blue paint it had to do. I really like the painting. It is very angry. It represent the end of my Providence chapter. The paper glued to it are my business cards from the salon that I started working at. And red and yellow are Jons favorite colors. While painting the large canvas I also painted a smaller one with the same concept. I have been doing a "companion piece" each time I do a large one. I really get a lot of satisfaction from that and it also creates more of a cohesive collect of work.
I achieved NO other goals but last night did another roll of film LOMO-style. http://www.lomography.com/homes/kurtuccello The pics will be up next week. (If they come out)
I was in NYC Monday and Tuesday. Just to take a break. My birthday was relaxing. I worked as an award statue then finished the glam gas mask.
Friday night was the night I was looking forward to. Although nothing turned out the way it was suppose to...i.e. No one was able to get tickets and no one was out at a bar after the show. It was a GREAT show. They modernized the costumes and added a few unique jokes mixed in with the classic show. It was a welcomed change.

Carrie

"Our closing at the Green Store"

So, we are home owners!!!!! Friday night we signed all the papers. Surreal!! Then I chaperoned movie night for 5th and 6th graders. Sean and I met up with old friends to celebrate a 30th birthday and I went to a really good party for a sweet three year old and saw lots of old friends with lots of kids. It made me think of how much I lost contact with people over the years. I didn't get to meet any of my goals due to a 6 day migraine!!!!!! Now a sore throat, but the goals are in place for this week now!! I'm not giving up.

Sean went a got an elecrtric fireplace and new tv for the family room!!!! We've been wanting to do that for a while. So pretty and warm!!! I'm planning on doing some little changes in there to make it prettier, more library-like. Exciting!!! Goals, cookies, walking, cleaning, christmas decorations.......we're doing Thanksgiving just us this year. Then Sean is playing with his old band!!! Then we'll head to Vermont to finish our weekend. Continue to be thankful for everything I have. I'm so lucky!!!!! Oh and get into the school a lot for Kayla's pilgrim week!! I loved that in third grade.

Kim

I was wowed by the first grade program last week and completely smitten with my own first grader. They seem so much bigger and smarter than I remember being at that age.

The other highlight of my week was my hot date with Dave to the shooting range. I bought groupons for a class, gun rental, 100 rounds of ammo and an hour of shooting. Having never shot a real gun, I was apprehensive about it but as it turns out I'm a natural-born killer. A former marine who was on the range with me nicknamed me Annie Oakley. I shot a browning long-barrel .22. Dave is of course awesome(he kind of rocks at everything) but I held my own. In our class of 8, I was in the top half of shooters. So much fun! I'm gearing up for a 9mm.

The coming week includes celebrating Thanksgiving with Mertz and Bertha. Shopping some sales with Jake on Black Friday. Preparing and giving a lesson at church. Shopping and wrapping for our "secret Santa" kids. Starting the book for book club-Little Women.

Over and out.

Weekly Update

2011-11-14T06:25:00.004-07:00

Carrie

This week....We should become homeowners!! Closing later this week. Sean and I got the house "Christmas ready" cleaning out the old to make room for the new :-) feels good to purge!!!! We got a babysitter and went to Boston House of Blues Saturday to see Manchester Orchestra play. They were really good. Over the week we had lots of kids over for playtime, never a quiet dwelling!!!! Got in some really good walks and am still trying to teach Trent how to play fair in Chutes and Ladders! We ended our weekend by heading to the Dinosaur Place and then Build a Bear. Much needed quality family time :-) Love having a long weekend with the kids!!! I also found a 1969 VW bus for sale and am seriously considering getting it if the frame is sound!!!! So cool!!

This week I hope to.........walk three miles 3 times. Catch up on laundry after the washer was down for almost two weeks!!!! Get more Christmas shopping done, pick out the new doors and windows for the house and bake Christmas cookies.

Kurt

It has been a busy week for THIS little performance artist. Sunday I performed as ALPHA (with OMEGA) at the Boston Convention Center where BILL CLINTON was speaking. Its one of my favorite characters because we are encouraged to "interact" with EVERYTHING. We can mess around with people, touch everything around...when we perform those characters its like we have JUST come to earth. you can check them out on WEMAKEPRETEND.COM
The next day i was back up in Boston to perform at the ICA. Its a beautiful space to show contemporary art. I was an award statue at an event where DENNIS LEHANE (writer of Mystic River and many other things) spoke.
Friday I was the GOD of WINE at a wedding in Connecticut.

I did NOT do my goal of writing some more songs. but thats ok I started, and am more than half way done with one of my other goals....creating a gem stone gas mask!!!!!

This week i would LOVE to start painting the new canvas that i bought at the salvation army, its the biggest canvas that i have ever owned. I am excited to throw some TEXTURE on that bad boy.
I also NEED to make an appointment for new contacts, i am pushing at least 3 years on this last pair (of two week disposables! woops)
Also, my computer NEEDS more space and speed so i need to bring it to apple....in my research APPLE doesnt make memory for my aged computer, so i need to get the specifics from the people at the GENIUS BAR

Rob

Sadly, I have no photos for the week. This could have been an excellent week - my birthday on Tuesday, the final battle for Neverwinter on Wednesday's Encounters sessions, 4 day weekend for the kids and a D&D game for me and both boys on Saturday. Instead, it was a week of concern, conflict and compassion. Sunday was spent scrambling for babysitting for Archer, since his mom was unable to get to the house when she said she would. I was able to drop him off at a friend's house, and picked him up later that night. Allison wasn't around for the Amazing Race, so we saved it for later in the week. When Monday rolled around, I left my cell phone charger at home, and my battery died. Imagine my surprise when I plugged it in, and had half a dozen voice mails and texts! Turns out Allison had a trip to the hospital, and in the end it wouldn't be until Friday that she would be able to go home. Her parents came down to see her, but she refused visitors; it was nice for them to see the boys anyway. I am largely not talking to her father anymore, because he thinks it not wildly inappropriate to threaten a teenager when you get lost. They left in a huff on Thursday, but I got my fridge cleaned while they were here, so that is something. Anyway, rather than get a lot of work done this week, I got to go in late Tuesday, oversleep Thursday and spend most of Friday driving around MA to bring Allison home (5 hours for the patient escort, 2 for the normal commute). All in all, a good week to have nothing much going on.

Taking editorial license here and inserting Halloween pictures and description this week. -Kim

McGuire is the Green Lantern.
Archer is General Greivous, but with only the mask, and a knight's armor. Think of it like Ceremonial Outfitting for the General - like Marine Blues.
The young lady in Orange is Ellie, dressed as Clyde (or whichever of the ghosts from Pacman is Orange). The other young lady is Catherine, as a princess. The other boy is Jim, he is dressed as the Companion cube from Portal.

Kim

Let's see. I attended one PTO meeting and was kicked off the Air Force Base when trying to attend the second one since my license expired on my birthday. The high school is actually ON base and it's terribly inconvenient for just this reason. The armed guard actually wished me a happy birthday and told my to drive directly to the DMV. I did. I had NO idea my license had expired.

I tackled the ironing pile but only to store a quarter of it in spring/summer stuff, deliver another quarter to the cleaners and ironed like five things. Still on my to do list, but maybe not this week.

Exercised five times if you count a lame yoga routine and a slow walk for two of the days. I've got to get more motivated!

Attended Rachel's first piano recital(Popcorn Popping) and Ben's sixth(?)(The Entertainer). They both did excellent jobs. It's fun to see their progress. Closed out the soccer season with Ben's last game ending in a tie:1-1. He played full-time goalie and saved their butts several times. Way to go!

Began Christmas shopping/planning. Made smoothies every weekday. Wouldn't you know, Rachel liked the "monster smoothie" the best? The boys did not. Funny girl. It's the best way to get more fruits and vegetables into Ben. Plus, just some morning food.

This week I need to complete the preparations for the garage sale. We are clearing out toys and clothes mostly in hopes of raising enough money to buy someone a new smile from the organization Smile Train. My kids' hearts are very touched by their ads. We've had to wait until soccer ended to find a Saturday to do it. We've been stockpiling things for months now and I'm anxious to move them on and do something nice as we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas.

A first grade program and another PTO meeting this week. Also, Dave and I are taking a gun class this week. Should be a fun date learning to shoot!

Until next week...

Siblings' Update

2011-11-09T06:40:00.001-07:00


Carrie, Kurt, Rob, Kim July 2011 Glastonbury, CT

We are terrible at staying in touch. We are going to try to do better by documenting one week at a time.

KIM

Mrs. Mia Wallace and Vincent Vega from Pulp Fiction

Last week, I successfully finished up the Halloween celebrations and turned 41. Halloween seems to get more drawn out every year. I suppose when my kids are all gone and it is quiet and boring around here I'll look back with a melancholy regret that we don't do more to recognize Halloween. For now, I'm glad it's over. School parties, church party, neighborhood parties, costume rentals, sewed costume details (that's right, by me), carved pumpkins, assembled gingerbread haunted house and collected so much candy. Success. The kids also got well-child checkups (on their snow day) and flu shots.

This week I plan to:
1. Attend two PTO meetings, one at the high school and one at the elementary school
2. Get the oil changed in Dave's car for him
3. Schedule doctor and dentist appointments for myself
4. Tackle my ironing pile
5. File
6. Start my Christmas shopping
7. Make smoothies every morning for Ben and Rachel. Ben really needs to be eating/drinking something before school.
8. Exercise five times this week.
9. Make a plan for the Physical Fitness Merit Badge for Jake and Ben (and maybe myself)

ROB

It would be impossible to try to sum up the whole year, so I will only be looking at the past week, starting with Saturday, October 29th. Snow in October in New England is nothing particularly new or odd, but an October Nor'Easter, with most of the leaves still on the trees? That is a little less common. We had batteries, and flashlights, so the boys and I were happy to sit at home and watch the snow fall like crazy - after we ran a few errands. Archer was playing a new game he bought himself - Sonic Unleashed, we had some frozen pizza for dinner, and were sitting downstairs when the power went out t 7:30. No worries - I had my cell phone, used it as a light to get upstairs to light some candles. It was not a terrible way to end a night. McGuire read for about 3 hours in candle light, Archer and I hung out, and eventually went to bed early. When we woke up Sunday, the house was fairly cold - stupid gas furnace, with battery-powered thermostats, and it still wants some external power to actually turn on the furnace!!! We had plans to meet up with our D&D group, even though only McGuire was playing that day. Archer and I brought a DS and my netbook to use the store's power! We went to dinner at Fridays so that I could see the Patriots game against the Steelers (bad idea), and I brought them over to their mom's apartment since she had power and they didn't have school on Monday with the power out in most of the town.

I went home to sleep in a cold house, since I was still going to work in the morning. I was pretty happy to wake up with power, but my alarms were obviously not set, so I got to work later, anyway. Three of the kids that show up to D&D were coming over for Trick or Treating - I should have some cell-phone photos to insert here later. The kids had Tuesday off, as well, so I am already thinking that they will be losing a vacation with the first winter snowstorm.

Wednesday was supposed to be the day Allison and I got our divorce approved by a judge, but thanks to some misinformation, I took the day off from work. and we got "properly attired" for court for no good reason. Instead, we both went to our residences - I was lucky enough to see my neighbors leaving their house, so I dropped 100 bucks to get the kids they hired to clean their lawn to take the biggest debris from my yard, too. I then used the rest of the day to have my car looked at so that I could get it to pass emissions. Turns out that will cost about 1500 dollars, so I have some hard decisions to make there, the car has 200,000 miles on it, but it is a Camry, so getting a lot more miles out of it is not out of the question. Still, not a great way to take a day off from work. We did get penciled in to get judge time on November 10th, though. The rest of the week was fairly copacetic - we had some surprises with Allison on Saturday, which led to to juggle some plans on Sunday, but all in all, the weekend went well.

KURT

      I saw the band CSS in boston, Brazilian Dance ROCK they are SO energetic and fantastic. I wore an army shirt that i made.
     I dressed as Kurt Cobain for work on saturday, which i may say came out Fantastic. I then worked as a statue at some rich peoples house outside of boston. I was King Neptune standing by them clams. then got back from that and did three costume changes for a halloween party in my building.
     Sunday I dressed as the "zombie boy" from lady gagas Born this way video @ a bar/restaurant DOWNCITY in Providence (it was on Kitchen Nightmares). i won third place which is a $50 gift card to the restaurant.
     Monday i was in my stuffed animal suit with my friend Katie in the NYC Halloween Parade. the largest pedestrian parade in north america. We marched and posed for pictures....the costume didnt get much attention, so we did a costume change later when she wore the pants, and people LOVED her.....it made me happy...next year we are gonna make her get ALL the attention.
     I've been planning on moving to NYC when my lease is up in Providence. Last night Jon and I broke up. I have a lot of goals in my mind, and usually I dont set DATES for. Although they do get done but this one week at a time will be fun. In this next week i would like to record at LEAST one more song. ive been doing recordings for a while....and i would like to get better at music, so i need to work...although when it comes down to it i will have to find someone to sing for me, i am just no good.

CARRIE

Last week........ a snow storm caused some serious damage around the state. We were lucky and only lost power for two days. We trick or treated with my friend and her four kids at an old folks home, but they horded the candy!!!! So we went on the green with another family we love. Too much snow, so we opened the van up and drove down the green. Lame but fun!! Carved pumpkins, made a gingerbread haunted house and had two days of school parties.

This week.......I'm freaking out!!!!! We're supposed to close on the house tomorrow. Still trying to get home owners insurance. Because of the storm, the insurance agencies have been closed. No joke, going on 10 days without power. I have been left out of the process because Dad, Uncle Jim and the mortgage broker wanted to make things easy for me. Now I'm clueless. And frustrated. My goal is to bake something tasty and go for a run. Or speed walk. It clears my head. My babies are keeping me grounded and that keeps my eye on the prize.

On another happy note...... Sean is taking me to NYC for my birthday weekend!!! Staying at the Trump Soho. So, as things stay crazy I have something to look forward to. :-) I'm a lucky girl. Just have to keep reminding myself I'm strong and can take everything that's thrown my way.

And that's a wrap for our inaugural week of "Updates". Can't wait to hear from you all on Sunday!

Turks and Caicos

2011-06-18T05:42:00.001-06:00

Beaches Resort June 4-11, 2011
Oh my. How do I do justice to such a great vacation? Let's start with some pictures...

The clearest waters and most fish we've ever seen.

Rachel is like a fish. She snorkels without fear.

Ben gives a thumbs up to Caribbean warm waters.

Jake prefers scuba diving, but humors us occasionally by snorkeling. His main job is to keep Mom from drowning.

Triple-decker at the pool.

While Dave and Jake went on scuba tours (six of them!), we enjoyed the beach (and water slides, but I didn't get any pictures).

This is how I get time to finish my book on the beach.


What's this? The boys trying to turn sandcastle building into a competition? Who would've guessed...

Looks like the boys think they won...

Teppanyaki dinner

Baking cookies with Cookie Monster.


Dave enjoying the only surf around.

We LOVE the beach!

Goodbye for now...we'll be back.

Every vacation feels like the best one at the time...I imagine we'll have more "best" vacations to come. Like Rachel tells us, "the best part is spending time with my family." (The boys call her a kiss-up, but I think she's sweet.)

On Our Way

2011-06-04T06:23:00.000-06:00

You know it is going to be a great vacation when your family members all call to wish you well before you leave and warn you to be careful. "Tell Dave," they all say. And then on your way to the grand destination, you have occasion to sleep on the floor of the airport. We're in for some memorable fun!


Charlotte USA, thanks for vacuuming before we arrived.

The Freshman

2011-05-25T06:28:00.003-06:00

I've had the nagging feeling that I should get back to blogging for several weeks now. Who knows what causes these impressions...guilt, a knowledge that it will serve my family well someday, something more significant. I can't say. I do know that Jake needs to be spotlighted.

This boy, or should I say man (at 6 feet tall and 180 pounds he certainly does not look like a boy) is one amazing person. He has taken to high school like a fish to water. It would seem he can navigate through most of life's challenges without much fanfare or drama. (I will chalk that up to his father's influence.) He is fifteen and drives me crazy some days with his procrastinating and lack of urgency about things, but man is he a joy!

I'm not the kind of person who loves teenagers. I don't find them terribly charming, as a whole. The surly attitudes and contempt for authority make them somewhat of a challenge for me. That is not to say I did not come to love the Beehives I worked with a while back. They were charming, and in fact quite respectful and kind. But I am not a parent who has looked forward to having a teenager.

First Day of School 2010

That being said, Jake is teaching me the pleasures of this stage, like a wonderful first-born child should do for his younger siblings. He is funny. Oh, so funny. And smart, and kind, and helpful, and capable. He has a quiet confidence that I admire and envy a little bit. I should probably trust him more to navigate his school work responsibly since he has been able to work it out so far on his own.

I want the BEST for him so sometimes I nag, and pester him to DO more, and achieve more, but the truth is he is everything I could possibly hope for in a child. He loves his family, and is a loyal friend, and most importantly, he knows the importance of living the gospel to find real happiness. Plus, he has mad shooting skills in video games. If we're ever invaded by zombies, we will prevail.

I love you just the way you are Jake. Good luck on finals! We're in your corner.

Summer Vacation 2010

2010-09-23T17:14:00.003-06:00

We kicked off summer vacation June 3rd with Dave having the week off. He took us up to Mt. Baldy in the FJ Cruiser for our first family off-roading tour.

My favorite moment was after I hopped back in the car after helping Dave navigate a very tight passage and Rachel said, "I know something that starts with S, Mom" What's that Rach? "S is for SCARY."

Apparently, she doesn't have an adrenaline addiction developed yet.

Rachel's dance recital was June 5th and she did marvelously. My daily calendar's quote that day was, "When in doubt, twirl." How fitting. Especially if you saw the dance. After the dress rehearsal she told me she almost cried when she got on the stage and I was surprised but tried to comfort her. She said "No, Mom. I wasn't sad. I wanted to cry because I was so happy."

Here are some photos of our little ballerina. Just this week she was moved to a longer ballet class with older kids. It makes my life considerably more complicated having dance after the boys get home from school (since it's soccer season) but she seems to love it. She's not a baby anymore!

And swim team began even before school let out. It was the defining activity of our summer since it took up every weekday morning from 7-9:30am. Rachel followed with swim lessons every day until 10:45am. That's a lot of pool time! It's a good thing most of our friends were at the pool too every morning. Baby Dane was the source of much joy and love this summer. He probably will not remember the summer but we will never forget it...

Jake is on the back row and Ben is nearly dead-center looking like he's ready to jump out of the picture.

The boys did a great job on the team and the coaches were tremendous. They both improved in form and speed considerably. Jake has even said he will go out for the high school team since he knows the coach now. Great news!

Ben's Injury - Part Two

2010-09-12T21:26:00.001-06:00

I can't really move on without documenting "Part Two" of Ben's hurt leg.

All the kids went to the pediatrician for their well-child checks after we returned from vacation. While there the pediatrician insisted on removing Ben's stitches. It had been 7 whole days but they said to leave them 7-10 days so I was hesitant.

That night we attended the end-of-the-season swim team party but would not let Ben swim since the stitches were so newly removed. Good thing because he woke up the next morning with it splayed open again. SO gross. Dave was so mad he was fuming.

We had to get him to the ER to get it cleaned and re-stitched. The painful shot to numb it and a good scrub down followed by thirteen more stitches. What a trooper. I became a wound-care nurse for two more weeks and worried myself sick about infection and complications. I am not cut out for dealing with medical issues!

I was a wreck. Everything turned out OK but I'm mad at the doctor for taking them out too soon and mad that every medical thing at our house has to be so darn complicated. Remember my wisdom teeth...

Here's sweet Ben surviving round two of the ER.

He's such a charming guy...

Dave took out the stitches himself after 14 more days and it was a bit tough. Ben endured quite a bit of pain and then the nervousness of it opening up again (though that seemed incredibly unlikely since the stitches had nearly grown into the wound). Let's NOT do that again.

It finally, finally looks like a normal scar to me. As the second ER doc told him though, his leg-modeling career is over...We sure love you, Ben!

Epic Newton Vacation

2010-08-12T19:00:00.011-06:00

We realized a long-time dream this summer by renting an RV and taking the family on a fun-filled trip around the West. We mapped out the trip and reserved our rig and campsites early and then had to spend nearly the whole summer waiting for the time to arrive. The preparations included baking up some recipes from my childhood. Camping for me, come to find out, is quite nostalgic. It wasn't until the planning of this trip that I remembered all the summers spent at Moose Meadow with my family growing up. Mini golf, reading books, eating blueberry buckle and of course, chocolate camp cake.

Every good memory should include food.

Day One

We hit the road by 5am so as to make it to "the Dakotas largest indoor water park" by early afternoon. We made great time and logged over 450 miles by 1pm. The water park was a tad smaller than anticipated but turned out to be the perfect way to shake off the long day of driving.

Jake was the master.

Ben's back took quite a beating.

Dave earns Ben's respect here.

Rachel is fearless.

Everyone LOVED RVing on Day 1. Especially Rachel. Rounds of Monopoly, Life and Candy Land were had in earnest. No TV or movies for us on Day 1. We ate at Outback (which our kids insisted was a first) and hit the local WalMart for some supplies. Boy did we feel welcome there. Those were our people for the next week...

Day Two

A rental car from the campsite was in order to see Mt Rushmore and Bear Country, USA. We loved the Palmer Gulch KOA and would like to go back for a full week.

Here we are loaded in the car, but wait where's Dave?

Oh, there he is. While we're all ready to go he's got his own agenda...can I say, "like father, like son"?

Mt. Rushmore was Jake's favorite part of the trip. Very impressive and majestic.

At this point in the trip, Dave spent a lot of time carrying Rachel around. Note for what happens later.

Bear Country, USA has more than just bears!

For obvious reasons you are not allowed to open car windows or doors in the park. Unfortunately, our rental car had the air conditioner break and started to overheat while we were trapped in a HUGE line of cars. It reached scorching temperatures in the car while the bears got up close and personal. I think they could smell us cooking. It was a bit scary because it was so hot. Rachel looked like she might pass out. All's well that ends well, so I'll say it was neat and worth doing.

Dinner was cooked over a wood fire and finished with s'mores. A trip back to Mt. Rushmore for the lighting ceremony was well worth it.

This man is not afraid to get messy. You should see him eat ribs! (Or maybe you shouldn't.)

Day Three

By now we were feeling in the swing of things as RVers so we joined our "friends" for pancake breakfast at the chuck wagon. (I actually did make a couple friends the night before at the laundry hut. RV tip: Don't wait to do laundry too late in the evening, it gets cRaZY.)

Here Rachel is combing her hair with a "dinglehopper". Of course she used the one with syrup on it...good times without a bathtub in sight. Luckily they all hit the pool before we pulled out of town.

We spent the day driving nearly 400 miles to Cody, WY. It took longer than expected so we didn't make the gunslingers show. Bummer. We hit some fierce storms along the way with torrential rain and violent wind gusts. Dave managed it all beautifully but was exhausted by the time we arrived. The kids only watched one movie the whole day! We watch more in my van driving around town than we did in the RV. Ben rode his bike around the campground a bit until he busted his rear derailleur. Dave thought he might be able to fix it but ended up needing to go to a bike store the next morning. Maybe we should have left it broken...

Day Four

We enjoyed FREE pancakes at the Cody KOA and then took an early morning tour to see the wild mustangs. Dave has wanted to do this every time he drives through Wyoming. Very cool. A band of "bachelors" approached our group once we exited the bus and looked like they might charge, but decided we were too weak to worry about after getting a closer look at us. Intense.

The smallest horse in the picture (a black one) is only three days old.

After so many hours of driving in Wyoming it's a surprise to see this landscape. You'd never know it was here without taking a tour.

Ben made a friend and found a lizard. Again, like father, like son.

The kids caught a nap on the way to Yellowstone which was less than 80 miles away. So sweet.
You don't see moments like this at home....the day before, all three were in bed asleep briefly. The memories are piling up and making all the planning and cleaning worth it.

Finally in Yellowstone, we start with some bison.

Followed by some "stinky parts", as Ben likes to call the thermal features.

And even more stink.

Here's where things deviate from the plan in a big way...

Ben gets hurt riding his bike with Jake and Dave near our campsite. He slides out on some loose gravel and his chain ring shoves into his calf. It's deep and there is fat tissue hanging from the bike. They flag down strangers to take them to the nearest clinic (one hour away but still in Yellowstone. That place is BIG!) and send Jake back to the campsite to tell me...I'm totally helpless to do anything really because Dave has the keys to the RV in his pocket. My friendly camp neighbors (who happen to be from Colorado Springs) take me down to the ranger's station to at least call about Ben. I finally get to talk to Dave as they are starting on Ben. Four hours after the whole ordeal began and 10 stitches later, Dave and Ben are delivered back to our RV by exceptionally kind campers who patiently waited the whole time so that they could drive Dave and Ben back "home" when they were done. It restores hope in humankind when there are SO many people who are concerned and generous.

Day Five

Yellowstone Tour: "Circle of Fire" with tour guide, Jared from Massachusetts. Awesome.

Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

The tour was amazing but since we had one of these(a lame guy)...Dave had to carry him a whole bunch, which left us with one of these...

Rachel felt incredibly displaced with all the attention Ben was getting and we were lucky to get even one of these...

Old Faithful performed admirably for us and we had a great day seeing nearly every "highlight." We were all exhausted, especially Ben.

Days Six and Seven

Needless to say, I was anxious to head home. It was worrisome and tiring having Ben with some pain and swelling along with the disgruntled "baby princess" (as labeled by Kevin Leman in The Birth Order Book).

We stopped to see the World's Largest Mineral Hot Springs but did not stay to "enjoy" them since it was scorching hot out and Ben was forbidden from such things.

All in all, we only had one terrible campground in Casper, WY and by then we were too tired to care much anyway.

We logged 1723 miles on the RV and a little over 100 on the rental car. The tours we took had to be at least 150 more miles. We spent a LOT of time traveling. Rachel's favorite days were the "RV days"--the endless snacks, board games, and time with her brothers. I would like to rent one again and spend more time in one place. The coast of California or Oregon, maybe? How about Moose Meadow? We'll see. For now I'm thrilled to be home.

Our New Yard

2010-07-31T11:58:00.005-06:00

This has been in the works in Dave's mind since we moved in (five years ago) but it was good to sit on it awhile and wait to make sure it all came together, including the vegetable gardens in the backyard.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

So while a landscaping company came to clear out the scrub oak, lay automated sprinklers on both sides of the driveway and down to the gardens, and lay sod, Dave did all the other improvements. He spent one of his weeks off this summer gardening and landscaping every waking moment it seemed. I felt like I had a full-time gardener. He's awesome and now our yard is too. (Don't mention the deer or the bears to him unless you want an earful...He's feeling a bit put out with their presence in his territory.)

Snowy Village

2010-05-17T15:36:00.004-06:00

"What's this?" you ask.

It's the memory of April 23, 2010 when I awakened to find snow on the ground and a delay start scheduled by dear D20. No problemo. Let's send it out with a bang...some cakelets and hot chocolate for what is likely our last "late start" of the year.

That is until D20 decided to update with a full blown snow day. My celebratory disposition changed and I had to try hard to keep from crying. Why, oh why, a canceled day?!

The snow was completely melted by 11am. That's springtime in the Rockies for you...June 2nd here we come. Ready or not.

911 Fail

2010-05-12T16:59:00.000-06:00

So, 17 More Years?

2010-05-07T05:38:00.002-06:00

Dave had to be at seminary today at 5:30am to cook breakfast. The school year is finally winding up (though only the seniors will be done May 14th and everyone else will go until June 2nd, including Dave and his remaining seminary students) and so they are doing some celebrating. Too bad it had to be on our anniversary...but we've been married long enough to realize that life just marches on regardless of the milestones that come along the way.

I got up to talk to Dave before he left (about mundane "housekeeping" stuff that has to be discussed to keep everything running smoothly) and as he was leaving he said, "So, 17 more years?" What a guy! We're supposed to be in this for eternity but I think another 17 year commitment will do for now.

He also reminded me that in 13 years all the kids will be out of the house. That wasn't such a nice thing to tell me. It's freaking me out a little how fast things go. But that's a post for another day...

For now, let me celebrate the fact that I married the perfect guy for me. He's not my perfect match on paper. Or maybe the professionals take into account that opposites do attract, I don't know for sure. All I know is that we are like opposite sides of the same coin. Completely different is so many ways--like heads and tails--and yet perfect together because we hold the same value.

How else could we manage the good cop/bad cop gig all the time or family vacations (and life for that matter) filled with spontaneity and a schedule? There are so many ways we compliment each other that it thrills me that we both committed to the LONG haul with three terrific kids and nothing but eternity ahead (and a LOT of negotiations).

Love you, David. Looking forward to the next 17 years... ;)

A Trendsetter?

2010-05-04T20:00:00.003-06:00

Ben likes to think of himself as a trendsetter. What better way to make that true than to cut your hair really short just as spring is coming into its own? Now everyone who is getting a long overdue haircut can be considered "following" the leader. Funny guy.

The funniest thing is that he has been contemplating and planning this change for quite some time, with only the prospect of a super-white forehead holding him back. He found the sunless tanner and decided there was nothing stopping him. He applied it for a few days before the hair appointment and is quite happy with the results.

Like I said, funny guy.

Ben's Big Day

2010-05-03T19:38:00.003-06:00

Last Friday Ben finally bought his iPod Touch. He's been saving and earning the privilege for nearly eight months!

He saved up ALL the money for it and then had to read to Rachel, read by himself, and keep his room clean for 50 days. That's a lot to ask of one excruciatingly active 10 year old, but he did it.

We're so happy and proud.

To add to our pleasure is the fact that Jake walked home from school one day in March as the proud owner of one (he won the grand prize from his school) and Ben was thrilled for him. No temper tantrum or sulking about that life is not fair (which clearly it is not) but simply JOY for Jake's good fortune. What a guy.

We love you, Ben.

(Now if he can just love it and appreciate it as much as he hoped to...it could be tough to live up to the expectations...)

This House Has Soul

2010-03-23T09:54:00.006-06:00

"A home without books is a body without soul." --Cicero

I have a 2010 calendar book by Mary Engelbreit that includes a quote each week, mostly about homes and family life. I really like this quote because I love books so much and imagine I will always collect children's books.

Here are some pictures of our new library (which is only six months or so in the making and more than four years in the planning)...

If I were choosing everything myself, we would have the smaller iMac. But alas it's all about compromises. And apparently feeling like I could run the world from my very own desk.

This is the wall that used to have Rachel's bed against it.

This is the nook where Rachel's makeshift closet lived. We're waiting for a giant chalkboard to arrive for the wall.

After the quartz countertop was installed in the corner we decided we needed the same for our inexpensive (aka: ugly) desk from AFW. It's perfect for the desk and really ties everything together. Jake's handy work in woods class brings us this beautiful pen holder. Thanks, Jake!

It's thrilling to have it done and to feel like this house really reflects some of me now.

We had wood floors put in here too and the rest of the wood refinished to match. I love them. Much less shiny and yellow. Did I mention that it's great to be done?!

It's obvious we have books! Come on over and borrow one.

P.S. -- The "cabinet lady" coined it the "library" instead of office. I like it even though it's a bit pretentious. I don't think I'm very pretentious otherwise so I'm going to chance it and call it my library. So there.

P.P.S. -- Don't comment if you disagree and think I am pretentious. I don't want to hear it.

Rachel's Exciting Week

2010-02-11T16:16:00.006-07:00

Rachel has had more than her fair share of excitement this past week.

On Tuesday, she took her first dance class. I've been considering putting her in a class for a long time now but I had trouble justifying another activity for me when she's so happy to put on music and dance around the house...

In any case, it was a huge hit and as you can see they don't simply spin around to music here. I love how intense her face is in this shot. The second half of class is tap and she has the most adorable tap shoes in the world. So little and shiny!

On Thursday, we headed to the district headquarters and registered for KINDERGARTEN. Can you imagine? My BABY is five and going to school in the fall. She is so cute and sweet. Shortly before we went to register she asked me very seriously in her little voice, "What if I'm not prepared for Kindergarten?"

Oh, sweet girl. So serious. So concerned. So ready. A better question would be regarding Mom's readiness. Can I be a "stay-at-home mom" when there's no one at home with me?!

And then today Rachel was able to wear her new outfit from Jane and Ruby (homemade by Annee) that was sent to celebrate turning 5. Oh, how she loves it and the matching bag. I may have created a monster as far as her fashion needs go. As long as she still gets down and dirty to play I think she can hate jeans as much as she wants...

Here she is at preschool showing everyone how a mom looks to hit the town. Well done.

There's nothing like a fabulous new frock from the other side of the world to throw you back into blogging! Thanks, Annee. It's perfect for Rachel!

One Unforgettable Event from 2009

2009-11-03T03:46:00.005-07:00

On Thursday night, October 29th, we headed out to swim team in spite of the snow. School had been cancelled for two days but the roads did not seem that terrible to me. On Dublin Blvd, another car lost control and flew over the median and head-on into our van. The Nissan SUV then spun around and forced us into a tree. The kids and I were thankfully kept safe inside the faithful Toyota Sienna with the airbags deployed. We feel so blessed.

This is what the other guy looked like. He happened to walk away safely also.

Now it is on to dealing with insurance companies and picking out a new car!

The following day I saved the van from being crushed mistakenly because I showed up to empty out some of my things. It was not at the lot where they'd towed it because it was being transported to a wrecking yard, instead of another van that insurance had already "totalled out."

Can you imagine that nightmare? The car gets crushed before insurance can see it! That was close. Just another thing to be thankful for this year.

I'll never forget how I spent my 39th birthday feeling a bit older perhaps (with soreness in my neck and shoulder) and quite a bit more humble. Life can indeed change in an instant.

P.S.- Just to reiterate--no one was hurt in the accident. Jake and I had minor scrapes and bruises and a few sore muscles. Ben had one bruise from his seat belt and Rachel was completely unharmed. Amazing, really.

My New Favorite Ten-Year-Old

2009-10-22T17:12:00.008-06:00

I'd like to share 10 facts about Ben:

1. Favorite color: GREEN

2. He LOVES cars, especially fast, expensive sports cars. Go figure.

3. When he grows up he wants to be a professional keeper (soccer goalie, for those of you not in the know) or an NFL running back. Either one.

4. Favorite vegetable: CELERY

5. Favorite meal: Hot wings with steak and fries.

6. His best friends this year are: Matthew, Evan, Max, Cutter, JonJon, Joseph, Jacob, Brandon, ect. ect.

7. Favorite sport: Soccer (or lacrosse, although I argue he has so little experience watching or playing lacrosse it can't be a favorite.)

8. Favorite subjects in school: PE and Math

9. Favorite hobby (besides sports): building models

10. He's an absolutely amazing brother, friend and son. His teacher adores him this year because he is so kind and genuinely nice with everyone.

Ben is one-of-a-kind and we are so happy he is in our family.

Love you, Ben!

Guess What Jake Brought Home from School...

2009-10-03T16:37:00.004-06:00

The swine flu.

That's right. My eighth grader, who is not the most social person, brought home the swine flu.

He's on tamiflu and we're prepared in case the rest of us get symptoms but we're hoping Ben's birthday plans aren't affected by the illness.

My guess is that A LOT of people are going to get it. Let's hope it's not too severe.

That's my excitement for today. Plus a soccer tournament for Ben in Denver. He's becoming a really great goalie. Way to go, Ben!

Get well soon, Jake.

Baked Potato Soup

2009-10-02T08:00:00.002-06:00

I hosted the "lunch bunch" last week at my house and served a family favorite.

Here's the recipe.

INGREDIENTS

9 baking potatoes
2/3 cup butter
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
6 cups whole milk (I use 2%)
1/2 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup bacon bits, divided
4 green onions, chopped
10 ounces shredded Cheddar cheese
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream

DIRECTIONS
Prick potatoes with a fork and bake for about an hour. Scoop out the flesh and mash with a little milk. In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in flour and cook a couple of minutes. Whisk in milk, a little at a time, stirring constantly until thickened. Stir in potatoes, salt, pepper, (use an immersion blender before adding anything else, if you want it less lumpy) 1/3 cup bacon bits, 2 tablespoons green onions and a little bit of the cheese. Cook until thoroughly heated. Stir in sour cream and heat through. Serve topped with remaining bacon, onions and cheese.

It's not healthy, but it sure is delicious. How I love fall and curling up with a warm bowl of soup!

Check Out What I Brought Back from Korea

2009-10-01T14:21:00.006-06:00

Here are a few of my Korean finds...

A "Rolex" for Dave. (Which may or may not have stopped working already...)

A new vase.

A "super-soft" blanket for Rachel to dance on, because what else would you do with a super-soft blanket?

A couple of fabulous purses.

Some parasols.

The idea to make crepes(said with French accent) for breakfast with creme(also said with French accent). Delicious! Betty Crocker's recipe is not as good as yours though, Annee. You truly are a Renaissance woman.

Lori posted more wonderful details about our adventure HERE.

Let me publicly thank her for not posting every single picture of my rear end that she took and for keeping the pictures of my bad hair days to a minimum. That's a good friend.

The one detail I need to add is that I returned to Colorado to find a little piece of Korea in my very own family. I had been commenting on the bus ride to the airport on the eclectic fashions worn by Korean children. Every color in the rainbow makes for a good Korean outfit.

Check out what Rachel was dressed in to welcome me home (after she went to Costco, and Lowe's, and to a soccer game).

Korea may be over 6000 miles away but when Dad and Rachel are in charge of the outfits, it feels like I'm right back there. (A snowman shirt and snowflake tights in September--what the heck?!)

This picture is for you, Kurt. It's a paper chain made of origami cranes, I think. It was impressively long.

Farewell, Korea

2009-09-11T15:43:00.005-06:00

Today I head home. I'm thrilled to be seeing my family in a mere 24 hours or so. Korea has been great fun; the sights, sounds, and smells of this land have sealed us BFF's. Thanks for a great trip, girls!

(This is at Seoul Tower overlooking the city. The fence is covered in locks that people place there to "lock in" their love and commitment to each other. Interesting.)

Thanks also to Darin, Henry, George, Ruby and Jane for sharing so much of their wife/mom with us for nearly an entire week! This adventure was way better than any spa week.

Many more details to come of the adventures. For now I need to pack up.

Seoul Grand Park

2009-09-08T12:50:00.006-06:00

On our first full day here we celebrated the American Labor Day holiday by visiting Seoul Grand Park with Annee's family and some other families from the base.

Their "Grand Park" offered rose gardens, petting zoos (featuring animals with odd hair cuts), a dolphin show and a complete zoo, among many other thing. It was fascinating and very clean.

The weather started out a bit rainy but as luck would have it, as soon as we purchased ponchos to protect from the rain, it cleared up. I'll take a 3 ounce poncho for 2000 won and clear skies any day! (The exchange rate is about $1 to 1200 won.) It was the perfect introduction to a city that has been coined "not quite right" by Americans.

I ordered a traditional Korean lunch item call bibimbap. It was completely delicious with white rice, fresh vegetables, a little seaweed and a fried egg. So yummy.

It's been fun to see how the Koreans love little blond Ruby and Jane and how friendly they are to foreigners. It's a great adventure.

I Am In KOREA

2009-09-07T12:09:00.007-06:00

Lori and I made it to exotic, wonderful Korea. The trip was long but rather uneventful and a nice time to unwind.

Halfway through the flight it seemed much longer...

Finally we arrived to discover that Korea is a very quiet country. In spite of the large number of people, we were the only two talking and laughing...What can we say? We're finding joy in the journey.

Dr. Fish got a hold of my feet and it was a super ticklish experience. Unfortunately, I don't think the callouses are gone. I might have to spend a year or so here, with my feet in the water, to see that result. The fish definitely seemed to have a great meal though.

Kim chi is delicious. You would love it, Ben.

Bul Go Gi and all its side dishes from Sam Il is also delicious.

Korea is exciting and wonderful. More to come...

Grammy Lois Visits

2009-08-27T21:59:00.006-06:00

My mom came out for a week to see us and then she headed to Utah for some time with her sisters and high school friends. Those are some enduring friendships!

We went to the Flying W Ranch, Garden of the Gods, the North Pole, and the Current outlet sale. All Colorado Springs highlights. The weather was beautiful (for the most part) and we were able to really showcase our wonderful home state.

She brought me a skirt, the perfect black shorts, handmade crafts, and pictures. She cleaned out my junk drawers (that's right, more than one-don't judge!). We sure love our G-Lo.

Once a mom, always a mom. I think that is what I've finally figured out about motherhood. Although I'm all grown up and raising my own kids, my mom still thinks of me as her child. It's funny but I can see how that works now that I have a teenager. He's still my kid to love and protect even though he is growing up...Let's hear it for eternal families and our eternal roles in them.

Costa Rica June 2009

2009-08-25T21:07:00.008-06:00

Our big family vacation this year was to the lovely beach town of Tamarindo, Costa Rica in the Guanacasta region. It was tropical and gorgeous.

We drove from the city of San Jose to the coast so that we could score a direct flight from Denver. It was great to drive through the country and see the topography and vegetation. We will definitely see some volcanoes the next time we visit.

Some people might say the drive was a bit too long, but whatever.

(They sold large decorative pots here, but Dave couldn't resist a few pictures with the sign.)

Dave declared it his favorite family vacation ever...

Rachel paddles out.

Waiting for a set.

Riding one in with Dad.

Really, how can you compete with surfing every morning followed by teaching your kids to surf? There's nothing better than having your kids love something that you love. And let's be clear, these kids love the ocean like none other. I've never seen anything quite like it really. They LOVE LOVE LOVE the ocean. Especially for kids who live in a land-locked state!

Here Rachel is on her back floating away after she and Dave got worked on the surfboard. "No worries, Dad. I'm wearing a life vest and I love salt water up my nose."

One morning as we walked to the beach Ben could be heard saying, "Oh, those look so good." As is Ben's habit, I assumed he saw a souvenir or food item that he wanted. When I asked him what had caught his eye he replied, "The waves. It's gonna be a great day to surf." I'm not sure anything could make Dave prouder than recognizing clean waves...

For some reason, that I could never understand, Ben loves to do handstands in the ocean. He spent hours upside down out there.

I am going to blame my camera for the fact that I don't have any better pictures of Jake surfing. It's true. It is a lame camera for action shots in water. Jake is the only person who loves the water as much as Dave. That's a lot of love.

We saw the rainforest on horseback and thanks to Dave's fluent Spanish, Dave made a new friend. I wish I could say that he scored as well on the snorkeling tour he booked us, but I was afraid for my life on the jalopy of a boat that took us away from civilization, without a trace of our existence. All's well that ends well. Hah! Note to self: do NOT prepay ANY amount and tell someone where you're off to before you leave.

Lola's is the restaurant to NOT MISS. Right on the beach. Great food and smoothies.

Relaxing.

Warm and humid.

Beautiful Costa Rica. We'll be back.

Dave's First Day of "School" at Air Academy High

2009-08-24T21:02:00.004-06:00

Dave is a new seminary teacher for the high-school-aged kids in our church. Which means he has to be on the Air Force Academy base by 6am with a lesson for 15 teenage students. A lesson based on church doctrine that will somehow not bore them to tears and make it worth their time to arrive at 6am before a long school day. Daunting.

I dare say now that he has started the assignment it is downright exhausting. Though he does admit it is spiritually rewarding.

It's a sacrifice for our whole family really, since he has to spend time preparing each day (not to mention the alarm and hullabaloo of getting ready before 5am). We're happy he is willing to serve. Blessings in heaven are accruing. (Is that how it works?)

Quick Bear Lake Trip

2009-08-23T16:19:00.006-06:00

The kids and I made a quick trip to Bear Lake earlier this month (Aug 7- 10). Mertz and Bertha were making an impromptu trip and wanted to see the kids so we loaded up and drove over for a long weekend.

My grandma and grandpa were happy to see us but my grandma was so frail I hardly recognized her. Her health has been declining for a while now but this was a shocking difference from a year ago. Grandpa seemed stronger and healthier than ever, which is good since he needs to care for grandma. Getting old is not for sissies. I couldn't bear to take any pictures with them.

The highlight for Ben was at the Bear Lake West club. They were hosting the Lamborghini Club of North America for lunch at the same time we were having lunch. What a thrill (for Ben) to see 40+ Lamborghinis in one place!

Sometimes I wonder where this kid came from...with my mini van and Dave's Camry we must really cramp his style.

(There, Ben, I posted the Lamborghini pictures. I know, I know. Finally.)

Do You Like Rachel's Outfit?

2009-08-22T17:22:00.005-06:00

We call it the "wander-off-from-the-playground-during-a-huge-soccer-tournament-and-cost-my-parents-years-of-their-lives" outfit.

Cute, huh?

Dave and I were watching Ben's soccer game while Rachel played on the playground directly next to our soccer field. Probably twenty feet away.

I checked on her every five minutes and when I realized she wasn't there I went immediately into freak-out mode. I screamed to Dave and got him and a bunch of people looking for her. It's not like her to wander off. She was NOWHERE in the immediate vicinity. The security of the park mobilized and started checking vehicles and not letting anyone leave without checking. It was 11 minutes from when I last saw her to when I called 911 (I had checked my watch the last time I saw her.) It was a nightmare.

A security person found her waaaaaay on the other side of the park complex playing in some marshy water with a stick. She hadn't been there long she said. She was walking there probably most the time we were looking for her. She wasn't aware she was lost and wasn't upset a bit.

Too bad she has to retire the outfit. The general rule is that once an outfit has been described to a 911 dispatcher, it's out of the rotation. I know my mom is thinking I don't watch her close enough and my sister is thinking it would never happen to her kids. Probably true, but what can I say? We're not perfect. I think I'm going to go throw up now.

Let's hope next week is better. (You may notice my car bumper is squashed. I did that this week too. Additionally, I had a major combative confrontation at church on Wednesday night with a bully Jake's age. Helluva week.)

Let's shoot for more happy recaps for tomorrow...

Jake's First Day of School

2009-08-22T06:15:00.001-06:00

Jake started eighth grade on Tuesday. As I expected, he did not return home with a glowing report.

He'll be taking Spanish and digital media this year and he has a goal to get all A's. I know he can do it. The question is: can I let him figure out how to get it done without adding my two-cents? I hate to see him procrastinate but I need to let him do it his way this year. No nagging.

The reward will be an XBOX 360 for three quarters of A's. Seems like a generous deal. I might make him pay half. The real privilege earned here is the fact that I am considering letting another game system enter my home. That is generous.

I'm happy to report that after school on Friday Jake was able to admit that he likes a majority of his teachers. It's not going to be such a terrible year after all...

I sure love that kid!

Ben's First Day of School

2009-08-21T10:16:00.005-06:00

Monday was Ben's first day of fourth grade. He finally has a teacher that Jake had. It will be interesting to see how the year is for Ben. We really enjoyed Ms. Livingston when she was Jake's teacher and I wonder if she will remember Jake...certainly having Ben in class will be a totally different experience.

This picture really shows off his new shirt for the first day. He is developing his own sense of style for sure. "Bahmpbanawowwow," as Ben would say.

It's crazy how much they've grown! Jake did not have his first day until Tuesday so he is "hiding out" in his pajamas.

Evan and Ben both grew a bunch over the summer. Cute boys!

It's going to be a great year. I can feel it in the air.

I'm Back, for Better or Worse...

2009-08-20T19:56:00.007-06:00

And in this case, for the worse...much worse.

I realize that I've missed blogging and communicating the things that are going on at our house.

Even if those things border on tragic.

Sadie has been battling some eye trouble for the last couple of weeks.

This is a picture of her yesterday.

This is today after having her left eye removed due to glaucoma. It was either lose the eye or put her down.

Sad. Dramatic.

Is it too much to say even a bit traumatic for all of us?

In the end, she will be back to her happy, healthy self in no time and we won't even miss old lefty. Here's to a happy, healthy cyclops.

And to more blogging!

(This picture is from the first day of school 2005. Rachel figured out very quickly that Sadie was a decent substitute for playful brothers...she covered Sadie in kitchen towels and toys that morning.)

The Earnests Were Here

2009-07-07T11:11:00.003-06:00

Let's just say it's been a while and move on.

The Earnests came for a visit from far away South Korea and we were so happy to see them.

There was a LOT of this:

And even MORE of this:

I feel a bit bad that we didn't provide more excitement but hey, sometimes these are the best memories...and certainly this is exactly what the Newtons were looking for after our Costa Rica adventure. (More on that later. Maybe.)

Good luck getting home, or should I say back to Korea, because here in America is really your home. Seriously, good luck.

Negative Press

2009-04-20T06:31:00.012-06:00

There is nothing worse than sick kids (vomiting, diarrhea, fever)...Poor things, and poor me...

EXCEPT....

a sick dog. That's right, vomiting and diarrhea. Can you get me the number to Stanley Steamer? If you don't have a dog, don't ever get a dog.

There's nothing worse than getting an oil change without a coupon. Stupid car maintenance costs so much and takes so much time....

EXCEPT...

at same said oil change finding out there is a LARGE mouse nest in your air duct system. Eeeew. I feel so dirty and violated.

There's nothing worse than being honked at as you race through a parking garage....(where does that person think you should be going? There are cars on every side of you, literally.)...

EXCEPT....

trying to leave same said parking garage through the one-and-only stairwell only to be blocked, along with a great number of other people, by three young, avid texters. Southern California is a great place to visit but I could NOT live there.

There's nothing worse than growing out your bangs...

EXCEPT...

growing out the bangs of your four-year-old. Is it worth it and will we ever be done?

There's nothing worse than a snow day on April 17th(like the can't-leave-to-go-to-the-mall kind of snow day)...

EXCEPT...

a snow day on April 17th followed by a four-day weekend. Aaargh. Are you kidding me? We were just trying to recommit to less media time! It's "TV Free Week" starting today but I don't know about that.

"TV Free what? C'mon, Mom. Be serious."

Just kidding, really. The dog sequestered herself in the laundry room for the bulk of the illness that took place while I was sleeping. There were no mice, dead or alive in my car, and I know it could have been worse on that account. The snow day was blissfully relaxing with some sledding and a trip to Avery and Evan's thrown in. It's all well that ends well.

But I do think I'll stop letting myself use that expression..."there's nothing worse than..." because the universe will try to show me differently.

The Mind of A Four-Year-Old

2009-04-17T06:49:00.001-06:00

Do you ever wonder what goes through the mind of a 4-year-old?

Self portrait March 2009

If so, head on over to our house to find out. Rachel is sure to tell you exactly what she's thinking every second of every minute. Stream of consciousness, really. When we are out and about it is less pronounced so we've been on a school field trip, to the zoo, to playgroup, to the mall; all in an effort to give my brain a break. She is a talking maniac. Who knew such a quiet girl would have so so so much to say?! Whew. Even Dave, who spends a fraction of the time I spend with her, is EXHAUSTED.

Love you, Rachel but maybe you could get a journal or something to write down some of your thoughts...without talking out loud the whole time?

Easter Egg Hunt

2009-04-11T12:59:00.004-06:00

Yesterday Rachel and I hosted our playgroup for the 2nd Annual Easter Egg Hunt. It was very fun but different than last year because we had the "big kids" participate last year.

Ben was such a nice big brother (and son) because he got up extra early to hide a whole bunch of eggs before he went to school. Jake probably would've helped if he weren't frantically trying to get some homework done before nearly missing the bus...oh, to be thirteen. Simply one injustice after another.

We have a couple new ladies with kids in our playgroup (after the ward boundary changes) and it has helped revitalize our little group. Rachel is really enjoying the "babies" in the group. And Fox now has some boys to join in playing with the lightsabers. Fun times and good memories.

Let's do it again next year.

P.S.- Annee, did you notice Rachel's jumper is the same fabric as the skirt you made her? We saw it at Costco and she spotted it literally yards away. "That's for me, Momma. I need that one. Did Ruby and Jane make this one too?"

A new pet and "big" snowkids

2009-04-05T18:14:00.007-06:00

When Dave has time off we all hold our breath to see what the next adventure will be. The window was broken at the beginning of his last week off and then followed up with capturing this new family pet.

He's a blue-belly lizard. Ben spotted it while shooting hoops with Dave and then Dave managed to capture it, due to years of experience capturing reptiles. Yikes.

The lizard is in heaven in the terrarium, and much to my relief, it appears he can not escape like the gecko did. That's also welcome news for any house guests we have. Our aquarium days are officially over for now, due to two fires, but this terrarium is working out beautifully. I'm still holding my ground on NO SNAKES. That was in the pre-nup. I think allowing reptiles of any kind is very accommodating.

The week ended without any major injuries and a snowman on the deck. Dave thought this looked like a snowgirl with a dress but Rachel said no because she's too "chunky". Where does this stuff come from? I know at school last week there was an incident with another girl who was upsetting Rachel by saying that she is prettier than Rachel. They're so young to be doing this, right? The teacher settled it by telling them that Jesus makes us all pretty. You gotta love private, Christian preschool where they can say that sort of thing.

Too chunky. I don't think so. There's no such thing for a snowperson.

Pinewood Derby

2009-04-02T07:29:00.004-06:00

This year Ben made an awesome car for the races. The kids and I arrived at the church more than an hour before it was scheduled to start so that "the man" could set up the track. (We were doing Dave a favor, as he is the Cub Master). Ben brought last year's car to race against this year's creation while we waited for everyone to arrive. Great idea.

When Evan arrived without a car, Ben immediately offered to let him use last year's racebox. Evan took third place overall with the loaner. Ben won fourth overall and first in his age group as well as the "Best Rear End" award. (Can you tell Ben's den leaders know about his sense of humor?) Not bad, Dave. Third and fourth. You must be proud.

Let's do it again next year!

Pagosa Springs...

2009-03-28T12:00:00.006-06:00

Completely fabulous...but not for everyone.

We visited Pagosa Springs last week for our Spring Break and had a great time. The boys spent a couple of days skiing at Wolf Creek Ski Resort and Rachel and I spent hours and hours in the water...we figure she spent about 15 hours in the pools over three days.

Jake and Ben at the beginning of day one.

Jake mastering the snowboard.

Ben in huge moguls.

We stayed at The Springs Resort where we had unlimited access to all 18 of the hot spring pools as well as a "cold pool." It was awesome. Our friend Rachel is now actually swimming and she LOVES it. I felt a bit water-logged on Friday after four hours in the pools but Rachel was content to give me a break by following up with a long shower and then a bath. Fish. She's a fish, I say. She was too tired however to walk to lunch so we settled for Frosted Flakes and microwave popcorn. Not exactly a gourmet trip by any means, the Mexican food the first night was terrible. Like maybe-got-food-poisoning terrible. Avoid The Elkhorn Cafe at all costs.

But really nothing says vacation like sugared cereal and jigsaw puzzles. (Except maybe good food and the beach.)

At the end of day two.

Dave worked the boys on the slopes to the point of exhaustion and nearly died on his final run as the boys waited for him in the lodge. We're sure glad he wears a helmet. The drive was not too bad, only four hours, but a bit deserted. And again not too many good food options.

The hot springs were very relaxing and not too stinky (obviously, since Rachel endured it for hours on end) and honestly, I think healing. But like I said, not for everyone. The water was an opaque white in some of the pools and had floaties in almost all of them. The "cold pool" was the only freshwater pool there.

I loved it all but as I hop in the shower now, a week later, there is still the faint scent of sulphur and minerals on my skin. It's weird but I think it gets absorbed into your system through your skin and STAYS. Not for everyone...and those of you I'm thinking of know who you are. I, myself, am up for another visit ANY TIME.

Some Good News, and Some Bad News...

2009-03-15T13:32:00.004-06:00

I attended a "special stake meeting" this morning to find out about ward boundary changes. I left everyone at home so as not to have to wrestle people on those terribly uncomfortable metal folding chairs. The meeting lasted a full two hours and when I got to the car I called home to check in. Dave informed me he had good news and bad news for me when I returned home. I asked for the good news over the phone. His reply was that there would be something for me to blog...

That is not exactly "good news", if you know what I mean. He said the bad news would have to wait for me to be here in person. Great.

I immediately considered an injury to one of the boys considering their demeanor when I left, but then realized that they would not have been laughing hysterically in the background of aforementioned phone call if someone were hurt...so I came up with the next most likely scenario, and wouldn't you know it-I was right.

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Click to enlarge

Dave finally managed to break a window. I thought it would be throwing a football in the house (since one table lamp was already a casualty of such actions) but today it was the highest window in the living room broken by a Wii remote.

If you look closely you can see the remote sitting in a pile of broken glass from the inside pane. The outside pane is intact but cracked. That was done from the loft playing Wii Sports tennis without the strap on. Do you think he was swinging hard enough? No wonder he had tennis elbow a while back...

Oh, man. I can't wait to get an estimate on that damage...good thing it wasn't one of the kids.

Cotillion 2009

2009-03-11T08:10:00.012-06:00

It all started in December when I signed the boys up for their first cotillion classes. Ben was in class with Evan and Jacob, while Jake was signed up with Trevor and Will. I don't think I would have made them do it if they didn't have friends signed up too. It was so nice to have carpools for the boys! A week or so before classes started the boys were very keyed up about the whole thing. Almost every dinner conversation revolved around cotillion expectations and Dave's "funny" advice. Dave did cotillion when he was in junior high, plus he's just a good person to give hilarious advice (if you're 9-13 years old, and not a mother). Hilarious.

Come January 14th, we made sure suits were correct sizes and white shirts and ties were clean and ready to go. As with most things at our house we had two totally different reactions/temperaments being exhibited on that first stressful night.

Ben was feeling overly confident and handsome. "Mom, come do my hair." Which quickly changed to "Mom, it's fine already. I want to look GOOD but not TOO good." Every mirror he passed by warranted a stop and comment like, "I could be the President's son I look so good. Heck, I could be the President." This is Ben's way of coping with a new, stressful situation...

He does look GOOD!

Jake on the other hand was working himself up and getting more and more angry and belligerent with me as time wore on. "Why did you sign me up? I'm going to be the worst dancer there. I'm the ugliest person alive. I hate you." A completely different tone. Oh, the drama.

He looked GREAT and luckily someone else was driving him so he had to snap out of it a bit and relax.

Fast forward several weeks later and we have two boys who were enjoying and excited about cotillion. The obstinate 13-year-old of course was not copping to having fun, but as I drove him and his friends and observed class, I found out the truth. He even wanted to practice dancing with me at home so I know he turned a corner somewhere in there.

The "little boys" had a costume night and I really should have taken pictures of the girls. They were so darling.

The banana costume was very original, just like Ben.

After the party and dinner we had to stop at Dave's work. Ben wanted our picture "in front of blood." Weirdo.

The final night parents are invited to attend. I knew that sons would dance with their moms and daughters would ask their dads. What I did not realize was that I would be dancing for nearly 45 minutes. That's a lot for someone who has not been taking dance classes! I was pitiful at the Tango but Jake was very kind to me. In fact, Jake is an excellent dancer. He really knows how to lead and explain steps. Ben had fun with me once he got over the fact that he had to dance with his mom (uncool) and realized EVERYONE was in the same boat.

I wasn't expecting 4 (for Jake) or 6 (for Ben) classes to make a difference for my boys. We did it for the experience really, but the truth is that there is a subtle, recognizable difference in some of their behavior. Here's to holding doors, "sophisticated" conversations with adults, making eye contact when you shake hands with someone, and of course, the Foxtrot.

A much happier, more confident cotillion attendee.

Jake ate dinner at the final cotillion party with his peers while on Ben's final night we attended with his friends and their families and then went to dinner at the Tavern. It was a great couple of nights. I'm so thankful to have boys. There's nothing like the love of a son...except the love of TWO sons. Thanks, guys. Until next year.

Ben cutting loose.

A First for Ben

2009-02-28T20:43:00.006-07:00

Do you recognize what this is? It's a yellow card.

Today we drove up to Denver for a soccer tournament. Ben's team was playing up there to prepare for the spring season. We knew it would be a tough tournament. In the opening game the Snow Leopards looked good but not 100%. We lost 1-0. In the closing minutes of the game Ben was playing "sweeper" and he went head-to-head against a guy going straight at the goal.

Ben was charged with his first yellow card for a bit of a shove from behind, though to his credit, it seemed incidental and he was really going for the ball. The card came out, the ref (an older man, not a kid) yelled at him a bit, and then the ref got out his notebook and wrote down Ben's number and team name. The penalty kick was no good so there was really no harm done, except to Ben's tender heart.

To my knowledge, that is the first card given to anyone on our team. There's a first for everything I suppose, but seeing as how Ben is not the most aggressive or fouling player on the team, it was surprising to have it be Ben. He was devastated. Completely heartbroken. He hung in tough until the final whistle and handshakes with the opposing team and then he rushed me at the sidelines and began sobbing.

I only document this event so that in years to come when he is still playing soccer, or whatever it is he chooses to play (lacrosse? football?) he will laugh that it ever upset him to be carded. We're told that as the kids get older more and more cards are expected in each game. Demanded even. It's a good thing to be playing hard enough to be carded...just not a red card.

Ben's a great kid.

A great soccer player.

A great teammate.

A great friend.

A great brother.

A great son.

We love him so much and are so proud of the person he chooses to be everyday.

(Photo from yahoo image search...not our actual ref, who was much older and actually very good)

With love and respect, we acknowledge you as the FIRST PLAYER to receive a YELLOW CARD on the Snow Leopard football club (that's how their coach refers to it). Way to bring it, Ben!

Time flies

2009-02-24T13:31:00.006-07:00

I have been feeling terribly nostalgic lately. It seems my kids are growing up so fast. I can't seem to wrap my brain around how quickly time flies.

It's not all "wine and roses" (as the expression goes), but it does seem to be sailing by very quickly. Rachel tells me nearly every day about something that she has "learned in preschool" (whether or not that is accurate is another story) but it makes me realize how independent she's becoming and how much other people are beginning to influence her.

Ben has stories every single day of his antics at school, as well as those of his friends and the ever changing sagas surrounding their third-grade crushes. Oh, man. Things are moving quickly with him.

Jake departed today for school in a rush. His parting words (and actually his ONLY words to me today) were "I Hate You." I was not offended at all and not surprised either. Dave was here for the farewell and he couldn't understand it. To me it was par for the course because Jake obviously was running late and probably was tired. He often blames me for things when life gets stressful. Didn't we all do that at that age?

I know he loves me and knows I love him. Even when he can't manage to say anything nice.

Facebook has been funny lately with all the pictures from my youth. Here's one from when I was in seventh or eighth grade.

Mom, I probably owe you an apology for being such a pill while I survived my early teen years. Sorry for blaming you for everything. Also, sorry that I ever called myself "fat". (I honestly don't remember ever being that skinny!)

I'll be looking forward to an apology from Jake in 25 years or so. Somehow, I know that's just around the corner...

Valentine's Day 2009 Remembered

2009-02-20T16:36:00.001-07:00

How we celebrated together...

Our little playgroup decorated sugar cookies.

We hosted our playgroup friends after a two-hour delay for the BIG kids. (I did not use your recipe Mom and the cookies were NOT very good, but not to worry, they still worked to transport frosting and candy to the mouth quite well.)

And poor little Rachel found herself under the weather just as our friends were arriving. She slept through all the decorating and most of the fun but awakened to tell everyone her stomach hurt, which in the end amounted to nothing terrible, but did serve to clear the room. Imagine, no one wanted to share that love.

The next day was actually Valentine's day and Rachel was much better by then. We had a quiet day without Dave because, as it turns out, he was on-call. We ran a few errands and picked up Slayton's BBQ for an at-home-picnic feast. Very delicious and lovely, with the people I love the most.

I surprised Dave by taking him to see Brian Regan, a comedian, at the Pikes Peak Center. That guy is so funny. Check out one of my favorite bits in the following post.

Will it work? We'll see. Yes. It does work. I'm amazed and quite pleased with myself.

Oh, and Dave got me some flowers and took me to California for a romantic getaway a week before Valentine's Day. GRRREAT present.

Brian Regan at the improv

2009-02-20T16:03:00.001-07:00

This is one of my favorite bits by one of my favorite comedians.

U.S. 12th President, Zachary Taylor

2009-02-18T08:10:00.003-07:00

Ben's first research paper (to be completed at home) was due last week. Grandma and Papa did a great job getting Ben to work on the paper while Dave and I were in California and Ben did a good job finishing it up on Sunday. I would love to have seen him do his oral presentation but I was NOT invited, you might even say I was uninvited. Oh, well. At least he let me get a picture.

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-14T12:25:00.001-07:00

California Dreamin'

2009-02-14T08:59:00.005-07:00

Grandma and Papa came for a visit so Dave and I could head to California for a little kid-break. The kids had a great time and Rachel is still calling me "grandma" from time to time. I know how sweet and exhausting Rachel can be so I'm sure they had fun visiting and were ready to recover after four days of fun.

I love that Sadie has to be right in the middle of everything here, like always.

Dave planned this trip a while ago, knowing that the winter blues start to set in for him about this time (he is from Southern California...). Well, ironically, the weather here in Colorado was lovely while we were slammed with rain three of the four days there.

At The Harbor Grill where Dave had his first job as a busboy 23 years ago. Looks the same.

Nonetheless, we hit In-N-Out, Trader Joe's, fabulous sushi (found with my iphone app, Urbanspoon), The Harbor Grill, and shopped the sales at South Coast Plaza (what I really mean is shopped at Sears). My iphone proved to be invaluable with the GPS and google maps action.

We also hooked up with some of Dave's buddies from high school. He even managed to get out surfing with Nick, whom we haven't seen in more than 12 years!

Fun vacation inspite of the rain, rain, rain.

Does anyone recognize the church in the distance? We sure didn't at first, "Is that one of the missions, Dave?" But then as we passed I recognized a golden angel on top rather than a cross. Duh.

Photo shoot with Jake

2009-02-13T17:13:00.003-07:00

I received money for Christmas to buy some new boots. I picked these up at Christmastime and have been meaning to show them off...

Foxy, right?

Thanks for taking my picture, Jake.

January 21st in Colorado Springs 2009

2009-02-07T15:04:00.005-07:00

This is what it looked like for three whole days in the end of January in our neck of the woods. It was an amazing, beautiful week. We went to the park twice as well as to the zoo.

We met our friends at the zoo, at one point it reached 70 degrees. The kids were all so thrilled to be outside playing that we didn't actually spend that much time watching the animals. It was a spectacular day in the middle of winter.

Five days later, on January 26, this is what it looked like. We'll take it and not complain if we can have a few more sunny days in February. If Mother Nature can manage to keep breaking it up for us, we'll survive winter storms into April, which is likely to happen. There's only been one so-called snow day so far this school year so that is also great.

And the truth is, what the world needs now is more snow angels and less complaining. So thanks, Colorado, we'll smile if you bring us lots more snow (that is until April 15th, and then the smiles and thanks are gone and we'll expect some springtime joy) and we'll continue to make angels and snowmen to show our winter love.

I love winter in the Rockies. Most of the time.

This is What 4 Looks Like...

2009-01-26T06:58:00.002-07:00

Lots of twirling

Loves helium balloons with a reckless passion.

On Rachel's birthday she woke to a room full of balloons and brought treats to preschool. As soon as the boys were home from school, we went to Chuck E. Cheese for dinner. We left there to hurry to the church for Cub Scout pack meeting. A busy, fun-filled day.

Throwing yet another tea party. Gosh, she's quite the hostess!

She opened presents throughout the day and was even convinced to take a brief nap on her new birthday pillowcase from Grammy Lois.

The pillowcase was actually Rachel's idea about a week before her birthday. She said to me, "I know what Grammy Lois is getting me." And that peaked my interest. "She's making me a birthday pillowcase with a cake and candles on it." Must call Mom ASAP. That's a project she could do, but is there time? Looks like she found the time. It's really beautiful and much loved. Thanks, Grammy!

But of course celebrating doesn't stop there. We had cake a couple of nights later when Dave could be home. And then the friends' party was on the following Saturday.

These are pictures of Rachel getting ready for the party. Four-year-olds have lots more to worry about before a party than in previous years...

There's sparkly shoes to wear, "Princess shoes,"

fingernails to polish,

and of course, lip gloss to apply.

All set. Ready to party.

First, cupcakes to devour.

Next, costumes to don.

Parades to be held.

Lastly, games to play.

Molly Coddles does a great job of entertaining and delighting the young-girl crowd.

We missed Ruby and Jane and think "they are taking too long to come home." But they sent some love our way with a package that included the perfect outfit for the new 4-year-old. Thank you so much, Annee!

A perfect twirling skirt.

Blogger's Block?

2009-01-25T12:58:00.005-07:00

Is that what you call it when you feel like there's nothing you can really say that matters? I'm not trying to sound melodramatic or self-pitying, it's just I don't know what to say. I feel like such a cliche really--the whole January blues thing and all--but that doesn't seem to fit this year...

It's more like life is happening but nothing seems noteworthy outside the realm of my own little world. I'm here plugging along as I always do, trying to enjoy each day (and having pretty decent success, which future posts will show) but with a bunch of stuff hanging over my head--looming might be the right word--and feeling somewhat paralyzed by it all.

I wish I could say my lack of posting has left me with time to tackle organization projects like Annee has done or that I have read scores of books, but it would not be true. I guess I'll just write some catch-up posts and hope I get my groove back sometime soon. I'm so sick of not having a new post up I can't stand it. Aarggh. Could I make my kids post to earn their allowance?

Housekeeping?

2009-01-11T14:46:00.003-07:00

Last night Dave and I went to the holiday lab party thrown by his group for all the many lab employees that make pathology run smoothly. We've attended every year since we've been here and Dave is usually the only pathologist there. It's a fun, eclectic group of people. I am getting to know many of the people who attend from previous years and from the blood donor dinner that Dave is in charge of every year.

This is the funny story though...last year a young girl who works in histology was at a table where Dave introduced me as his housekeeper. He said something about not being able to find a date and bringing me, his housekeeper, instead. I wasn't paying attention so I had no idea that was the joke. Well, the joke is on her because several months later someone mentioned "Dr. Newton's wife" and she was surprised to find out he was married already. She thought I was really the housekeeper and they made fun of her for ages. In fact, at the party this year I was referred to as the housekeeper MANY times.

One thing that is always funny to me at these things is the way EVERYONE calls Dave "Dr. Newton". I suppose he IS Dr. Newton but those of you who know him know what I mean when I say it is kind of funny. I am the woman behind the respected Dr. Newton, or at least his housekeeper! LOL

Happy Birthday Jake and Happy New Year

2009-01-11T14:19:00.005-07:00

Last day of 2008 recap. Here it goes. Happy Birthday to one official teenager.

We love you Jake and feel so lucky to have your talents in our family. You're our very own one-of-a-kind Jake and we adore you (though you do play on your DS way too much...in the bathroom, really? Eeeuw.)

We spent the afternoon at IT'Z with several coupons and one friend. I've never seen so many tickets at one time in my life. Deal or No Deal really spits 'em out. It reminds me of adults with a gambling problem when I see these kids frantically trying to win the tickets. Let's not go to Vegas any time soon with this crew. Happy Birthday! We'll have to post when you decide how you want your room redecorated.

Dave arrived home rather late but in time to indulge in cheese fondue, shrimp, li'l smokies with sterno, and Cold Stone snickers ice cream cake.

Only Jake stayed up until midnight (playing on his DS) while the rest of us called it in at 10pm.

I'm glad to have documented some of our family highlights in 2008 and am looking forward to more in 2009.

Christmas Recap...finally

2009-01-06T14:21:00.005-07:00

You know what would help my posting habits? My kids going back to school!

They will be going back on Thursday, January 8th, assuming everyone remains healthy and we don't get pummelled with more snow. On Sunday church was cancelled because we had so much snow. It was a lovely, quiet, relaxing day. I have loved having them home and enjoyed the days of freedom from homework, ect. but I am ready for some peace and quiet. Despite their promises of reform to not fight (following a loss of privileges) they remain loud and somewhat obnoxious.

But back to Christmas. It was quiet and filled with joy. Santa found his way to our house and left many treats.

Jake has enjoyed his new bathrobe a bit too much. Who knew he would never get dressed again of his own free will? His addiction to Animal Crossing Wild World for DS is not helping him to get out much either. Can you believe he logged 26 hours in the first three days and finished the game?! Crazy. His buddy Trevor is equally addicted so that's not much help.

Ben enjoyed a Christmas of many new guns. There is laser tag, nerf dart tag, and a nerf-type machine gun. Some video games with skating and snowboarding as well as new RockBand favorites have also kept him busy. Is there ever a time when Ben is not busy? Not really.

Rachel got a new puppy. The only kind that is an option, a toy. She wanted "Bisquit" from a commericial, a robotic dog that walks and does tricks and is as tall as she is, all for a mere 180 bucks. But Santa thought better of that "Bisquit" and got her another one that knows its own name and her name as well. It also grows from a tiny pup to a small pup over the course of four days. Very cute and more beloved by her than any other toy ever received. She also received the swimming baby as per her request and it actually works. She takes it to swim lessons with her and it swims like a champ across the entire pool.

We all stayed in pajamas all day long, which I have never done before, and it was grand. Except for Rachel, who needed to take a bath with the swimming baby. Dave and I even got a nap in while Rachel tackled her leapster-known as her"lobster"-and the boys played various video games. Dave gave me an iphone so I can "blog on the run." I don't think so, but it has so many fun things that I'll be playing with it for a long time to come.

It was a great Christmas.

Christmas Eve

2008-12-30T19:02:00.003-07:00

We opened new pajamas.

We made homemade pizzas.

Ben's delicious pepperoni and olives.

Jake's pizza face-I love the bacon hair.

Rachel's heart pizza.

Dave's masterpiece-which was the most delicious of all.

We read the Christmas story from the scriptures and used the ceramic nativity to re-enact it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqeGnYVYVYg

We danced to Christmas music.

We gave thanks for the birth of our Savior and another spectacular year with our family. Then we slept like babies while visions of sugar plums danced through our heads.

Christmas Season Procrastination

2008-12-30T18:18:00.000-07:00

People often mention that Rachel and I look a lot alike. I think it's sweet that my little girl looks like me when I was little. I realize it will probably not always be true so I enjoy it now.

This post proves that she is like Dave in a very concrete, undeniable way--she knows and embraces the art of procrastination.

On December 23rd Rachel, Dave and I were at the mall for Dave's last minute shopping and for Rachel and Dave to get hair cuts. Rachel was watching Santa from behind the fence as we have done many, many times this Christmas season when she announced that she MUST sit on his lap. We have been to the mall since Santa has been camped out there no less than 20 times. Each time she would stare from afar and tell me that she was NOT going to sit on his lap. But at 6pm on December 23rd she decided she must see him up close and personal.

Now the line was winding around the mall and I was ready to go home. Rachel threw a fit as only she can do, chanting over and over again while crying inconsolably, "but I want to see him."

Some of you may not have any children who can throw mind-boggling fits, I was in your ranks until Rachel arrived, but this was one to make note of..."but I want to, but I want to." Relentless and very loud.

I got her to the car and distracted her somehow and said that maybe in the morning we could try to come back to see Santa. Little did I know that she would awaken on Christmas Eve morning and ask to go to the mall right away. She's my baby so what could I say? We'll go to the mall, right? No big deal. We'll see Santa and then have the rest of the day to look forward to his visit...We arrived at 10:20 expecting to be near the front of the line only to find that 30 families were ahead of us and Santa wasn't due to arrive until 11am. Uh oh. Rachel is not the most patient person alive. Dave rescued us after he finished at the skate park and brought some lemonade. We made it to see THE MAN where she asked for a puppy dog and swimming baby. No surprises there-whew. We were out of there by 12:30.

Little did we know that she would be so thrilled with the gifts she asked for and received from the big guy. She actually knew what she wanted and was not just influenced by TV commercials. I never knew how many people wait to see Santa on December 24th. That was crazy but worth it. I sure love her in spite of her procrastinating ways! (The tantrums I could live without.)