tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38132651423003185482024-02-20T01:02:52.368-08:00Stott Family BlogKristahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02771149063007579183noreply@blogger.comBlogger159125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-63599048676374108612016-03-13T17:36:00.001-07:002016-03-13T17:36:46.759-07:00Death Valley Wildflower SUPERBLOOM!!!!<span style="font-family: inherit;">Do you know what a serious First World Problem is? When you find out from your sister that there's such thing as a Death Valley SUPERBLOOM, and you talk your in-laws into going for a weekend with you, and you spend hours planning, and they bend over backwards scheduling rooms and rescheduling rooms and talking to the National Parks Service to make it happen, but then you get there and think, "Well.... I guess that's cool...." </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">These little baby flower seeds baked in 130° heat for a decade, soaked in an <span style="background-color: white; color: #212121; line-height: 32px;">El Niño deluge, pushed their delicate little roots down and their brave leaves out and bloomed! And do you know what I said when I saw them? "Huh. I guess I expected a little more..." If those flowers could, they would throw a Death Valley Boulder at my face. </span></span><br />
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Colby & Uncle Dan drove down late Friday night so they could spend the day biking. Amber & I drove down Saturday morning right after the Girl Scout Discovery Museum Sleepover of 2016 so we could not spend the day biking. If you ever get the chance to drive through rural Nevada, don't. I don't recommend it. Unless you're driving 395 down through Bishop and Lone Pine. Those are lovely little towns. The ones we drove through? Yeah.... notsomuch. I was cheered by the youths I saw at our inevitable McDonalds lunch time stop. They were cute and fashionable and didn't seem like they hated their lives. Which is what I assume of everyone who lives a different life than me. (Of course, they were hanging out at McDonalds at lunch time. But I don't judge.) (Yes I do.)<br />
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My kids have stopped letting me pose them for pictures. Good thing we have cousin Lucy! I love you Lucy! (She hates me. The only reason she lets me stay around is because I bring her beloved Ella & Gretchen to her. Mostly Ella. And because I take pictures of her. She's really good at posing for pictures. I am personally affronted by this. Does she even know how popular I am at the girl's elementary school? Does she even know that, like, 10 kids say, "Hi Miss Apryl" every time I walk on the campus? I AM SERIOUSLY A BIG DEAL. Come on, Lucy! Kids love me! EVERY KID BUT YOU! And you are my NIECE! You know I only see this as a challenge. You will love me, kid. I will be your favorite.) (Behind Auntie Krista, of course. No one competes with Auntie Krista. Let's be reasonable.)<br />
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It looks like she loves me in this picture, but she's only happy because she's with Ella. And because I'm taking her picture.<br />
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Ella wanted to bring this natural salt crud home with us. I said, "Yeah, no sweetie. No. No. And No." So this picture was our compromise.<br />
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This here is the lowest point in the Northern Hemisphere. So of course they had to take their shoes off to feel the lowest earth under their feet (400' below sea level???) Amber's lowest point was just prior to this when Lucy had a meltdown in the stinkiest PortAPotty in the Northern Hemishphere. I remember those days (that's me pretending we don't still have those days). Ella tried yelling over the concrete divider, "It's ok, Lucy! Just put your arm over your mouth and try not to breath!" Also, there was a line of people waiting to use the Stinkiest Port A Potty because a million people came to Death Valley to see the SUPERBLOOM. I love having meltdowns in public with spectators. When I'm old, I'm going to do it to my girls and hopefully be self aware enough enjoy the irony.<br />
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Love this shot. (Also, she still hates me.)<br />
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This was a cool natural bridge. The girls stood in front of it...<br />
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...and then laid under it. Gretchen kept saying, "Yeah, I really don't think this is safe. Mom, I really don't think we should be laying here like this..." (as she's laying on the ground under it, pointing out the cracks...)<br />
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Awww, cousin Alex HAAAAAAAAAAAATED Death Valley. Like how Gretchen HAAAAATES Girl Scouts and homework. But the wind wasn't as bad in this little canyon, so he brought his face out from under the blanket. Temporarily.<br />
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The artist's canyon changes colors every time it rains. That is amazing. Gretchen walked off to enjoy it by herself. She wants to enjoy everything by herself. The crowds were very bothersome for Gretchen. She also has lots of first world problems (awww, just like me sweetie!)<br />
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Possible felony here with the plucked wild flowers. We put the kibosh on that pretty quickly, but this was when we first got out of the car. And they were already picked, and if she was holding contraband, she'd let me take her picture. So they didn't die in vain.<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #212121; line-height: 32px;"><br /></span></span>We got home at 11pm. We were exhausted. And we still had a full week of work and school ahead of us (including work for Colby, two deadlines for me, plus getting print files prepped for Grandpa Beck's games). But we made it. We're on the other side now. And I can now say that IT WAS WORTH IT!Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-90974330962513225592016-03-13T17:35:00.002-07:002016-03-13T17:35:49.570-07:00Discovery Museum Sleepover!<br />
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Gosh, we had quite the time last weekend. We had TWO amazing activities planned. This is the story of the first one.... </div>
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Friday night we started out with a Girl Scout Slumber Party at the Children's Discovery Museum. They started out this excellent activity so that kids who live in rural areas could come to the Discovery Museum and stay for more than just a few hours. We don't live in a rural area. We actually could probably have walked to the Discovery Museum. But we hopped right on board that train, cause it was a train headed for awesomeness. </div>
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Last year, the girl's Girl Scout Troops decided to split into two groups. The older girls going into 6th grade "bridged" up to the "Cadette" level. Since they're so mature and grown up (see photo above), they broke off from the younger group to do mature, grown up things (see all other photos ever of Ella)(also see: sarcasm). It's been a little hard having two troops at the same time. Then we found out that the younger troop was not going to continue after this year. And really, that's ok. Especially what Gretchen inevitably does before every meeting: OHMYGOSH, WHY do we HAVE to go to GIRL SCOUTS! I HAAAAAATE GIRL SCOUTS! I don't even want to BE a GIRL SCOUT! Why do we have to do this? Because you tell me to? FINE. It's like you don't even CARE about me! UGHHHHH!!!! (and that is why I didn't volunteer to be a Girl Scout Leader this year.) Of course this is after I asked her if she wanted to continue with scouting (she'd said yes, for sure. At the time), and when she found out that the troop was ending, she decided she was upset about it. Until I told her we'd do other fun stuff. Promise. Come on, I love having fun. Fun is my favorite!</div>
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So we're ending the troop, and we have a ton of blood-sweat-and-tears Girl Scout Cookie Money we need to spend in the next 2.5 months. So we are GOING BIG. Hence the fabulous sleepover at the Discovery Museum. If you life in town & can get a group of 50 people together, YOU SHOULD TOTALLY DO THIS. It was so great! They provided all the food, they had staff on hand the whole night, they had a RIDICULOUS amount of activities! It was so cool! </div>
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The evening started off with the girls sewing fleece Monster Fish stuffed animals on sewing machines like a cool little crafting sweat shop of creativity. That's what Ella is throwing in the above picture. Then they had a game that taught stuff about habitats and fish (There's an excellent National Geographic Monster Fish exhibit there now, hence the theme....) But I was tired, so I didn't pay attention or play. Because I'm the worst. Then they had a giant slingshot set up in the foyer. See? We may have accidentally knocked the cover off the security camera. Sorryboutthat.</div>
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Then we dissected a real dead fish. That really smelled.<br />
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And looked at all the fish guts.<br />
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And took pieces to an electronic microscope and projected them so we could all go "Oh GROSS" together.<br />
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And looked off in the distance while smiling and shrugging our shoulders (can you even believe we're doing this? I know!)<br />
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And then disrespected ANOTHER fish corpse by covered it in black ink and making traditional fish prints or <i style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;">Gyotaku</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;"> (Japanese 魚拓, from gyo "fish" + taku "rubbing")</span> (so cool!) (I don't know how to make Japanese characters, I totally copied and pasted that from my BFF, Wikipedia. Thanks Wiki!)<br />
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Wait, there's still more nasty guts in there!<br />
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Is this a heart or a lung?<br />
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We got to pick any room in the museum to set up "camp", so we picked the "Camping" room downstairs. There's a neat little cave down there, and a tent already set up, and fake stars in the sky. I had anxiety dreams the whole time that kids were playing in the museum, but in my dream I kept thinking, "But I'm sooooooooo tired! I'll get up in a minute!" So I dreamed I was tired. That sucks. Also, can someone please invent a sleeping back that doesn't make a "whooshing" sound every time fidgety little legs move in their sleeping bags? That'd be so awesome, thankssomuch.<br />
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Besides anxiety dreams about wild children and sleeping bag swoosh noises, it was a 100% GOOD TIME! We are going to miss Girl Scouts. But we're going to cram as much fun into this Spring as humanly possible.<br />
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Because Ella's troop is also ending. They're all growing up and coming up with their own minds about what they want to do! Sniff!!!!<br />
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END OF AN ERA!!!!!!<br />
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(OHMYGOSH, I'll have SO MUCH more free time! I'm going to fill it up so fast, but I'm going to pretend that's not going to happen and that I'm really going to just sit in the hammock all weekend.)Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-7452928522840723382015-10-11T10:11:00.002-07:002015-10-11T10:11:26.972-07:00Camporee!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
We had a family camp-out with the Girl Scouts. But then only Colby came. Poor guy! So it was a mom & daughter camp-out with Colby there. But it was fun anyway!</div>
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Except for the really loud owl that woke me up a bunch of times.</div>
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Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-75724408228868735122015-06-21T15:18:00.003-07:002015-06-21T15:18:35.222-07:00What time is it? SUMMERTIME!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">Why is the end of the school year always SO CRAZY!?! </span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">Because it involves kids like these...</span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">And saying goodbye.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">And ripping your heart out, knowing they'll never be first and fifth graders again. That they're getting bigger. That you have to say goodbye to the wonderful teachers and coaches that helped encourage and challenge and expand their world. I never cry on the first day of school, I'm always distracted by the exciting new supplies and new teachers and new classrooms and new friends. So much new stuff! But the end of the year is so hard for me! I hate goodbyes. I may be a little dramatic. I realize this. You have to love me anyway. </span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">My awesome friend C decided to celebrate the beginning of summer by creating a homemade GIGANTIC SLIP & SLIDE!!!! Look at how huge that is! It went down the side yard of her neighbor (and luckily our friend;) J's house. There were about 15 little girls over, ready to party.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">At first some of the girls didn't understand what you were supposed to do. They daintily sat their hindquarters down on the plastic and expected to have a swift, entertaining, but fully controlled slide down the hill. They slid awkwardly down about three feet and wondered why it wasn't "working". Then one brave girl threw herself down belly first on the plastic. Then C broke out the bucket of shaving cream. And a bottle of soap. And, for good measure, a Costco size bottle of dish washing liquid. Yeah.... there weren't any problems sliding down after that....</span></div>
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Can you see why Gretchen loves these girls? BRING ON THE CRAZY. </div>
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Just in case you were wondering, yes it IS very fun to cover yourself in shaving cream. Being covered in shaving cream unleashes your inner poser.</div>
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(Unfortunately Ella was at a class GIRLS ONLY swim party, so I didn't get any awesome pictures of her covered in shaving cream. Though she may have been too mortified by her sister to engage in shaving cream shenanigans...) </div>
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Gretchen posed at the top of the slide, ready for adventure... </div>
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Adventure!</div>
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Our friend C is a very good friend to have. For example, the week before she made a GIGANTIC END OF THE SCHOOL YEAR ICE CREAM PARTY for 50 of their closest friends. Don't be grossed out by how unhygienic it is to share an ice cream trough with 50 of your closest friends (we're building immunities!) think about how awesome it is to have A FIFTY FOOT ICE CREAM SUNDAE!!!</div>
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The only problem is that it was sort of on a hill, and our little friend on the bottom right kept yelling that her ice cream was "floating away"! But it's the ice cream trough that keeps giving, cause as hers floated away, another new ice cream cam floating down to her. Awww! Circle of life. </div>
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Remember how two paragraphs before I was saying how hard it is to say goodbye to our teachers? Yeah. It was. Now I'm going to go on about that again. Feel free to make fun of me for what an emotional nerd I am. This year my friend M & I partnered up to do art in two classes (her son's and Gretchen's.) We had so many nice moms (and even a nice grandma) who came in to help us. It was AWESOME. To thank our amazing teachers, we had the kids do self portraits on shrinky-dinks (dude, we're bringing shrinky-dinks BACK. For reals. It's our 2nd time using them this year, and we have a plan for next Christmas too. Booya!) We gave the kids the option to draw their self portraits as a person, or as an animal. They just had to draw the animal (or person) with a t-shirt on that had their name. So we could tell who it was who thinks of themselves as a purple dragon. I don't know if you can tell in this picture, but they turned out ADORABLE.</div>
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I gave Gretchen's teacher hers at the Poetry Slam the night before the last day of school. I was going to say, "We love you so much, thank you for all that you did for our children. You have an amazing gift of making each child feel special and capable. We all owe you so much." But instead I just sort of awkwardly shoved it at her and said, "Thanks for a great year." and then sat down again before I broke into tears. UGH. NERD!</div>
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No, but seriously, her teacher was amazing. Sniff.</div>
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Also, that's not her baby. But look at how cute that baby is. We all fight over holding her. We let her teacher win. This time.</div>
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The kids were encouraged to wear "Black" to the poetry slam. Fun, right? Gretchen took it a step further and wore ALL BLACK. She resurrected her super creepy Halloween costume from kindergarten year. And totally owned it. I kept thinking she'd wimp out and take it off last minute, but she sat in full black for the full poetry slam. Even delivered her poem in it. Yep. Pretty proud of that kid! </div>
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I almost didn't make it to the Poetry Slam. I had an unexpected 18 hour layover in Phoenix on the way home from Charlotte, NC. Why did I go to Charlotte? </div>
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To help these fine people debut their new card game, "Nuts about Mutts"! Yaaaaay! We were at a Specialty Toy & Gift Fair, right next to the Smelcils people (smelly pencils! don't be jealous! My girls were!) </div>
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You should totally buy this card game! Despite the fact that it's still getting shipped from the Italian printer. You should TOTALLY buy a million copies! It'll be on Amazon in a few weeks with free Prime shipping! Woo hoo! While we were there, we found out their first game (which I illustrated for them many moons ago, "Cover Your Assets") is not only the hot new college drinking game (Grandma Beck and I are a little mortified that we're contributing to the delinquency of minors, but happy they're buying the games;), BUT it's also in the Top 100 games on Amazon. Woo hoo!!!!!</div>
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It was a really fun experience, and cool to see all the specialty toys. Grandma Diana would have been SO EXCITED, it was all her favorites. Automoblox, fancy wood learning toys, random 3D puzzles, dress up booths... the works!</div>
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The next day, Grandma Beck (who I call Tauni. We're close like that.) decided the best way to spend our free morning was to go to an antique mall. That, my friend, is ALWAYS the best way for me to spend my morning!</div>
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1. People have always loved their cats. Even antique people. </div>
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2. Does that music stand look familiar siblings? They totally had one!</div>
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And, because poor Ella got NO pictures this post, I'm throwing in this one from her friend's birthday party. She beat that beautiful purple unicorn to a candy-bleeding pulp. That sounds awful, doesn't it? But look at how big and capable she's getting! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqRXGopx7ZKy5pPVcjTMG8dSDZxqXnSECXlPcr9kjf9g-4-wAv6kzETLN2OuoAo7067QKmbnthx-MrAOD-9PTJUiHbxlBkvRFN8v7-PbYvlCeczw8vni94f_Qjlo7ab0QSWUVRw-s-dp4/s1600/20150606_131401.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqRXGopx7ZKy5pPVcjTMG8dSDZxqXnSECXlPcr9kjf9g-4-wAv6kzETLN2OuoAo7067QKmbnthx-MrAOD-9PTJUiHbxlBkvRFN8v7-PbYvlCeczw8vni94f_Qjlo7ab0QSWUVRw-s-dp4/s640/20150606_131401.jpg" /></a> </div>
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And, I forgot to add this one on. Here's Gretchen with her soccer coach getting her ribbon. Yay! Soccer is over! (Wait, did I just say that? I mean "Yay! She tried something new and persevered!" I really was proud of her, by the end she was totally going after that ball! I would have been all, "Um, I'll just stand over here and hope it never comes close to me...")</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikN4wv56oEMlDly6pPRPl4od0aRabw5mTO0Ech9vGREghkEOwIxs5GlOW-oCw7tNA9Hr3Lc265f80xULXxIpWvgle3ywuC7nxOSYSwwDbaVAL2AFD-d3ABFdMHikv4DXfgv7Q_pz0Rn8U/s1600/20150605_190646.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikN4wv56oEMlDly6pPRPl4od0aRabw5mTO0Ech9vGREghkEOwIxs5GlOW-oCw7tNA9Hr3Lc265f80xULXxIpWvgle3ywuC7nxOSYSwwDbaVAL2AFD-d3ABFdMHikv4DXfgv7Q_pz0Rn8U/s640/20150605_190646.jpg" /> </a> </div>
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This was the first week of summer and we kicked it off with a bang. I invested in water park passes and they've already paid off! We went FOUR TIMES last week! And we're going tomorrow! Crazy, I know. But SO SO SO FUN! Gretchen' officially ridden all the rides. (There's one even I won't go on! It's the only one that Ella won't either. I was proud of her for branching out! I thought she'd stick to the lazy river and the wave pool all summer, but she proved me wrong!) Uncle Aaron and his crew are rolling in Monday evening, then we're going to take them to Tahoe and show them around town. So fun will be had this week, my friends. FUN WILL BE HAD. </div>
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Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-8786351881629662552015-05-31T16:51:00.001-07:002015-05-31T16:51:53.821-07:00CHICKIES!!!!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Zq818SjxmCp-gEVvTuVPOYomd4R_-I3YB55iNFT_9CF3hJms5wgesP6BImYyodEFK8QbZZUR7dmPTsm320U6wsAq2Xyy7w4hCanY36q9fVnFaidPtDJzbg8d0drPdcPNrQc2UBgNooUN/s1600/IMG_1168.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Zq818SjxmCp-gEVvTuVPOYomd4R_-I3YB55iNFT_9CF3hJms5wgesP6BImYyodEFK8QbZZUR7dmPTsm320U6wsAq2Xyy7w4hCanY36q9fVnFaidPtDJzbg8d0drPdcPNrQc2UBgNooUN/s640/IMG_1168.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The
feed store was getting their last delivery of baby chicks on Friday.
But I was scheduled to be in Ella's class doing art! What to do!?!?!
COLBY TO THE RESCUE! He picked out the best three chicks they had. I
mean, CLEARLY. Look at these babes. Above is when Gretchen saw them for the first time after school on Friday. AwwwwWWWWwwwwwWWW!!!!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLAphyphenhyphenjuvhJWBqgM7r_B1YM86ukicjfrpJgyVjVaigAdAO_oL2gsYQJObjAwPaouKrjl-P2OJiBt4uY4EsrfagEa5muvnbuWhWx-W227THFRqMAp0vHyq93Uc4L13NtGjxWacy_tSONKGu/s1600/IMG_1201.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLAphyphenhyphenjuvhJWBqgM7r_B1YM86ukicjfrpJgyVjVaigAdAO_oL2gsYQJObjAwPaouKrjl-P2OJiBt4uY4EsrfagEa5muvnbuWhWx-W227THFRqMAp0vHyq93Uc4L13NtGjxWacy_tSONKGu/s640/IMG_1201.JPG" width="426" /></a></div>
Right now they're named Chicken Nugget (formerly "Marky"), Hello Chicky, and Brownie*. <br />
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<i>*Names subject to change at a moments notice. </i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF4QOr8E09MLV5uD_gOqlnxYiH0ffP_l8kk3ulwBUBoyYfB4tOr18XrfZPi5qViyNnoKI7EBkkh7Us_dCg0gOmqXeuYYyn0M0N3Xy8izgVyIp07CAPnWQGgxBdGExq71TeYfTfdfMXJD8e/s1600/IMG_1173.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF4QOr8E09MLV5uD_gOqlnxYiH0ffP_l8kk3ulwBUBoyYfB4tOr18XrfZPi5qViyNnoKI7EBkkh7Us_dCg0gOmqXeuYYyn0M0N3Xy8izgVyIp07CAPnWQGgxBdGExq71TeYfTfdfMXJD8e/s640/IMG_1173.JPG" width="426" /></a></div>
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We
have to keep them away from Duke (who we are babysitting for Uncle
Aaron for three more weeks). He wants to eat them. EAT THEM SO BAD.<br />
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We also have to keep them away from Russia, our comrade kitten. She wants to STALK AND HUNT THEM SO BAD. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8IIn6tVf2kPr1fl5NBp4RZW68mhv-zgb3osCadRZcF-TZeUDLiau0AMgrsQnD_aICpMRLMUaxs1k4c_GSVARBqYh0mrSyQ2Yp-rlALOWKQmq74G0XKAGVEhaXXfA5o5pjGW70h9yXG9sH/s1600/IMG_1174.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8IIn6tVf2kPr1fl5NBp4RZW68mhv-zgb3osCadRZcF-TZeUDLiau0AMgrsQnD_aICpMRLMUaxs1k4c_GSVARBqYh0mrSyQ2Yp-rlALOWKQmq74G0XKAGVEhaXXfA5o5pjGW70h9yXG9sH/s640/IMG_1174.JPG" width="426" /></a></div>
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So
for now they live in a big Rubbermaid container in the girl's tub.
Under a heat lamp. With the shower door and the bathroom door closed AT
ALL TIMES. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb7JQAhoCgBREYpdHn71PsnH-jWb8PUbFsKXKMw-VLk1LQ8Y4WAkddEN44jofQaW1XIMLHkR3tISQVq5adKPpHbuRkPGOWASB3CSLleB315OJT0UhzrqNV_wwP0msJ0Xq1N9GGAU8jB456/s1600/IMG_1179.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb7JQAhoCgBREYpdHn71PsnH-jWb8PUbFsKXKMw-VLk1LQ8Y4WAkddEN44jofQaW1XIMLHkR3tISQVq5adKPpHbuRkPGOWASB3CSLleB315OJT0UhzrqNV_wwP0msJ0Xq1N9GGAU8jB456/s640/IMG_1179.JPG" width="426" /></a></div>
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Because even though one's named Chicken Nugget, we don't really mean it...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNOCSy95QS_veSzMVUzySZZxrOYpUqUwvufA0TZY7oXlkfOO9NZxM1L1g48YdmNuYl7u82FPVYwuOMw-dPElosQRYi_NFozvyagHTKbTGuNt4GaUk5CcTvPJV4bU0_gEqsQYA5AhFEBlg0/s1600/IMG_1185.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNOCSy95QS_veSzMVUzySZZxrOYpUqUwvufA0TZY7oXlkfOO9NZxM1L1g48YdmNuYl7u82FPVYwuOMw-dPElosQRYi_NFozvyagHTKbTGuNt4GaUk5CcTvPJV4bU0_gEqsQYA5AhFEBlg0/s640/IMG_1185.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Their feet are creepy, FYI, and may make you freak out a little bit. But get over it. Cause they're so FREAKIN' CUTE!!!!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2pSrOUPHpTeZybUxv7zp9zaki3B_F4KAcsd5WFTda8_DM_6wBauU_GbkN6nE3WBSRc6xqZAVD0q82KKgqfWNDuctDPAbd87kKXukL7s-nlXh-oeMnFAjIeawUFCTkuB8wvU7x3YnjmgQZ/s1600/IMG_1192.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2pSrOUPHpTeZybUxv7zp9zaki3B_F4KAcsd5WFTda8_DM_6wBauU_GbkN6nE3WBSRc6xqZAVD0q82KKgqfWNDuctDPAbd87kKXukL7s-nlXh-oeMnFAjIeawUFCTkuB8wvU7x3YnjmgQZ/s640/IMG_1192.JPG" width="426" /></a></div>
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Kiss! Mwah!</div>
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Creepy feet, cute face! Awwwww!</div>
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Gretchen
is super into "posing" them. She kept trying to get this one to pose
for a portrait amongst the flowers. I'd already shut down the idea of
posing in the fairy village (too far for chicky to fall) and she
wouldn't stay still enough to pose in the flower pots.... CHICKY,
BEHAVE!!!!<br />
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Pretty much the best picture ever taken, right? I KNOW! CHICKIES!!!!</div>
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Oh
yeah, and did you see Gretchen in her soccer uniform? She had her last
game yesterday. She rocked it. But she also hates it. So she says.
(She says that about a lot of stuff, we'll see how she really feels when
next season rolls around. I'd bet she wants to join again.....)</div>
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And
my dream of summer marshmellow roasting came true, friends. Gretchen
and I ran to Home Depot yesterday and bought a $20 galvanized metal
tub.. Then we said, "That's our fire pit!" Then we made a fire in it.
Then our friends came over and made smores with us. AMAZING. The
backyard sort of smells like camping now, so hopefully our neighbors
don't hate us. AHHH SUMMER!!! It's amazing! I can't wait for the rest
of it! Except I sort of can, cause summer gives me serious anxiety
(balancing work and chllins and chickies and trips out of town....
OVERLOAD!) But I have a plan this year. Only two road trips. Passes
to the water park. And I will know my limits. I WILL! Ack! When
things get stre3ssful, I can just hold a chicken in the chair swing and
it will all be ok. Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-88700213092924535612015-05-31T16:26:00.000-07:002015-05-31T16:26:27.548-07:00Only Tourists call it SanFran...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Look at that! My friends, that is me and my baby girl right before we walked across the Golden Gate Bridge. For my birthday weekend I got to go to Ikea AND spend the weekend with my family and our girl scout sisters in San Francisco! It was my FIRST TIME THERE! What? How can I live four hours away and NEVER HAVE GONE TO SF? How can we have gone to NYC TWICE since moving to Reno and still not taken a weekend trip to SF? Because, my friends, we are ridiculous. I'm not sure if you've heard, but San Francisco is pretty fabulous. </div>
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In Girl Scouts there's this thing called "Bridging" where when you graduate from a level, you're supposed to symbolically walk across a bridge and be greeted on the other side by the next level of girl scouts. One of our Girl Scout moms found out about this program where you can walk across the Golden Gate Bridge. SIGN ME UP!</div>
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Here is my Bridge Walk Selfie. (There were people with selfie sticks ALL OVER SF. For reals. They weren't even embarrassed about it. They should have been.)</div>
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Here's the girls after we finished the walk. Don't they look like they could be on the brochure for How To Be A Fabulous Girl Scout? Yep. (That is not Ella's Bear, BTW. We're not cool enough to have that accessory.)<br />
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Our hotel was centrally located, which means we thought we could walk everywhere. By the end of the day, one of our little friends' pedometer said she'd walked EIGHTEEN MILES. I didn't quite believe the accuracy of that claim (the pedometer, of course I believe our friend!), but I'd bet we walked over 13 miles. With 10 year olds. It's not our muscles that hurt, it was EVERYTHING. Ella kept saying, "My feet are so sore! Not like in one spot, just EVERYWHERE!". Yep. You know when you walk around all day and then at the end your feet just ache when you stand up? Like, "Nooooooooooooooo! Not again!" That.<br />
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But we didn't stop. Instead we went to Alkatraz.<br />
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You take a ferry there. No, there weren't any sharks.<br />
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But there is an audio tour. So basically it's a bunch of people meandering around a big empty prison in silence. That's not weird.<br />
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Gretchen was a little creeped out by the whole thing. The audio tour had "Sound Effects". Do you know what it sounds like when someone get's shanked? We do now!<br />
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Also, there was a dummy head from the infamous breakout/unsolved mystery. They had it laying on the bed with blankets around it to look like a body. It was SUPER CREEPY. Gretchen thought they put a real head on the bed and it was NOT OK. Even after we explained that it was just a statue, she still had a hard time getting to sleep for a few weeks. Poor kid.<br />
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Just chillin' in the prison dining room with dad...<br />
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The Alkatraz ferry had pretzels. That made life better... </div>
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After our marathon day, we slept HARD. But we also wanted to get the most of our last morning in the city, so we met our peeps in Chinatown. AND took a trolly ride! That was a lovely $27 lift up a hill in an old-timey wooden car. Have you heard how expensive San Francisco is? Yeah, they weren't lying... </div>
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Enjoying your trolley ride sweetie? IT'S THREE DOLLARS PER MINUTE! #$&@#$ ENJOY IT! </div>
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Chinatown is awesome and we love it. <br />
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For reals.<br />
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So these pics are NOT from San Francisco, but were on my phone and I wanted to share. A farm in Spanish Springs had the brilliant event, "Baby Animal Days". For two days they opened their pumpkin patch farm up to the public to share all their baby animals! It was pretty much a cute overload. You couldn't walk two feet without either hearing, or yourself saying, "AwwwwWWWwwwWWW!" </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFJypiFiO6ztjKM-pJZLjetC9kfggbCM8LXE_B4kQtfHKZxwzWW4op4OLwWFcWns0MfI50xASirGo4Eb_EngIqFJ20AofxR9Knu24woVpn8OHMUIfJLfPVEzScmjNAgCxkwh7KfRc_9aw/s1600/20150425_154507.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFJypiFiO6ztjKM-pJZLjetC9kfggbCM8LXE_B4kQtfHKZxwzWW4op4OLwWFcWns0MfI50xASirGo4Eb_EngIqFJ20AofxR9Knu24woVpn8OHMUIfJLfPVEzScmjNAgCxkwh7KfRc_9aw/s640/20150425_154507.jpg" /> </a></div>
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She's not really strangling the goat. See? It's smiling... </div>
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And then it was the collaborative art auction at the girl's school, which I missed for reasons I'll explain in a bit. The piece above is called "100 First Grade Hearts". My friend Michon & I are crazy and when to 4 classes to have each kid make a heart, which we combined and framed in this fabulous antique frame that my other friend donated to the cause. It was pretty much awesome ifIdosaysomyself.... If I had a billion dollars, I would have put my hat in the bidding ring for it... You can't tell in this picture, but it's made up of acrylic, glitter paper, watercolor, oil pastel, tin, and MORE. </div>
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And in Gretchen's class, we used manipulative hipster lyrics to trick people into spending more billions of dollars to support our school. Each kid drew their "home". Can you guess which one's is Gretchen's? </div>
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<i>(it's the yellow one in the middle!!! Doesn't it look JUST LIKE our house!?!?! I know, she's brilliant...) </i></div>
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Ella's class project turned out pretty cool too (we acutally had to re-do it cause the first attempt was NOT COOL. But onwards and upwards, it came together in the end. And then I forgot to snap a photo on my phone. Whoops! I've got a picture of it somewheres.... </div>
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Ladies and gentlemen, my daughter.... </div>
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I was not at the fabulous art auction, because I was IN SEATTLE!!!! I got to spend the weekend with my two BFFS! First Lismarie picked me up from the airport and we got to spend a glorious evening eating the best strip-mall Thai food in Southcenter, then we got to stay up until midnight talking, then we got to go to Goodwill AND Target to shop, and lunch, and then the ferry to Seattle. I KNOW! But then it wasn't over, cause Lismarie helped me sneak into Janeece's house so we could set up her SURPRISE 40th BIRTHDAY PARTY!!! It was so awesome! Huge props to Mr. Janeece for arranging it all. Saturday J and I got to get our nails did real pretty, then took the bus downtown and shopped and shopped and shopped. We even got to go to the Japanese Dollar Store and get treasures for the girls. I know! Best weekend ever! </div>
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And life just keeps getting even more exciting, cause look what they got at Costco. CHICKEN COOPS!!! WHAT?!!?!! Should we get one? (Spoiler alert: WE DID!) </div>
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Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-32923150806208487532015-02-01T15:18:00.001-08:002015-02-01T15:18:10.096-08:00At least I'm the only one that got sick....I've been feeling kind of bad lately cause I feel like I have a
MILLION pictures of Gretchen, but none of Ella. Ella is now a super
mature 10 year old, and I worried I wouldn't get to capture her sweet
face on camera much anymore. Being 10 can be awkward. Being 10 can be
embarrassing. Being 10 makes you very self aware and quick to edit
yourself. But then she signed up for an Instagram account. On my
phone. Which means two things:<br />
<br />
1. The world will not be deprived of thousands of pictures like this: (phew, right?)<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXoeUGnYAONOWmlAHEfRxF4v2N_BSM_YWGFxqF6Xs2VaNkXgq5q3JgGxwEnPGVQrQJqIgTPth1ULCcjffCKJHrAS9HHbCbhS4gSueFZICbVWPOC99p8UNNWEP8w8UOj620JvElUm9bAzM2/s1600/IMG_20150116_211856.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXoeUGnYAONOWmlAHEfRxF4v2N_BSM_YWGFxqF6Xs2VaNkXgq5q3JgGxwEnPGVQrQJqIgTPth1ULCcjffCKJHrAS9HHbCbhS4gSueFZICbVWPOC99p8UNNWEP8w8UOj620JvElUm9bAzM2/s1600/IMG_20150116_211856.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Introspective Self Portrait - January 2015</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
2. And I will probably never see my phone again. <br />
<br />
We
did have a little chat after she ran the batter down AGAIN (for the
third time in a week) that she needs to #%$&#* ASK ME before she
uses MY PHONE. The message has been received. We're totally getting
along again. <br />
<br />
We had another whirlwind week. What
else is new, right? Our dear friend Tauni flew in from Seattle so we
could work on their new <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=grandpa+beck%27s+games&tag=googhydr-20&index=toys-and-games&hvadid=61710849804&hvpos=1t1&hvexid=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=4877510695634924588&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=e&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_7wyxonnhl7_e" target="_blank">card game</a>.
It's going to be adorable, BTW. It's geared more towards kids (which I
love) and is dog themed (which I ALSO love). Tauni & I worked
nonstop for two days and got a ton done. She spoiled us rotten too.
Took me out to lunch, took us to dinner Monday night. She let Ella
choose the restaurant for dinner, and of course Ella promptly chose
Olive Garden. Which (don't tell Olive Garden, they'll be mad at me) but
IS NOT MY FAVORITE. The girls were happy though.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbbiJiYH384b6AnohyphenhyphenlLZ4BMfhSizAT3zpmUL8Hly1y4gjK-Qj7LpbhkfD_JR24suu9S2H3GvH7CRx0o_ynBWvttiKvx4xIjeFD573V_zWQ25AqELtjKhWv2ExWenQOTh1CKtMwepRqAFv/s1600/IMG_20150126_190619.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbbiJiYH384b6AnohyphenhyphenlLZ4BMfhSizAT3zpmUL8Hly1y4gjK-Qj7LpbhkfD_JR24suu9S2H3GvH7CRx0o_ynBWvttiKvx4xIjeFD573V_zWQ25AqELtjKhWv2ExWenQOTh1CKtMwepRqAFv/s1600/IMG_20150126_190619.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a><br />
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But
man, Tauni got us this fabulous new dessert which just may change my
mind about pseudo Italian food. Totally don't remember what they were
called (something Italian-ish...) They were like beignets and had this
ridiculously amazing sugar concoction dusted on top and raspberry
dipping sauce. And it reminded me of donuts. So I was sold. <br />
<br />
So
Tauni left Tuesday night, and I worked some more, went to bed, and then
WOKE UP TOTALLY SICK! It was CRAZY! My right eye was totally sealed
shut, I was coughing so bad I was seeing stars, I was a hot mess.
Luckily our insurance doesn't suck anymore, so I was able to go to
Urgent Care and knew it wouldn't cost me $500. Yay! So I called around
to a few Urgent Cares and found one that wasn't slammed with other
sickos, and headed down. By the end of the day I was on 3 prescriptions
and in bed. I crawled out Thursday morning to get the girls to school
and work a few hours, but by the time I picked the girls up from school
that afternoon I was DONE. So I slept and slept and slept. Friday
morning I was so much better. I'm so grateful for drugs! I'm so
grateful for modern medicine! I'm so grateful I didn't die of pneumonia
or go blind. Yay for living in the year 2015!<br />
<br />
To celebrate my newfound health, Friday morning I taught <a href="https://www.facebook.com/aprylstottillustration/photos/pcb.842028249189951/842028052523304/?type=1&theater" target="_blank">50 first graders to draw elephants</a>,
went to lunch with my Art Moms, worked furiously for 2 hours, met with
Gretchen's teacher about my dummy book/educational standards,
accompanied 8 Girl Scouts to the Planetarium, and then rounded out the
night with some super healthy In & Out with Colby & our GS
Peeps. Yay!<br />
<br />
Saturday was surprisingly awesome! I knew
it'd be good cause my dear friend invited us to the Grossology Exhibit
at the Wilbur May Museum. But I didn't know it'd be THIS GOOD.<br />
<br />
You
know how Reno is a super small town? You know how you can't go
ANYWHERE without seeing someone you know? Well, it's true. You can't.
And it's awesome. (Unless you're a stripper on the side, that could
probably get embarrassing). Anyway, since I'm not a stripper on the
side right now, I was so pleased to run into ANOTHER friend at the
Wilbur May. So instead of hanging out with 3 awesome families, we got
to hang out with 4 awesome families! And join in the wonders of the
human body. <br />
<br />
Ask Gretchen what happens to food once
you eat it. Not only did we learn all about it, WE SAW VIDEO.
Mmmhmmm. Then Gretchen got to crawl through a simulation. (You slide
down the large intestine and land on a poop-colored pillow. Classy!)<br />
<br />
Here you see Ella with the "Burp Machine" behind her.<br />
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And here you see Gretchen shooting snot balls into giant nostrils. (Hands on learning at its best!)<br />
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Afterwards
we saw they had the old park open, so we went and climbed on dinosaurs
until a pack of teenage girls scared us off. (Youths! Quick! Run!) <img height="245" id="irc_mi" src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/2f31e9a2a163a7db9f6cd6a1db209263/tumblr_mep7iv1YF21qee7ixo2_250.gif" style="margin-top: 190px;" width="245" /><br />
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We escaped the Youths and went to Popeye's. Where I ordered extra biscuits. And my life was complete. (Geesh, sorry I keep talking about food! I'm hungry!) (And I honestly really love teenagers. Promise. We didn't really run from them.)<br />
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<span style="color: black;">Ella and I rounded out the </span>evening
with a whirlwind trip to Savers. I love that kid, she is SO EASY to
please. I love that she loves thrift store shopping as much as I do!
We found a number of treasures, including about 5 new pairs of jeans for
her, a brand new royal blue leather purse that perfectly matches her
new gauzy orange skirt, and a cute pair of black flats. Gretchen is the
proud new owner of a pair of shoes that don't fit (the Saver's cycle is
complete. They'll go right back next week in our donation bag!) and a
new collection of Cat and Peace Sign shirts.<br />
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We, my friends, are happy campers!Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-60636333259571731922014-06-08T15:38:00.002-07:002014-06-08T15:38:53.362-07:00End of an Era<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Things are changing, and they'll never be the same again. Is that dramatic enough for ya? But it's true. I had a lovely emotional rollercoaster this week. It ended with our beta fish, "Fishy" finally going belly up (10 points for creativity on that name, right?) Well, I mean, finally going belly up and MEANING IT. After Christmas, we came back and discovered that our fish had had a stroke. Or some other fishy-health crisis that resulted in him laying sideways in his bowl. Everyone who came over would say, "Oh no! Your fish died!" You know, cause the fish would be floating sideways at the top of the bowl. But then I'd assure them, "No, it's cool! He didn't!" shake the bowl and FREAK THEM OUT. (Both our guests and the fish). The fish would do this crazy sideways flop/swim and our guests would say, "OMG, WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOUR FISH!" <br />
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But then one day he didn't do his flop/swim. And we knew he was gone.<br />
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The girls celebrated his life by organizing a playdate around the funeral, making a tombstone out of sculpey clay and burying him beneath the rose bushes in the back yard. They made up a schedule (that included "play games!!!" in the lineup), and drew a little program. It had a picture of a fish with big X eyes. Subtle.<br />
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But don't think when I say "emotional roller coaster" that I'm counting the death of our fish. Mostly, I was upset because we said goodbye to Ella's charter school! Her last day was Wednesday. Gretchen and I walked her across the park and into class, where we realized that Ella hadn't given me the permission slip to watch "Flushed Away". So we went inside for the LAST TIME and signed off on that. And I figured while I was there, I might as well get it over with and turn in our resignation. And I CRIED. I'm sure the super kind front office lady thinks I'm a huge nerd, though she did get a little teary too. Only because she's so nice and kind and didn't want me to be a nerd all by myself. <br />
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As we walked back though the park to our car, Gretchen noticed that I was still upset, and she said, "Mom, it's ok! Take big breaths, in and out!" I explained that I was just feeling sad saying goodbye to all our school friends, and she said, "When you feel that sadness coming up, just swallow it back down! Big breaths and swallow it down!" WHERE DID SHE LEARN THIS!?!?!!? She tried to make me laugh and said, "Did you think that was funny? Are you happy now?" OH MY SWEET GIRL, she just made me cry more. So really, it's all her fault that I was walking through the park crying. But at least Sammy, the local pan-handler didn't come up to ask me for money. So that's good.<br />
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Before we said goodbye to the fish, before we said goodbye to the school, before we avoided eye contact with Sammy the pan-handler one last time, I joined the fourth grade for their LAST FIELD TRIP!!!! We went to Virginia City STEP BACK IN TIME and got the most excellent tour of the cemetery I've ever had the privilege to attend.<br />
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When I got to school Monday morning, Mrs. P said, "Oh Apryl, I have a project for you!" Immediately I thought, "Oh no, who am I driving, and will I still be smiling in the next 5 minutes?" But the "project" was just our sweet, lovely girl scout friend with a broken foot! The crutches and the wheelchair weren't going to work, so we got a WALKER! We were super cool and got to go first and park closest at everything. See?<br />
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Ella didn't want me to be left out, so she took my picture too.<br />
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Here the kids are learning about how much it sucked to live 150 years ago! (It did)<br />
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And how much it sucked to grind ore out of rocks at the gold mine! (It did)<br />
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But ditching the rest of the class and getting pizza is TOTALLY worth it. (totally)<br />
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And eating candy on train rides is AWESOME.<br />
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See?<br />
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No, really, SEE?!?!?!<br />
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To help us get over our sadness, we left the school and met our friends at the Peppermill. My friend Jaime is pretty much the best and organized it all. We had an excellent time. But really, how could you not?<br />
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Only problem is, no pool will EVER be as fun as that pool. Especially when it's filled with 20 friends from school on the first afternoon of SUMMER VACATION. So hopefully the girls will get used to a more sedate (and cheaper) life at home. <br />
<br />
This week is Gretchen's last week of school. Which means kindergarten graduation. Which means I'll be crying again soon. Which means that Gretchen will be giving me more tips on how to shove all that emotion down into a dark place in your soul until you can't handle it any more and explode (I'm guessing we need to have more talks on healthy emotional outlets... ;)Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-72831791759145371412014-06-01T14:31:00.000-07:002014-06-01T14:31:29.603-07:00Seriously<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I
GOT IT!!! You guys, I got a picture of Gretchen mid-whine! Now you
guys can experience it just like I do! Just imagine that she's saying
in a very distressed tone, "But momma, I don't know what to
dooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo." (Gretchen is often besieged with
doubts about what to spend her precious time on. She's constantly
asking what she should do. No seriously, ALL. THE. TIME. I'm not
sure why she keeps asking me, especially since I NEVER give her the
answer she wants* but she perseveres. She is very persistent. That's a
good quality, right? RIGHT?)<br />
<br />
*WHAT GRETCHEN MAY WANT: That we spend the next three hours
making watermelon sugar cookies that she saw online, or order more
"Poppin' Cookin'" sets from Japan, or to just run to Michael's REALLY
FAST to get more modge podge and some googly eyes. And on. And on. And on.<br />
<br />
Luckily
we try to stay busy, which is good and bad. There isn't much time to
be bored. But then there's also no time to be bored. And being bored
is one of the best things for fueling imagination! So our goal this
summer is to spend more time being bored. But not whining. <br />
<br />
We'll see how that goes.<br />
<br />
Monday
was a holiday so we had a sneak peek of summer. Last minute we joined
our friends for a beautiful hike in the Tahoe Meadows. How long is that
hike? 1.25 miles. How long did it take us? TWO HOURS. What kind of
pace is that? Pathetic. But that's what hiking with kids is.
Pathetic. At least if you're trying to get a good time. But if you're
just out for adventure? It's WONDERFUL. And there's good snacks.<br />
<br />
Look, real live tree-huggers!<br />
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<br />
<br />
Gretchen wasn't sure we captured "tree hugging" in the scene above, so she asked me to take a picture of this pose. It looks like they're going to the Homecoming Dance.<br />
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<br />
Pretty sure you're not supposed to pick the flowers....<br />
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<br />
....or disturb the wildlife.<br />
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But OMG SO CUTE!<br />
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"Aren't hikes awesome?"<br />
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"Toooootaly!"<br />
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"AWESOME!!!!"<br />
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And so is this kid. Who runs from my camera!!! Why you run, Ella? Why you no let me take pictures? <br />
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Gretchen
had a Pajama Party on Friday at kindergarten. Look at how fun their
teacher is! They borrowed Alfie, the third grade's pet rabbit, and
snuggled in for some flashlight book reading (GG is right next to
Alfie's cage in the white pjs on the right). <br />
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My
sweet girl thought that someone had taken a bite of her cookie
already. Um, no. IT'S BOOK SHAPED. Also, AREN'T THESE AMAZING?!?! My
friend made them. Just in case you missed it, she's amazing.<br />
<br />
It's
been a full-on-party weekend here. After the PJ party at school, we
visited our friend's house to hold their new baby chicks! Look at that
face! (She thought they were kissing. They weren't.) Then after the
party, we went to Costco. Which is almost always a good time. (Except
for when I get cart road-rage around the samples. MOVE YOUR D@*M
CART!!! JUST BECAUSE THEY'RE HANDING OUT ORANGE CHICKEN DOES NOT MEAN
YOU CAN BLOCK THE WHOLE AISLE!!! I have some feelings about this.)<br />
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<br />
Friday
night was BINGO night at Ella's school. It was a bittersweet party,
the last school event we'll attend there. Sniff! Ella said that it was
boring. But I had fun. And they raised $900 with minimal volunteer
hours. So totally worth it! Then yesterday we hosted a baby shower for
our dear friend. Once it was all set up I was happy and enjoyed
opening our home to some lovely ladies. But before I ran around like a
mad-woman cleaning and cutting fruit and wrapping asparagus in filo
dough (they were a big hit, highly recommend). Then we had a BBQ at our
friends. And then I went home and collapsed.<br />
<br />
This is
Ella's last week at her school. Tomorrow we're going to Virginia City
to STEP BACK IN TIME and learn about how Mark Twain lived there for,
like, two weeks back in 18-blah-blah-blah, but clearly that was
significant enough to name about 30 roads in Northern Nevada after
him. <br />
<br />
But anyways, look at me! Who updated the blog two weeks in a row! <br />
<br />
But now I gotta go. Gretchen and I have to finish those watermelon cookies.<br />
<br />
Because yes, yes I am a sucker. (Only 3 more hours & they'll be done!) Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-21969991020259945062014-05-25T16:44:00.002-07:002014-05-25T16:44:35.027-07:00Spring Fun!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We've
had a mah-velous time lately. Everything is winding down to summer,
including Girl Scouts. The troop got an AWESOME fire station tour.
Above is my favorite shot, everyone is so happy! The fireman was
showing them what people look like through the lens of a camera with a
heat-sensitive lens. (Apparently it's hilarious).<br />
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Gretchen
in her tie-dye hippie outfit (it was tie-day day at Ella's school, and
even though Gretchen doesn't go to the same school, she was DEFINITELY
getting in on that action!<br />
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And Ella bein' all cute an puttin' out fires and stuff.<br />
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That helmet is REALLY heavy.<br />
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See? I know.<br />
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And
since we tried on the fireman uniforms, the firemen decided to try on a
girl scout uniform. Awwww! I'd maybe buy cookies from him. He looks legit, right?<br />
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And
here are some random pictures of the girl from last Sunday after
church. The girls got new church dresses (Except Ella changed into her
pajamas within 30 seconds of arriving home. Because she's my child and
knows that comfy clothes = happy day.). And happy, happy news, Colby
finished putting in the sprinkler system in the backyard! Hooray for
Colby!!!! So soon our lovely trees will be shading some lovely
grass!!! Hooray!!!!!!!!<br />
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I titled this image "SISTERS". Just bout sums it up, right?<br />
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Super Dramatic Swing Ride!<br />
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Ella learned how to send a telegraph message at the State Capitol with the fourth grade. She wasn't overly impressed.<br />
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Gretchen
found a "little baby baby caterpillar!!!" and made me take a picture
before letting it go. She wanted to bring it home for her bug-catcher.
Also known as the bug-graveyard. So so sorry bugs. If we catch you,
you will die. Put your affairs in order. The end is near.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIs-RxfBNTO8CQYknL-MQocci1i-NT7oVRueJm5JO32lXjucmU6ZK07G8ioZxq8FZ7KXKO-LT4lj5kA0qTKu2De1f0JOyP9Q_Dj3BEqQZWDInxDXyECG_aybqVU63Q78zRf2FQd30kaGGb/s1600/art+bbq+jesse+beck.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIs-RxfBNTO8CQYknL-MQocci1i-NT7oVRueJm5JO32lXjucmU6ZK07G8ioZxq8FZ7KXKO-LT4lj5kA0qTKu2De1f0JOyP9Q_Dj3BEqQZWDInxDXyECG_aybqVU63Q78zRf2FQd30kaGGb/s1600/art+bbq+jesse+beck.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a><br />
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I
was the Art Mom in Gretchen's class this year. (Me and about 5 other
volunteers, without which it would have been literally impossible!!!
Because kindergarten art is HARD!!!) We had the Roaming Art BBQ at her
school last week. Parents came to school with picnic lunches, and then
walked around the school to see all the art. We had six projects on
display. (Including the awesome clay fish (above), which the kids made
for Father's Day.) Don't you love those "Mountain Lion" charcoal
drawings (on the toned brown paper above the clay fish). And the "Van
Gogh Sunflowers"??? Kindergarten art may be hard, but it's also SO
CUTE.<br />
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GG
& her BFF PaiPai being all emo in front of the art wall (not her
real name. But the name by which she shall be known for all time
forever in our house.)<br />
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I
had to bribe GG with an ice cream cone to get her to take this picture
in front of the roses. This is one of the vintage dresses that Grandma
Diana/Auntie Adrianne sent from our childhood. Awww! Gretchen wants so
badly to sleep in the under-dress like an old-timey pioneer child. And
I shoot her down every single time. Sorry honey, that's what happens
when you have the meanest mom ever!<br />
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And,
lastly, here's a sweet pic of me & Ella at our little friend's
"Candy Land" themed birthday party yesterday. In the words of our
little friend's mom, "I'm NEVER DOING THIS AGAIN!" It was very very
very cute. And she is now very very very tired. I should tell her to
give up now and start doing birthdays at Chuckee Cheese's. Where people
who've totally given up throw their children's birthday parties. That
should be their slogan.<br />
<br />
Ella has 1.5 more weeks of
school, Gretchen has 2.5. AND THEN IT'S SUMMER!!!! This is wonderful
and horrible at the same time. I'm really looking forward to going to
Lake Tahoe with our besties, but I'm dreading how many times I'm going
to hear "I'm so bored, why can't I just watch a show?" (repeated
ad-nauseum until I give up in a fit of wondeful parenting and yell,
"FINE!!! JUST GO!!!!!" You know, cause I'm awesome like that.) <br />
<br />
I
have a few ideas to keep us mentally healthy and emotionally
un-scarred. Gretchen is going to build herself a dollhouse. In fact,
she's building <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0033JB3UG/ref=oh_details_o03_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1" target="_blank">THIS dollhouse</a>.
And Ella is going to work on her comic book, "Candy Duck". Which is
about the exticential crisis of a white house aide in a time of
political upheaval. Just kidding. It's about a duck that likes candy.
Also, I'm going to have "screen free" hours til 1pm every day, and "not
allowed to ask mom for ANYTHING" from 8:30 - 11:30 every day so I can
attempt to get my work done. <br />
<br />
Can you tell I'm a
little stressed about summer? Ha! But then comes fall, and everything
is going to be AMAZING. Yup. For the first time in 9 years I'll have
SIX UNINTERRUPTED HOURS A DAY TO WORK. This is tantamount to a
miracle. And I'm not exaggerating. I've already mapped out a new
marketing plan and everything. Hooray for not working til 10pm every
night!!!!<br />
<br />
Ok, now I'm going to go enjoy my sabbath with
the girls. Which means, of course, that we're going to eat snacks and
watch stupid movies for hours and hours. Woo hoo!<br />
<br />
xoxoAprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-32015107324937760252014-02-23T19:28:00.002-08:002014-02-23T19:28:29.161-08:00Love Was In The Air<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We are honored to announce that Ella has been officially inducted into the Elementary School Honors Society. This is a very big deal because we have a certificate AND a pin now. And because her boots look cute in that picture. <br />
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Here's the ONE PICTURE I got of Gretchen at the dance. She looks pensive. She's worried that Mr. Darcy won't notice her new muslin gown. (Silly Gretchen, the ton does NOT approve of wearing muslin to an evening dance. She should be so embarrassed!)<br />
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Of course Ella and friends thought it'd be hilarious to hide out in Mr. S's room for half the night. Though they did leave to run through the dance floor giggling the requisite 1,000 times. And, they even did stop to ACTUALLY DANCE for a few minutes.<br />
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Gretchen's poor teacher had an unexpected emergency, so her even MORE POOR SUBSTITUTE got to deal with this for Valentines Day! The kids were extremely excited about all aspects of the day.<br />
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I was extremely excited that Gretchen got a very special invitation from her friend D to a Valentines Lunch Party directly after school. <br />
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Mr. D. had been saving this little mini-light-up-pillow-pet for Gretchen since he saw it a month ago. Boy, does he know the way to my little girl's heart. Did you read that? MINI. LIGHT-UP. PILLOW PET. She was beyond thrilled. He got a matching puppy (see below). And if you've spent any time with my darling girl over the last year, you will recognize the following phrase, "That'd be PERFECT for my American Girl Doll!" And it is. <br />
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We won't let that 6" height disparity come between their love.<br />
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Because look at those faces. I just want to SMOOSH THEM!<br />
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I told his mom that I wasn't sure if I should file this under "Senior Yearbook" or "Wedding Reception Slideshow". <br />
<br />
Last week Ella turned in her Science Fair project. I didn't even have to threaten much violence to get it finished this year! Hooray!!! (Though we could do a study on whether the Science Fair makes parents hate their lives. My Preliminary Hypothesis: YES! Oh My $*#@ YES!!!)<br />
<br />
Yesterday we had a baby shower and three birthday parties (we only made it to two of the birthdays, but the first one was a double party for TWO boys, so I think it should count as more). And then Colby and I went out to celebrate 14 years of wedded bliss. Auntie Krista was kind enough to watch Gretchen while Colby and I went out. They had so much fun! (Ella was at her 2nd birthday party at the time). But the busy Saturday kicked our butts so hard that we slept in. BY A LOT. We got to church an hour late. And then I missed Sunday School (I decided to talk to my friend instead and called it a Mental Health Break. It was awesome.) And you know what? One hour church is so pleasant! I had a great time! It just goes to show, sometimes you should be irresponsible. Just enjoy life. I carried that theme on through the afternoon. I sure had a great nap in the hammock! And don't worry pinterest, I'm all caught up! (Good thing too, cause this week is set to kick my butt again. Sigh....) So how was your week?Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-15751413535733264892014-02-09T20:21:00.001-08:002014-02-09T20:21:52.369-08:00What?!?! Hey!!!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdWFhyMGWJYSJnEV76e8gPdl7QPNKUB_uxNMVuRsD-o_2mYR7JiUGUiQXh1BF0KkVk8MHV92inm4sVuyY1cXZj9MeWlcQF6aBWd0MbEMQK0HXb9vBihB7Qv5BLIztnJMALv4agp0Hdtdua/s1600/01-GGBday.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdWFhyMGWJYSJnEV76e8gPdl7QPNKUB_uxNMVuRsD-o_2mYR7JiUGUiQXh1BF0KkVk8MHV92inm4sVuyY1cXZj9MeWlcQF6aBWd0MbEMQK0HXb9vBihB7Qv5BLIztnJMALv4agp0Hdtdua/s1600/01-GGBday.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gretchen chose Red Robin for her 6th Birthday Dinner. Guess how long the balloon lasted before it popped*</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
What? I'm updating our family blog!?!?! Woo hoo!
The new 9am church schedule is wooooooonderful, and I'm hoping this will
be the first of many weekly updates. So, my dearies, how have YOU been
doing? We've been doing well. Busy, busy, busy. Getting older (See
above) (See below). Getting cuter too, if that's even possible.<br />
(*The
balloon lasted less than 5 minutes. Mostly because she kept shoving it
under the table cause she didn't want everyone looking at her. Cause
guys, DON'T LOOK AT HER.)<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioABoQgyVGaxYkINX6vLlPICOBklfJNdRa9Wwc1iZtj56PKw7rroD9sEOo8b9ZOvg9lchgf6nzD0P87HKfap95ymaKNLasw4NNHkm4y71yQsYHlsr8yeDHnSK1XVtngjn_xiSeczyOVZdt/s1600/01-LivingRoomPortrait.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioABoQgyVGaxYkINX6vLlPICOBklfJNdRa9Wwc1iZtj56PKw7rroD9sEOo8b9ZOvg9lchgf6nzD0P87HKfap95ymaKNLasw4NNHkm4y71yQsYHlsr8yeDHnSK1XVtngjn_xiSeczyOVZdt/s1600/01-LivingRoomPortrait.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Living Room Photo Shoot. Bulldog shirt was a birthday gift from her friend. Thanks friend!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The girls signed up for City of Reno Ice Skating
Lessons. And we made it for 1/2 of them! Look really really closely
& you'll see Ella below. If you're ever looking for our sweet
girl, be sure to watch for the brightest, most rainbow-ey outfit
possible. Find that & you find Ella. Or a pride parade in full
swing. But probably Ella. <br />
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Gretchen
is going through this super fun phase where she doesn't want me to take
her picture. She lost her first tooth, a little baby front bottom
tooth. I got a picture of her, but then it descended into
head-banging. "Mom, take my picture when I do this! HA HA HA HA!"<br />
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We
found a snapcircuits set at Savers and invested $8. Cause we value
education. But then I had to come home and actually figure it out. I
hate figuring stuff out because I'm lazy and also tired. But I rallied
and IT'S SO FUN! GG and I built a real live working radio! <br />
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Also
because we value education, we went to Sutter's Fort in Sacramento so
Ella could see the little Donner Party doll that they've been learning
about for 4th Grade State History. Well, really we went to Sacramento
because Colby had a bike race. Our lovely friends came with us. Their
daddy has been sucked into the world of cycling, just like Colby (sorry
children and wife of lovely friends!) We got a hotel right near the old
downtown on the river, right down the street from the capitol. I love
vacations SO MUCH. SO MUCH. How much? SO MUCH.<br />
<br />
So we drove to Sutter's Fort to see some Real Live History, especially the much anticipated <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Patty-Reeds-Doll-Story-Donner/dp/0961735724" target="_blank">doll of Patty Reed</a>.
(Oh my, little doll. Do we really want to read your story? Ick.)
Then we found out that the doll was approximately two inches tall. For
reals. See below. We all went, "Oh. Neat. Yeah, that's really
small." <br />
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The gift shop was great, of course, and we couldn't leave without a surprise. Not the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Donner-Party-Cookbook-Survival-Hastings/dp/0972221735/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1391993504&sr=1-1&keywords=cooking+with+the+donner+party" target="_blank">Donner Party Cookbook.</a> (I'm not kidding, this exists. Christmas?) But we DID find some sweet rag dolls! They carried them around for almost HOURS.<br />
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Gretchen got the alternative "Mini Working Telescope" so she can watch out for mini enemy troops. <br />
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We
learned so many interesting things! Like that living back then was
awful! And Sutter of Sutter's Fort and Sutter's Mill was sort of a jerk
face. He married rich, spent all his wife's money, and then left his
family in Switzerland so he could try again in the new world! (After
changing his identity, of course.) Talk about the American Dream!<br />
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Also,
sucked to be anyone owning land near Sutter's Mill! Who wants to die
penniless in the middle of gold hysteria!?! Good times. </div>
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Ah, history!<br />
<br />
So
we came home and went to a fabulous birthday party at our friend's
fabulous dance studio. Here's GG hanging up her paper doll. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyV4lxgv6zlqgGCD-UlfEbRmIIFsEA1lcgpRo928K91cx3wWRoTjLcW_GLgGizMy2PTbTp6peEKVJyQlXz_pq1XMrdnanXnHZGogAr8kdnNbXwS_ndmG2oWbNRlTYcvBoRG97Ol4UcsA02/s1600/9-BirthdayParty.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyV4lxgv6zlqgGCD-UlfEbRmIIFsEA1lcgpRo928K91cx3wWRoTjLcW_GLgGizMy2PTbTp6peEKVJyQlXz_pq1XMrdnanXnHZGogAr8kdnNbXwS_ndmG2oWbNRlTYcvBoRG97Ol4UcsA02/s1600/9-BirthdayParty.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
Friday
was the school dance (grades K-5), where we got LOTS of amazing
pictures of kids doing LOTS of amazing dance moves. But they're all on
the camera still and I'm tired, so that's a project for next week. But
Oh How I Love Dancing. Dancing is right up there with vacations. I
danced all night til bedtime (8pm) to some sweet dance songs.
Embarrassed the h-e-c-k out of my girls. It was me and two of my other
favorite moms, working our little hearts out to all the top 40-hits.
And then Katy Perry's "Roar" came on and every girl in the building
joined us on the dance floor and danced like they had the Eye of the
Tiger. Yeah, it was great. Little kids dancing is my favorite. <br />
<br />
Ok,
that's it for now. We've got a Big Week with Valentines Day and an 8
mile run (a very very slow 8 miles, don't be too impressed) and a spa
day coming up. Twil be amazing! So I will take pictures, remove them
from the camera, and share them with you next time.<br />
<br />
xoxo Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-30627822279674323632013-06-09T11:36:00.001-07:002013-06-09T11:36:39.682-07:00Hot! Summer! FUN!!!!!!!!!!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5DyvqIHkXAGC0vI2K0QCJRd3Xu4lUZdgHJ6kW1tUJSir5R9lsRxvRb9y-otPLsE6003qk5wUnCiVzZU_vqaS3Q2iMj4FbYX5Q4D5KfhuPX5Unk0cHuJeyP3YVinnL14Ev9bgnm0-TTLjN/s1600/1-LastDayofSchool.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5DyvqIHkXAGC0vI2K0QCJRd3Xu4lUZdgHJ6kW1tUJSir5R9lsRxvRb9y-otPLsE6003qk5wUnCiVzZU_vqaS3Q2iMj4FbYX5Q4D5KfhuPX5Unk0cHuJeyP3YVinnL14Ev9bgnm0-TTLjN/s320/1-LastDayofSchool.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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We don't mess around with Summer, you guys.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisd19COzmFgOJhd6gRNS9mrGMPLsMd7kBgFB-7ZGuNlH6kk4ejcLv3D5Lqg0q89UaqYEdDHMC0VOOzX9IBBO5laoMN3idVUR0DioW9hXL1xJUB5XZQgaiBn-__pmHDHXu5jgbZJw3PFE_n/s1600/2-BestTeacherEVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisd19COzmFgOJhd6gRNS9mrGMPLsMd7kBgFB-7ZGuNlH6kk4ejcLv3D5Lqg0q89UaqYEdDHMC0VOOzX9IBBO5laoMN3idVUR0DioW9hXL1xJUB5XZQgaiBn-__pmHDHXu5jgbZJw3PFE_n/s320/2-BestTeacherEVER.jpg" width="304" /></a></div>
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Within an hour of bidding the BEST TEACHER EVER adieu, we were at the hotel, ready to rock. (Just in case it wasn't obvious, I didn't take this picture of the pool. Totally stolen off the hotel website.)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKXEZ-5saDHdsWDzCQlx7RbIqaIW14AnnSZmBH72_GEwCEIcvfTMFdfqm6ZXaTijR42pQn2W_mfdi83drLzef7O8K7LESur4YhZiRP0lOl0YGI92jxh7287WSjmLm-n2qcR41Jv3hAViH1/s1600/pools_night.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKXEZ-5saDHdsWDzCQlx7RbIqaIW14AnnSZmBH72_GEwCEIcvfTMFdfqm6ZXaTijR42pQn2W_mfdi83drLzef7O8K7LESur4YhZiRP0lOl0YGI92jxh7287WSjmLm-n2qcR41Jv3hAViH1/s320/pools_night.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And let me tell you, it was NOT that serene once we got there. We met 5 other school friends there for a family sleepover. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4kF4syeJ0-UYBwIsHtwikvKXMtioUfHt_hoHGDbwdOLkc6yKEYf24_QCCp8TmcTp-8FvUvcT1CNuNr5Xvvx9tfiMMawsYNNmCHdAegv1lEfPkGnToj6WgEFheipFFzSGltz5X0FU1dcjX/s1600/3-PeppermillSleepover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4kF4syeJ0-UYBwIsHtwikvKXMtioUfHt_hoHGDbwdOLkc6yKEYf24_QCCp8TmcTp-8FvUvcT1CNuNr5Xvvx9tfiMMawsYNNmCHdAegv1lEfPkGnToj6WgEFheipFFzSGltz5X0FU1dcjX/s320/3-PeppermillSleepover.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Despite the fact that they went to school that day, we were still able to fit in 8 hours of swim time and a 2 hour break for dinner. How tired were they? SO TIRED. I kept waiting for GG's meltdown. It came. The next morning. While again in the pool. Nothing like a temper tantrum in the pool, my friends. But, like always, we got through it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHOYwjeA34aIA6SfxCau7IqDg0OoOWv9dE8Blbgsx50a95653gj64NWy_5Mh3RykhCPTMudcaHgO6jc5yNPydP0a6FXjowQO8Q6LaFc9j6s_ceFIGR_3B22E_m1dX7pdKgNretKG-hH3EE/s1600/LemonadeStand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHOYwjeA34aIA6SfxCau7IqDg0OoOWv9dE8Blbgsx50a95653gj64NWy_5Mh3RykhCPTMudcaHgO6jc5yNPydP0a6FXjowQO8Q6LaFc9j6s_ceFIGR_3B22E_m1dX7pdKgNretKG-hH3EE/s320/LemonadeStand.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
On Monday I rallied enough to help Ella and friends put on a Lemonade Stand in front of our house. Our house has the best location for selling lemonade! When the district school down the block gets out, we get some good foot traffic. They sold $16 in lemonade at $.50/cup, which was just about perfect. Please note the "Happy Lemon" balloons, decorated with faces, and awesome sign that Ella made ALL BY HERSELF! Hooray for happy brownies and lemons!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpuH1nueaMgnJUfANG1umQvYYy90wUpbgeOTAtEotoT1DqHl8_cFa48qhLiHpGyE360N7WtUxEWsB38FhZq_StbXbxPm09v0YS8NeQhDhCIPNrTDc48hO1KwEmSEy1p9dwNJv9Yr04pGGN/s1600/4-TahoeTuesday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpuH1nueaMgnJUfANG1umQvYYy90wUpbgeOTAtEotoT1DqHl8_cFa48qhLiHpGyE360N7WtUxEWsB38FhZq_StbXbxPm09v0YS8NeQhDhCIPNrTDc48hO1KwEmSEy1p9dwNJv9Yr04pGGN/s320/4-TahoeTuesday.jpg" width="255" /></a></div>
<br />
And I also rallied enough to take the girls to Lake Tahoe on Tuesday. I was going to invite friends, but I didn't quite rally enough to organize that, so we went solo. But, as I've said before, RENO IS CRAZY. Practically everywhere we go, we will run into someone we know. GG saw her old friend from preschool last year & they spent the afternoon playing together. Good times had by all. Except maybe the crawdad that I caught for the girls in the rocks with our handy dandy new fishing net. He might have been a little freaked out. I ended up gifting him to the little boy down the beach with the promise he'd return him to the water when he left. Also, crawdads are GROSS. How can people eat those things? They're like gigantic insects. No literally, they are GIGANTIC INSECTS THAT LIVE IN THE WATER. Just like lobsters and shrimp. I know insects might be the wave of the future for providing protein to a growing population, but I think I'd rather go vegan. Is there a name for an insect free diet? That's what I am. And I'm starting now with a boycott of crawdad, shrimp and lobster.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4285B9_v_sWAy0CvA68RpV89oyEmXdqS39GZ7uokIqLUXTqv7W2YGKDxHk3mZ8grYZ5GqMF2qDVOq7I1NySgLfRA-V4AugyjxZFh5TZVoeJjEtus8TQz0T11Ika4tuyryfT77SzBV3urC/s1600/5-TahoeTuesday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4285B9_v_sWAy0CvA68RpV89oyEmXdqS39GZ7uokIqLUXTqv7W2YGKDxHk3mZ8grYZ5GqMF2qDVOq7I1NySgLfRA-V4AugyjxZFh5TZVoeJjEtus8TQz0T11Ika4tuyryfT77SzBV3urC/s320/5-TahoeTuesday.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Anywho, here's more pics of my cute kids in the sun.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxbZrgoVUskVzU_yNQ7cKdmdwH_vf-0yk_HGNf2NOatOhEzJD3snWYOENGuwS0gx3yTVDFKt9jX_zHol3vQcWMJsyyj_gY0b6v63nEfHmQDMAEXUaRFz3BSCcsFSwgBiPYL8KUXbFJnPGW/s1600/6-TahoeTuesday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxbZrgoVUskVzU_yNQ7cKdmdwH_vf-0yk_HGNf2NOatOhEzJD3snWYOENGuwS0gx3yTVDFKt9jX_zHol3vQcWMJsyyj_gY0b6v63nEfHmQDMAEXUaRFz3BSCcsFSwgBiPYL8KUXbFJnPGW/s320/6-TahoeTuesday.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
GG art directed this one. "Mom, take a picture of me slowly pouring sand out of this bucket!!!!"<br />
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<br />
Ella had a playdate on Friday. They hadn't decided where they'd be going when they left, but as I got about 6 emails with a similar theme, I realized they'd gone to the Discovery Museum downtown. Woot!!!<br />
<br />
GG had her VERY LAST FAIRYTALE BALLET recital yesterday. Uncle Ian, Auntie Amber and Baby Lucy joined us to watch. It was awesome. As always. Their little peach dance costumes were ridiculously cute. I think I'm going to take her to a studio & get her portrait taken. In hopes that she can one day send it to Awkward Family Photos. (Aren't 1/2 their pics of dance costumes?)<br />
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HAPPY SUMMER!!!!!<br />
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Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-17753994687718396552013-05-05T11:02:00.000-07:002013-05-05T11:02:00.056-07:00¡Feliz Cinco de Mayo!<br />
Hello Friends!<br />
<br />
May Day was my birthday. How did you celebrate? We celebrated by having a mis-communication which ended up in us going to Claim Jumpers for dinner. PERFECT! I took the day off of work and chores! EVEN MORE PERFECT! I tried to take a nap in the hammock in the afternoon, but GG needed a snack, to ask a question, another snack, and a fudgesicle, and another question every time I sat down. ALMOST PERFECT!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguAXai-KoCWejQkgQ61i0PrdHxNKnKSJzeK5dW7qPWLy5vZuwQFSWEHPNAyZKTxTzX5uvdVqXQpn4ZtSeABpkwDfv9S-4PYwm5Q314SE4vYBFQppiY-6eQl025aBVBVSWHBpOQU4PxhgB8/s1600/02-ClaimJumperBirthday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguAXai-KoCWejQkgQ61i0PrdHxNKnKSJzeK5dW7qPWLy5vZuwQFSWEHPNAyZKTxTzX5uvdVqXQpn4ZtSeABpkwDfv9S-4PYwm5Q314SE4vYBFQppiY-6eQl025aBVBVSWHBpOQU4PxhgB8/s320/02-ClaimJumperBirthday.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Gretchen surprised us all with this lovely drawing. At first I was all, "Oh, mmhmmm, nice sweetie. That's a nice guy."<br />
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But then she said, "No, momma, it's the tomato from Veggie tales!" And then I was all "!!!!!My baby's a GENIUS!!!!!!!!"<br />
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<br />
So Tuesday night we went with the Relief Society to the Ronald McDonald house in town to do some cleaning and make dinner. When the Disney Store in town closed (sniff!!!) they gave all their props to the Ronald McDonald house to decorate the sibling play room. The girls were super impressed! And in the backyard there was a playhouse shaped as a gigantic gumball machine! WOW! The girls kept asking, "Can WE go there some time?"<br />
"Sure, we can go help there again." <br />
"No, can we STAY THERE!" <br />
"Honey, it's only for kids who have a brother or sister in the hospital!"<br />
"Well, maybe one day can one of US be in the hospital and we can play?" <br />
SIGH.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjWot0hinO0j_NQ3VhD2iwVLp-sCBheMtk-qLJ8HjpZBC3tnRPzrwuegHIPyqCdk35xwj5ggVtyl8cZA93XY1Bg4BK5wY0Xg1sFkLc2QViZDjV-qIQUmPTTpIdB_bXrCYXCm82zhGd9Tbg/s1600/01-RMDH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjWot0hinO0j_NQ3VhD2iwVLp-sCBheMtk-qLJ8HjpZBC3tnRPzrwuegHIPyqCdk35xwj5ggVtyl8cZA93XY1Bg4BK5wY0Xg1sFkLc2QViZDjV-qIQUmPTTpIdB_bXrCYXCm82zhGd9Tbg/s320/01-RMDH.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
Any good karma we may have had from that experience was quickly cleared out when I ran over a dove on the way home. Yes, I killed a dove. A DOVE. It was sitting there, hangin' out on the street. Of course birds always fly away when you get close, right? It's dangerous to swerve when you're driving down a busy street at 40 mph, they always move, right? RIGHT? No. Dove. Thud. Cloud of feathers behind our car. No more dove. And Gretchen crying, "Why did you hit that bird, momma? Why did you have to KILL IT????"<br />
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Ella had Crazy Hair Day at school this week. Put in your bets now to guess how long her hair stayed this way.<br />
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(Her scalp is still red, and no it's NOT a sunburn. I'm not sure how we're going to get it off!)<br />
<br />
It was also her school's EVENING OF THE ARTS this week! Her awesome music and art teachers have been working so hard to put this together. Months of preparation. The 3rd and 4th grade students were required by mandatory attendance to sing and play the recorder. I asked Ella if she was worried about performing in front of everyone. She said, "No, not really." <br />
I said, "Do you feel like you know it pretty well then?" <br />
"No, I only know about the first 10 notes, then I just pretend for the rest of the song."<br />
"Honey!!! Are you kidding me? Do you want me to help you practice?" (A completely impractical offer as we were leaving for the EVENING OF THE ARTS in about 15 minutes)<br />
"Nah, I'm good."<br />
"Why didn't you bring home the music, I could have helped you!" (Turns out she did. Multiple times. I found 2 copies of "An Olde English Tune" when I was cleaning up papers yesterday. FAIL. Ah well....)<br />
<br />
Her friend C, on the other hand, had a SOLO. (Though her moms said the way you get the recorder solo at THE EVENING OF THE ARTS is you show up for the solo tryouts. Then only one other kid shows up. So you both get a solo.)<br />
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Girl Scouts had the COOLEST OUTING this Friday. We had a half day at school, so afterwards we met for a quick potluck Cinco de Mayo picnic at the park, then went TO THE INDOOR ARCHERY RANGE!!!! Gretchen was really excited about it, but she was NOT really excited to have her hair pulled back. She likes her hair around her face. And she's COOL, not CUTE, BTW... Please don't call her cute. For all our sakes.<br />
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Ella was told by a leader she had to keep her uniform on, but she snuck some purple shorts on in the car. Because she's a rebel, Dottie. <br />
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Check out that determination!!!<br />
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The kind people at Wasting Arrows Indoor Archery Range set up an alternative bullseye once they realized that all the arrows were indeed being wasted...<br />
<br />
And, finally, THANK YOU AUNTIE AMBER!!! She threw a lovely BBQ last night to celebrate my birthday. We were super excited about not having to cook (ok, maybe that was just me), the homemade cake with cool-whip frosting (it's calling my name right nooooooow!!!) and the CABLE!!! Man, I could watch HGTV for hours. As we did. Last night. Do you know what this house needs? A walk in craft closet. And a murphey bed. And a place for my fish-tanking.<br />
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Have a great week!!!!!!</div>
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Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-66336544867318972872013-04-28T10:12:00.000-07:002013-04-28T10:12:24.080-07:00Sprouts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih-c0vuKb7HpTGJJvlVw4QjVU-qo9tiulVdUKA8Vnppgim1SbKUDerc4Sbfu9kx2QgPApXxQ6NQ2ofk6hZbYOdBWXbqmBBfEKU0bF2aQjgMPYHHz2HwX9UbMCQPFiH3kvlWTHw0dW3ztFl/s1600/40-LegendarySplash.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih-c0vuKb7HpTGJJvlVw4QjVU-qo9tiulVdUKA8Vnppgim1SbKUDerc4Sbfu9kx2QgPApXxQ6NQ2ofk6hZbYOdBWXbqmBBfEKU0bF2aQjgMPYHHz2HwX9UbMCQPFiH3kvlWTHw0dW3ztFl/s1600/40-LegendarySplash.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
My
goodness, the weather here has been FABULOUS. Yesterday it was 88°!!!
It's so nice that every time I see gardening seeds on sale, I have to
buy them. I'm pretty sure we've got about $20 worth of seeds hanging
out in various stashes throughout the house. But guess what, SOME OF
THEM HAVE SPROUTED!!! I am easily impressed, I know, but MAN that's
cool! We're going to have cosmos all over our front beds. I think
cosmos are my most favorite summertime flower. Even the foliage is
light and pretty. But we'll see what happens with our white pumpkins, 3
types of sunflowers, pickling cucumbers, yellow and red tomatos. And
dill. And rosemary. And lavender... And spinach. Oh yeah, and
carrots... Ok, maybe we have $30 in seeds...<br />
<br />
My
friends, our house STINKS right now. I don't know what it is, but I
just wanted to let you know. Lest you read our little family blog and
think everything is wonderful in our lives..... I think it's a
combination of GG's new mattress (which we did air out, according to
their instructions) and our stinky dog and maybe the skinky kitchen
trash. I can do something about the trash. But instead I'm sitting
here.<br />
<br />
On Wednesday we met a friend at Legends, the
outdoor mall down the road. The have a cool rock water feature that I'm
pretty sure is not supposed to be a splash park, but that's what we
made it into. Because we're resourceful and we like to walk the line.
On our way there, we were talking about the baby we were going to meet
up with, and how we just need to give him space because we don't want to
give him any germs. (She was healthy, just as a precaution). <br />
She said, "Is he a cute baby? I love babies. I love ALL babies. Except for the ugly ones who cry and have snot." <br />
I
think 70% of airplane passengers would agree with you on that one.
(Public Service Announcement: BE NICE TO MOTHERS OF CRYING BABIES!!!
Airplanes are PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION! If you cannot handle crying
babies, MAKE PREPARATIONS. Seriously, there's a huge chance that a baby
will be crying on your flight. NOISE CANCELLING HEADPHONES. Invest in
some. And realize the world does not revolve around you. The end.)<br />
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Red Bighorn sculptures. I want to touch them too, but I'm not five, so I don't think Security would be as forgiving.<br />
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Adrianne
send me the picture of the saddest baby in the world. BABY VERONICA,
it's like you know that you're going to get shots in 8.3 minutes! How
did you know?<br />
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And
we are all SUPER DUPER excited about Auntie Autumn's new book! SUPER
DUPER DUPER EXCITED. Just in case you can't tell, it's about girls who
fight with swords. But we can't decide which pose we like the best!
What's your vote? (And before you judge my design skillz too harshly, this is just the rough layout. I know, I know...)<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVMR3HdOiGbjhyphenhyphenmyPlAFTPFOzOPt-BfWy4E9t6EdUrl4T7Trylrn_5kmBwy_8I2otKG10xSlkHWZW9P7aMX-AyQjHOMPt3kCzCGxCmlbrPy2_XXOWew2qJTDG7R_8_UW2eGpO8MYjfgU6w/s1600/What+Rises+From+Ashes+Cover+Photo+Pose+2+-+hi-YAAAAA.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVMR3HdOiGbjhyphenhyphenmyPlAFTPFOzOPt-BfWy4E9t6EdUrl4T7Trylrn_5kmBwy_8I2otKG10xSlkHWZW9P7aMX-AyQjHOMPt3kCzCGxCmlbrPy2_XXOWew2qJTDG7R_8_UW2eGpO8MYjfgU6w/s1600/What+Rises+From+Ashes+Cover+Photo+Pose+2+-+hi-YAAAAA.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#1 - HeYAAAAH Pose</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnNMLEZDRHKBkgWmLpkvgia__J4qmREmlct29ml_ePS19a5t8myF40w44ez8gT4VEYT6M7k8gwvLO83cDN74Kh4V5jg5Mt2s4m-x-6tFGtdE6PwQWKrDq_etrqa1D0RbszFBtAcoOj8ngA/s1600/What+Rises+From+Ashes+Cover+Photo+Pose+4+-+UpDown.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnNMLEZDRHKBkgWmLpkvgia__J4qmREmlct29ml_ePS19a5t8myF40w44ez8gT4VEYT6M7k8gwvLO83cDN74Kh4V5jg5Mt2s4m-x-6tFGtdE6PwQWKrDq_etrqa1D0RbszFBtAcoOj8ngA/s1600/What+Rises+From+Ashes+Cover+Photo+Pose+4+-+UpDown.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#2 - Oh No You Didn't Pose</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqd6hQSHzB7nZQg0w39_sePSyTL6Z1Wj7wa1_mPZAqSp0F0jUPWRl35Vu5TEGdTs0L8nsyDixZzeI7OILERYNzVOGzeAuCA6o_AF4g8O7muDNA5JtGjv1BUeX9BHom5N2EXV9LYNhUuWr/s1600/What+Rises+From+Ashes+Cover+Photo+Pose+5-+Face+2+Face.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqd6hQSHzB7nZQg0w39_sePSyTL6Z1Wj7wa1_mPZAqSp0F0jUPWRl35Vu5TEGdTs0L8nsyDixZzeI7OILERYNzVOGzeAuCA6o_AF4g8O7muDNA5JtGjv1BUeX9BHom5N2EXV9LYNhUuWr/s1600/What+Rises+From+Ashes+Cover+Photo+Pose+5-+Face+2+Face.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#3 - In Yo FACE Pose</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRU2cwN0TnWngON8XDYCeN-QaZ1SrGuSGDZpI9uqrajQXri1xJYciogdCwLgx6NKzrJYKffMOxXsxdJpjMzmnLFIkd6NiDjQLSF3c8WJfGcWaFGoMwcCl3dKOOTJowetFpf-MElNYb7GF5/s1600/What+Rises+From+Ashes+Cover+Photo+Pose3+-+Down+Low.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRU2cwN0TnWngON8XDYCeN-QaZ1SrGuSGDZpI9uqrajQXri1xJYciogdCwLgx6NKzrJYKffMOxXsxdJpjMzmnLFIkd6NiDjQLSF3c8WJfGcWaFGoMwcCl3dKOOTJowetFpf-MElNYb7GF5/s1600/What+Rises+From+Ashes+Cover+Photo+Pose3+-+Down+Low.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#4 - Low Down Fighting Ladies Pose</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmkAmpnM5hqg3aTIEvY569gTEnIKR3MrlxtTxes_yPpc7FRkw8OmXC8ug39lqb5i0k7U03v8pmT5QxLBWLmrTF1VFxqQLZIBpLuUSfD0mazY73TDFnVpTroOEdkqegdNGxhSIUWXhv3isI/s1600/What+Rises+From+Ashes+Cover+Photo+Sketch+1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmkAmpnM5hqg3aTIEvY569gTEnIKR3MrlxtTxes_yPpc7FRkw8OmXC8ug39lqb5i0k7U03v8pmT5QxLBWLmrTF1VFxqQLZIBpLuUSfD0mazY73TDFnVpTroOEdkqegdNGxhSIUWXhv3isI/s1600/What+Rises+From+Ashes+Cover+Photo+Sketch+1.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#5 - My Sword Is Bigger Than Your Sword Pose</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We anxiously await your opinion!Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-43253878234626852452013-04-21T11:32:00.001-07:002013-04-21T11:32:43.097-07:00Pickled<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Oh my heck, some exciting things happened this week. Mostly this:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXb6xmhJt6JCRH3U4Dh7489dkZwrUFrdp0cINNMtoIqUkLym3dseiqhqE07yPG98kbMcxTBQM2H622EH4hUDf-U3La6j4iq8ZIC9t77LCgQHEW5mrTw2pIqQ07JDitnatOAMZ-XjUvtyw/s1600/34-BunkBed2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXb6xmhJt6JCRH3U4Dh7489dkZwrUFrdp0cINNMtoIqUkLym3dseiqhqE07yPG98kbMcxTBQM2H622EH4hUDf-U3La6j4iq8ZIC9t77LCgQHEW5mrTw2pIqQ07JDitnatOAMZ-XjUvtyw/s1600/34-BunkBed2.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a><br />
WE GOT A NEW BUNKBED!!! Unfortunately, we haven't gotten the new full-size lower bunk mattress. So we threw GG's toddler-bed mattress on the floor in what-will-be her bed space and she's been happy as a clam. Except for when she jumped up from bed too fast and totally smacked her head on the top bunk. Sorry babe. That sucked. <br />
<br />
She's going to upgrade from her crib/toddler bed mattress this week when our friend Amazon delivers the new memory foam full size mattress ($208, tax free, free shipping, since I must overshare about all my shopping adventures...) That's right, she's going from her hand-me-down-from Ella cracked plastic 4" crib mattress that we bought at the Dreaded Walmart EIGHT YEARS AGO. The sad little mattress that Hannah now sneaks on to as soon as Gretchen vacates her bed. (Hannah is too fat to jump onto Ella's bed. And no WAY is she jumping on me & Colby's bed. It's kidproofed to keep small sneaking children out. You practically need a stepstool to get into our bed.) The point is, our dog is gross. She stinks. Even right after the groomer she stinks. She's a fat stinkey bulldog that NO ONE wants to share a bed with. And now GG won't have to!!! Woo hoo!!!!!!<br />
<br />
I will never have to hear "Hannah, GET OFF!!! GET OFF MY BED!!!! HANNAH, ARE YOU DEAF? GET OFF MY BED!!!!" again. <br />
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(For the record, yes, Hannah is deaf. And stubborn. So we suspect that even if she could hear and understand your 5 year old tirade, she would just look you in the eye, blink, fart, and go right back to sleep.)<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8kjxrHFlZ_fd3__WRxtYZzfviC0ovFOxlaWCEqeI1U4-USwfH60Du9kkwJHGH9wCjt9d8nwPtSTx5lKVRsirC80nkHB51OEA2nyHq9Pma33jgwDyIvMVU2LWErKvMDq2uVSNJUuKeINA/s1600/33-BunkBed.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8kjxrHFlZ_fd3__WRxtYZzfviC0ovFOxlaWCEqeI1U4-USwfH60Du9kkwJHGH9wCjt9d8nwPtSTx5lKVRsirC80nkHB51OEA2nyHq9Pma33jgwDyIvMVU2LWErKvMDq2uVSNJUuKeINA/s1600/33-BunkBed.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />Most of you probably already know, but we have a less-than-slight pickle obsession at our house (note the toy kitchen pickle in GG's mouth above. That's not her tongue. That's a plastic pickle). I think I've mentioned before that Ella's been restricted to one pickle a day, not till after 10am. (Because yes, she wants one as soon as she wakes up). Gretchen has been ho-hum about it. Pickles are fine, but not a daily staple. Except for this week at the grocery store when she saw BABY DILL PICKLES. OMG, seriously? BABY PICKLES? Yes. It rocked her world. She was delighted. And because I am nice, and also worn down, I bought it for her. She called them "Sweetish Pickles" (though they were dill) and held them
in the crook of her arm through the store crooning, "Oh, my little
sweetish pickles! Are you ready to come home with me?" And, because I didn't place any restrictions on her pickle consumption, she ate the whole jar that afternoon. THE WHOLE JAR. This is what happens when you try to unload groceries while helping with homework while getting dinner going while cleaning the bathroom. <br />
<br />
And in the soap-opera world of preschool, Gretchen has found a new best friend. <br />
<b>GG: </b> Can we go somewhere?<br />
<b>Me:</b> Where?<br />
<b>GG:</b> Some place fun.<br />
<b>Me: </b> Um, maybe... (sense my level of commitment and excitement)<br />
<b>GG:</b> Can I invite my Best Friend?<br />
<b>Me: </b> Uh, which best friend? (She has about 4 options)<br />
<b>GG:</b> Ummmm...I forgot her name.<br />
<b>Me:</b> You sound really close.<br />
<b>GG:</b> HAILEY! Her name is Hailey.<br />
<b>Me:</b> We'll see.<br />
<br />
We'll see is my answer to everything. Can we get this song on the radio so we can listen to it ALL THE TIME? Sure, we'll see. Can we go to Old McDonalds and get ice cream? Sure, we'll see. <br />
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But can we spend the afternoon in the hammock and set my pastels out (only to be knocked over, "But that's ok, they still work," I say with gritted teeth because that's what happens when you share your precious things with small people.) YES WE CAN. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5NbozMTEpu_CWE9tk4njiqlmqP9m_SUmrmoV1bebe5zl2LUFm7keg2Q8uWmAiefiMdm1RPKSO7_NtdQ-Kts7UJ1Ft2vaZ6DzmFe8dv6UDwXtHqv_kcIfD1S3HYz1lH9saFYpBNrNlT7I/s1600/32-GretchenArtist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5NbozMTEpu_CWE9tk4njiqlmqP9m_SUmrmoV1bebe5zl2LUFm7keg2Q8uWmAiefiMdm1RPKSO7_NtdQ-Kts7UJ1Ft2vaZ6DzmFe8dv6UDwXtHqv_kcIfD1S3HYz1lH9saFYpBNrNlT7I/s1600/32-GretchenArtist.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqxzZBjzrxplQFgBTPygUav-AGGQ91xkUuj0aQ3oW5ill0-LvqxD2MnzKujMxOkN7biQKGL-ZOY_rtOUyIFmVVJumqHaOrfgO8P-j7TnlizaMdSolw_IZTJsLcHr975v_p7OWN6g-8cNA/s1600/31-EllaHulaHoop.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqxzZBjzrxplQFgBTPygUav-AGGQ91xkUuj0aQ3oW5ill0-LvqxD2MnzKujMxOkN7biQKGL-ZOY_rtOUyIFmVVJumqHaOrfgO8P-j7TnlizaMdSolw_IZTJsLcHr975v_p7OWN6g-8cNA/s1600/31-EllaHulaHoop.jpg" height="320" width="307" /></a> <br />
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Ella wanted me to show you that she can jump through the hula-hoop like a jump rope. She's really good at it. <br />
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Ella also wants to share NOTHING. When asked, she said, "NOTHING." Then giggled. <br />
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<br />Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-61765753435097659092013-04-21T10:47:00.002-07:002013-04-21T10:47:34.124-07:00And More Spring Breakin'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
HEY GUYS!!! I had to break this post up into deux so that I could keep your attention. ARE YOU PAYING ATTENTION? Good.</div>
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I
know you're super most favorite thing in the world is to look at what
my kids draw. So here's some more for you! You're welcome! The top is
Ella. She said she stylized it on purpose. I think that's a
flying narwhal in the sky.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqSohCPsqVSxr64Tg0BzxvXfCW7LC-T1TP-U2otPMl6QbVtmvkAEPxcAodlqtOfG24JHnQULqZ-LGSYoYSKw4yG_yTPD4_unImJMirBnkisR2ynIpcVIIFNKrCxiH7trgWSsvy4ECYRzW9/s1600/16-EllaConfDrawing.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqSohCPsqVSxr64Tg0BzxvXfCW7LC-T1TP-U2otPMl6QbVtmvkAEPxcAodlqtOfG24JHnQULqZ-LGSYoYSKw4yG_yTPD4_unImJMirBnkisR2ynIpcVIIFNKrCxiH7trgWSsvy4ECYRzW9/s320/16-EllaConfDrawing.jpg" height="200" width="320" /></a></div>
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And
here's Gretchen's. I'm guessing Ella helped fill in the names. GG
sure loves her friends. Awww, for cute. This is how we stay busy
during General Conference.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTENNPhBuYJGZQI-vozszAhG4fKkVGNoh0hJiltfmEl77nI3YOtI57nT_m7b8uPPgQWBwnZHMBZCJxWSw754BkOSiw_YgSwcqmY3OH663Q3tut1s299eI7mHO9_cIj5djyyQZVUR_hM8tG/s1600/16-GretchenConfDrawing.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTENNPhBuYJGZQI-vozszAhG4fKkVGNoh0hJiltfmEl77nI3YOtI57nT_m7b8uPPgQWBwnZHMBZCJxWSw754BkOSiw_YgSwcqmY3OH663Q3tut1s299eI7mHO9_cIj5djyyQZVUR_hM8tG/s320/16-GretchenConfDrawing.jpg" height="200" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
And this is how Baby Veronica grows up and makes us laugh and cringe at the same time! SO CUTE! AND GROSS!!!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH0TwNSfbCC1ZwbeU3fehDPq4Ivf-JdlUCDJxKpjNTyANp8vH_zy87Q4GisCT5TkKNvVmVfbNHz5LC72NyYRXBPXKZ8OMYigU4Y9KZlOsoYFOn66XHdQX1aMb6KRStBSz4iN51Hde0Nzh-/s1600/17-VeronicaGidget.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH0TwNSfbCC1ZwbeU3fehDPq4Ivf-JdlUCDJxKpjNTyANp8vH_zy87Q4GisCT5TkKNvVmVfbNHz5LC72NyYRXBPXKZ8OMYigU4Y9KZlOsoYFOn66XHdQX1aMb6KRStBSz4iN51Hde0Nzh-/s320/17-VeronicaGidget.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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Oh Baby Veronica, we can't believe you're 6 months old! And french kissing dogs! Awwww!!!!<br />
<br />
My
friend Katherine had the sweetest idea for her anniversary. They had a
family picnic at the park to celebrate their family. Awwwww! Here we
are celebrating that and Subway Sandwiches (mmmmm, sandwiches...) Ella,
you're so pretty!<br />
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The
Girl Scouts went to the state capitol on Wednesday. I love Sweet Home
Nevada. Seriously. Only in Nevada will the State Treasurer stop what
she's doing to talk to 7 girls about their plans for the future and
saving for college. She invited us all into her office and one by one
and asked what they wanted to be when they grow up (Ella wants to be an
Illustrator, GG wants to be a babysitter ;) <br />
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A super nice law clerk took us around the State Supreme Court and explained some stuff that mostly went over all our heads.</div>
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We
learned about the history of the capitol building. That desk belonged
to a governor! That giant press on the left was for putting seals on
official documents! (We didn't get a governor with a college degree for
a while. And he wasn't even from the US, he was an immigrant
from...Prussia? Poland? I don't know. Wikipedia it. The point is,
that's crazy. Geesh.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr4k9nSvINslPOvEutcjUGEP7d4W05IybGQ0h2EKUTBBh7ZnnH7ewR3h-64M8rcQOZNDVnXlCJ4ZxOuUSoCe0zwHQxDVyVwdiFnZk-goVyZ430zOBJ4HQr87UIS2a5Lu6mED3WyMNFF8Gf/s1600/24-GirlScoutsAtSupremeCout.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr4k9nSvINslPOvEutcjUGEP7d4W05IybGQ0h2EKUTBBh7ZnnH7ewR3h-64M8rcQOZNDVnXlCJ4ZxOuUSoCe0zwHQxDVyVwdiFnZk-goVyZ430zOBJ4HQr87UIS2a5Lu6mED3WyMNFF8Gf/s320/24-GirlScoutsAtSupremeCout.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
Good times.<br />
<br />
To
round out Spring Break, I found an awesome deal on expedia & we
booked a room at the Peppermill Resort for a night! Woo hoo!!! And
even better, we had some friends join us for our stay-cation. We spent
all night and all day swimming at the fabulous pool. I want to go there
EVERY MONTH! It's cheaper than swim lessons, and Gretchen figured out
how to doggy-paddle in just a few hours.<br />
<br />
But things
aren't all rosy and wonderful, we can't get Gretchen to stop picking her
nose and eating it. Even when we cry out with gross-ness, it does no
good. Last week, Ella asked, "WHY? WHY DO YOU PICK YOUR NOSE WITH YOUR
FINGERS AND EAT IT?" And Gretchen replied, as if it's so obvious,
"Because! My tongue can't reach!"<br />
<br />
BLECH. <br />
<br />
Kids are funny, but man, they're super gross.Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-59000323806997381822013-04-21T10:46:00.001-07:002013-04-21T10:46:49.326-07:00Pre Spring Breakin'We had the most fantastic thing happen over Spring Break. LISMARIE
AND FAMILY CAME TO VISIT!!! We love love LOVE when people come to
visit, especially Lismarie. They stayed at a hotel literally 5 minutes
from our house, so we got to go swim with them too! Woo hoo!!!<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6aSMDoBNtf6ejGwiFyPObxPqGmfmHiJBxSLVmQETY6eAsO-ObPZAdRCuxv3li5p6kMBVpLSPQfMOQRnQgYJt5O1JmaY4Ii6_EGQ5iPiM7sg_i-jCEeC9atVuUvkZUJ3ETIoiEmruinobD/s1600/11-4KidsInATub.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6aSMDoBNtf6ejGwiFyPObxPqGmfmHiJBxSLVmQETY6eAsO-ObPZAdRCuxv3li5p6kMBVpLSPQfMOQRnQgYJt5O1JmaY4Ii6_EGQ5iPiM7sg_i-jCEeC9atVuUvkZUJ3ETIoiEmruinobD/s320/11-4KidsInATub.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Not
just swimming in the tub you guys, swimming in a REAL pool too. (Though
Lismarie & I were super excited that we got to re-create the
infamous BYU Freshman Year Vegas Tub Incident with the next generation.
Stupid 90's Circus Circus hot tub hours + Stupid 19 year olds =
hilarity. Still waiting for photographic evidence to show up on
Facebook.) <br />
<br />
How much fun can you squeeze into 2 days?
Oh, let me tell you. SERIOUS FUN. It wasn't actually our Spring
Break, so I let Ella pick a day to stay home from school. She opted for
Monday, which was Virginia City Day. The gigantic old-timey candy shop
may have been the deciding factor.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ZBkBVWQqYSgyUhW3UrAX2H4ZwA22BltofyE-INXRybH7yXczpNDL2YgdJYCHQrMmRDTktTDYh4ViL7pT_NmzNZaOpxs33H5YLvFLDOel6yNjlzT-1m5xv_bpaziYH5-8giQMy9xbAYdM/s1600/6-CandyCigar.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ZBkBVWQqYSgyUhW3UrAX2H4ZwA22BltofyE-INXRybH7yXczpNDL2YgdJYCHQrMmRDTktTDYh4ViL7pT_NmzNZaOpxs33H5YLvFLDOel6yNjlzT-1m5xv_bpaziYH5-8giQMy9xbAYdM/s320/6-CandyCigar.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We spent many minutes trying to talk GG into getting a bubblegum cigar. Because this picture NEEDED to happen.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl9x72z1f7XJwahuyhaqc4ymikQr7_ZXSfl3SzI4-f_M_WkMxLfqO00a92P8DxhbBExyDUyVeSWXcJQ47YHrTiqXRKsfJJ02DFXWMJ7_-FhBXRhk2B5koGbsXCq2fiHU3uAIDwG_A_P9dF/s1600/10-SuperDeepAndSymbolicGothicCemetaryPic.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl9x72z1f7XJwahuyhaqc4ymikQr7_ZXSfl3SzI4-f_M_WkMxLfqO00a92P8DxhbBExyDUyVeSWXcJQ47YHrTiqXRKsfJJ02DFXWMJ7_-FhBXRhk2B5koGbsXCq2fiHU3uAIDwG_A_P9dF/s320/10-SuperDeepAndSymbolicGothicCemetaryPic.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Virginia City graveyard! Pretty AND creepy! My favorite combination!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXAJkx7SysGI4b3dYXb-OnH3NBFZKyHSNlQRsHsfrO1bij2e-Gf7OwrtapCZKm4QENtYxH4v17HbK3SERNGXNW4xt2-ztPgqiznl8GIrdRsQM1wJ731cndSAgeL-x-ifGxQo3L5E_ezLxw/s320/7-VirginiaCityChurch.jpg" height="240" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The churches are almost as plentiful as the bars & whorehouses!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The
next day Lismarie & I popped some tags at Savers. OMG you
guys, I spent $56 at Savers. Do you know how much awesome junk you can
get at a thrift store for $56? Let me tell you:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
-2 fabulous t-shirts</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
-1 super lovely black top that I'm wearing RIGHT NOW and will wear to church today</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
-2
AMAZING (no seriously! AMAZING) sweaters. One bright red vintage one
with big white buttons, one grey angora. Both FABULOUS</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
-COWBOY BOOTS!!! My 4 year search for cowboy boots is over!!!</div>
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-A blue tin for storing treasures (immediately confiscated by Ella. Followed by Gretchen's displeasure.)</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
-2
crystal lamps (which made the Macklemore Video Extra we ran into on our
way out SUPER jealous). They'll look amazing flanking our fireplace.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lismarie & I have some serious Thrift Store luck when we're together. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
To
follow up that shopping high we stopped by the pawn shop where Colby
& I found my beloved wedding ring. (I love my wedding ring.
It's the most perfect ring in the world.) Lismarie was specifically
looking for turquoise jewelry, but alas, we didn't have $400 to spend on
a cuff bracelet. But she DID find a new wedding ring for herself!!!
FOR $200!!!! We're now wedding ring twins!!! Of course they're not
the same ring, but her's is really really lovely. She & Mike
had talked about replacing their wedding rings. Little did they know
they'd be able to do it for that cheap! Dude! HOORAY FOR RENO PAWN
SHOPS!!!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
And
then, like the day couldn't get any better, we drove up to Lake Tahoe.
It was heavenly. The kids climbed on the rocks and played on the
beach. And then we got T's Rotisserie, the best food in Tahoe. OMG
SIGH. Awesome.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiajwJfD9Sp_Mm9HyhZN0V9pHWxbI2LcP-XsKuNLg1ppHSlnAxBxGda8cfhxQzdbTFQVqGJY6pA5PTomTRgslrTNwWT-vbbgj8PMOGluycAG5BgpCM4Z7irGuMb5SCQTqlN0su4EgGumph/s1600/13-AllTogetherNow.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiajwJfD9Sp_Mm9HyhZN0V9pHWxbI2LcP-XsKuNLg1ppHSlnAxBxGda8cfhxQzdbTFQVqGJY6pA5PTomTRgslrTNwWT-vbbgj8PMOGluycAG5BgpCM4Z7irGuMb5SCQTqlN0su4EgGumph/s320/13-AllTogetherNow.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyzCYQtw-49qsvBQBIZG-cdErB9rO9-fkYsCU1RKcyMr0E_H83IhBnNsZkVZkGZw8rmkkXEzkeBNg_1lQIYljuyU6BrxIk88GBeM4rK_smUvfua0EULIqe6B_m6Yu8NKVvzQkz9Ve0fbT7/s1600/14-ThrowingSand.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyzCYQtw-49qsvBQBIZG-cdErB9rO9-fkYsCU1RKcyMr0E_H83IhBnNsZkVZkGZw8rmkkXEzkeBNg_1lQIYljuyU6BrxIk88GBeM4rK_smUvfua0EULIqe6B_m6Yu8NKVvzQkz9Ve0fbT7/s320/14-ThrowingSand.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
I
was so sad when they left on Wednesday morning. I almost cried, but I
pulled it together. Sniff. Then I got to go make lunch for 40
missionaries for a zone conference. With a super tired Gretchen in tow.
Hooray. (Note sarcasm). <br />
<br />
SO YOU SHOULD ALL COME VISIT. We'll make it worth your while. ;)Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-90176002115938601572013-03-03T09:38:00.001-08:002013-03-03T09:38:30.104-08:00Mostly Fantastic February<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkthpbOo7lL5RXVSzdLoBsUeFPuuof6pxMqkA5EmgGVRIRPJY6BlkN4S2bTIoTfj4Ftbf4ZCKh3YGZFmsXfeFl20L0-LmxNPkm4_98qP-2RWdKOvwmRyAxqwf7dNZ6tTroiItBzaiL7SGm/s1600/1-Veronica4Months.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkthpbOo7lL5RXVSzdLoBsUeFPuuof6pxMqkA5EmgGVRIRPJY6BlkN4S2bTIoTfj4Ftbf4ZCKh3YGZFmsXfeFl20L0-LmxNPkm4_98qP-2RWdKOvwmRyAxqwf7dNZ6tTroiItBzaiL7SGm/s1600/1-Veronica4Months.jpg" height="320" width="248" /></a></div>
We'll
start with something ridiculously cute. BABY VERONICA!?!?! Are you
KIDDING ME? I want to squish your and kiss your fat baby legs!!!! But I
also don't want to terrify you, so I should probably take it down a
notch... I'll settle for giving you rasperries on your fat baby tummy.
Swoon!!!<br />
<br />
<br />
Last month our dear (and not seen nearly
enough) friends asked if we wanted to join them at the mall to see N
get her ear's pierced. Awww yeah we do! Well, we did. Then we got to
Claire's. Claire's is THE accessory store. The girls were in HEAVEN.
No, seriously guys, there was "1 Direction" EVERYTHING. And fingerless
gloves. And Hello Kitty KISS keychains. For reals. The girls went so
nuts looking at eeeeevvvvverything in the store, they totally missed N's
piercing. But I watched. Afterwards, because N's mom is SUPER DUPER
NICE, she let the girls each pick out something ridiculous and awesome
from the store. Ella picked out these fabulous fingerless frog gloves
(on sale for ONE DOLLAR! Which makes them even cuter, right?)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB3XFwJNEsQyyDvZPcFSexFLrUpiEMpP-H96_wemueHFVRckN0HeG4zQsD_bO72pMvUHS6Wb_ESBRVJba8hh6gshAqt9zk15IcuNV3WfjRkZ2O2e2_kW7J0zVia6IJR9QPl_VuVQ356QcQ/s1600/3-TooCool.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB3XFwJNEsQyyDvZPcFSexFLrUpiEMpP-H96_wemueHFVRckN0HeG4zQsD_bO72pMvUHS6Wb_ESBRVJba8hh6gshAqt9zk15IcuNV3WfjRkZ2O2e2_kW7J0zVia6IJR9QPl_VuVQ356QcQ/s1600/3-TooCool.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
And
Gretchen, after about 30 minutes of debating and then about 5
if-you-don't-pick-something-RIGHT-NOW-AND-I-MEAN-IT-we-will-leave-with-NOTHING!!!!
threats, she settled on a set of fake nails. Which she promptly forgot
about. Until, strangely enough, literally 30 seconds ago when she
asked if she could wear them today (yes, after your bath).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe12DRAUJlC7LmaVcRhOwof6gIYbj9rXNuz8hjJlvR7PyFRbR2O3Ko_n3OmPbJu6Jes-xgzTXhE6oDcE9ga0K67Ym25XHD6BgDuM1IRnCj8gMbGe-skHSZJ-BbBbu88rGd1nXLY03a8Rg8/s1600/2-FriendDay.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe12DRAUJlC7LmaVcRhOwof6gIYbj9rXNuz8hjJlvR7PyFRbR2O3Ko_n3OmPbJu6Jes-xgzTXhE6oDcE9ga0K67Ym25XHD6BgDuM1IRnCj8gMbGe-skHSZJ-BbBbu88rGd1nXLY03a8Rg8/s1600/2-FriendDay.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Speaking
of baths, I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to do this in your jet
tubs. But dang, it's fun. We like our bubbles to be excessive. These
ones got about 18" over the top of the tub. We've got glass doors to
hold all the bubble goodness in. WOO HOO!!! <br />
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So
a few weeks later, Ella finally decided that she was ready to put
unnecessary holes in her ears. I called to make an appointment at <a href="http://www.blackholereno.com/" target="_blank">The Black Hole</a> piercing parlor. Because there was no "1 Direction" paraphernalia to distract her from what was going on.
And man, these people were professional. And they didn't mess around
with guns, oh no. Bless you child, they used gigantic curved needles.
(Excuse me while my stomach drops again just thinking of it). But they
were FAST and GOOD. It was over in less than 2 seconds! And they sent
us home with some lovely salts to make saline washes. Just microwave a
cup of sterile water till hot and stir in the salt. Then hold it on
your piercings for 10 minutes each. Twice a day. (Um, excuse me?
That'd be 40 minutes a day spent on piercing care because my child
cannot handle doing both ears at once. FOR SIX MONTHS. Don't tell the
nice people at The Black Hole, but I went to Sally's the next week & got her some cleaning solution.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4QJEzR4RmbzOh8Wq4m8Y2JgT3DefLsvTIGwALN1WhDGbk5xLfkSbnB9P4Gfk0SQgUwSJArb70q8OK7cIJvt4W4AUTyklcCLpFdse1lTQcx2v9ll1wjJbZ_zMRNdKlDNFQrJ3Z5l6oSfsc/s1600/5-PiercingBoutique.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4QJEzR4RmbzOh8Wq4m8Y2JgT3DefLsvTIGwALN1WhDGbk5xLfkSbnB9P4Gfk0SQgUwSJArb70q8OK7cIJvt4W4AUTyklcCLpFdse1lTQcx2v9ll1wjJbZ_zMRNdKlDNFQrJ3Z5l6oSfsc/s1600/5-PiercingBoutique.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Colby
& I had our 13th anniversary. We planned a last minute night away
at The Grand Sierra & Amber was nice enough to watch the girls for
us. THANK YOU AMBER. It was awesome for a number of reasons. We went
out to dinner. We went to the in-hotel movie theatre at 10pm! (Dude,
the movie didn't get out till after midnight! I know!) We had a
breakfast buffet! (For the record, I hate buffets. But this one was
very nice & I did it because I love Colby). But the BEST PART was
that for our annivarsary, Marilyn Manson came to give a concert!!!
Also, it was Chinese New Year!! Also, there was LINE DANCING!!! Did
you get all that? In one hotel there were Marilyn Manson fans, Chinese
New Year celebrants and Line Dancing. It pretty much made my year. I
don't know that we'll ever be able to top that awesomeness. Also, I
freaking love Reno.<br />
<br />
Ok, I'm going to make sure the girls
have cleaned up their morning crafts before we move on to our
mid-morning craft. Followed by our Sacrament Meeting crafts. Followed
by movie night. XOXO <br />
<br />Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-83152564761963562462013-01-21T14:49:00.003-08:002013-01-21T14:49:47.518-08:003rd Week in January (a series of boring blog titles)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
We're super proud of Miss Ella, she was on the honor roll again. We made it to the school just in time for the assembly on Friday. </div>
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EXTREME CLOSE UP SELF PORTRAIT by Gretchen.<br />
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Smart AND pretty! Nice, kiddo.<br />
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Baby Lucy came over for a bit on Saturday. We sure do over-excitedly love Baby Lucy. Can you see the underlying sense of panic in her eyes and struggle for freedom in her pose? BUT WE LOVE YOU SO SO SO SO MUCH!!!<br />
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PEEK A BOO!!!!!!<br />
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We just love all babies at our house. We got Baby Veronica's birth announcement this week. It is very very very beloved. The girls like to carry it around the house. And to take it up a notch, Gretchen decided to "be" baby Veronica yesterday. She rolled up in a baby blanket & put the announcement over her face & would say, "Hi. I'm Veronica."<br />
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Hannah tried it too (she wasn't as good at it as Gretchen was....)<br />
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BABIES!!!!<br />
(And old man at the grocery store told Ella that their hats matched. She wasn't sure what to think of that. I thought it was hilarious.)<br />
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Sometimes to keep Gretchen quiet during Sacrament meeting we do drawings. She likes to copy what I make. This is her as a grown up. Just in case you're wondering, she made the one on the bottom. But she put the green earrings on my depiction at the top...<br />
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And this is the cat "Panda" from the Humane Society that she wishes she could adopt. Though if he's orange, white, grey & black I'm not really sure why he's called "Panda".<br />
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We made it through a whole sacrament meeting without drawing any zombies! Though she did say she wanted to draw a Lizard. At least that's what I though she said. Actually she said she wanted to draw a WIZARD. But then it turned out she wanted a vampire. But no living dead. Just the undead. I think Gretchen is going to write horror novels when she grows up. Or maybe graphic novels with parental warnings on the front. But we love her no matter what. Even when she tells us she doesn't like us. Which only happens about 4x/week now, so....that progress... ;)Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-69989532353414994482013-01-13T20:28:00.002-08:002013-01-13T20:30:47.658-08:002nd Week of January<br />
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How's that for a boring blog post title? I know. It's because I've used up all of my creativity for the week. Gretchen & I have been making up stories on the walks home from preschool. I'm a super mean mom and force my kids to walk places. She really hates it. Maybe because it's 1.2 miles from our house. ( I just checked on google maps. Thanks internet! You always have the answers I need!) Every day when she realizes that we're walking home AGAIN, she'll sit on the frozen ground and refuse to move. So actually, I end up carrying her home for about half of it. (It's a really good workout.) It's fine. Since it's so cold, she's like a snuggly hot water bottle. But she's also a heavy hot water bottle. So I make her walk a block, then I carry her a block. And to keep her mind off the 1.2 mile walk, this week we made up stories. I will share....</div>
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Once upon a time, there was a girl named Gretchen. She loved playing with her toy cars. But sometimes the cars were naughty. One day, she took a break from playing to have a snack. While she was eating some pirate booty, the cars drove all around the room. When she came back, they were EVERYWHERE! She was very frustrated with them.<br />
"Naughty cars!" she said. "You stay where I put you!"<br />
The cars said, "Beep beep, HONK HONK! We go where we want!"<br />
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Gretchen said, "I'll show you!" and put them all in a box.<br />
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Gretchen went to watch a movie. When it was over she came back to her room and discovered the cars were EVERYWHERE AGAIN! They were all over the floor! All over the walls! One had even driven on the ceiling and got caught in the light! She said, "Naughty cars! You stay where I put you!"<br />
The cars said, "Beep beep, HONK HONK! We go where we want!"<br />
Gretchen said, "I'll show you!" and got the vacuum cleaner and vacuumed them all up.<br />
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Gretchen's friend came over for a playdate. They played in the backyard. They built a big fort.<br />
VROOOOOOOOOOOM<br />
"What's that noise?" asked her friend.<br />
VROOOOOOOOOOOM<br />
"I don't know!" said Gretchen, "We'd better check it out..."<br />
VROOOOOOOOOOOM<br />
Inside, the vacuum cleaner was driving all over the house! The cars had figured out how to drive the vacuum cleaner!<br />
"Oh my goodness!" Gretchen exclaimed.<br />
The cars said, "Beep beep, HONK HONK! We go where we want!"<br />
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Gretchen realized that sometimes, you can't make cars do what you want them too. So she said, "Ok cars, I won't try to tell you waht to do anymore." The cars said, "Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay! Beep beep, HONK HONK! We go where we want!"<br />
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(If only Gretchen could learn that lesson in real life. Sometimes you just have to let go of the illusion of control....)<br />
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We also made up a story about "Fastee Seeds", which are seeds that you plant and they grow trees so fast you can see them get taller (it took her a while to explain what Fastee was. She just kept saying, "Fastee, mom. Fastee seeds. They're Fastee." (Repeated about 50x with no other elaboration). But I don't remember all of that story except that the girl hung a swing 300 feet up in the air and could see the whole world.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">GIRL SCOUTS!!!! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?</td></tr>
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<span id="goog_1392565961"></span><span id="goog_1392565962"></span>Remember how I was complaining about how Girl Scouts is too awesome to quit? Yeah, this is what Ella did last Monday. She got to stand on the floor during the national anthem for the Reno Bighorns game. It was awesome. We all got free tickets. Actually, I think most everyone there had free tickets. They were trying to fill the stadium since it was going to be on national television. I don't' know why more people don't go to the basketball games, it was super fun. Yes, you heard me. I just said that watching the basketball game was SUPER FUN. No, hell has not frozen over. Even though it is 14°F outside.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">AND IN LADYBUG NEWS....</td></tr>
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I thought the radio station that we've been listening to 24/7 for the past weeks would enjoy hearing about Ella's Science Project so I sent them a facebook message. And then when I stumbled into the kitchen the next morning to make Ella's lunch, they were TOTALLY TALKING ABOUT IT ON THE RADIO!!! They said they were going to bring up her findings at their contract renewal. They're good for ladybugs! And then they played a Randy Newman ladybug song! And then I realized that Ella was downstairs watching TV and missed the whole thing! I quickly ran, yes RAN, down there to tell her & she said, "That is SO COOL! It's ok that I missed it, I'm just excited they talked about my ladybugs on the RADIO!"<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Gretchen & her friend did face painting with her new eye makeup kit. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">NO MORE PICTURES!!!! How quickly things turn.</td></tr>
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Gretchen was really upset with her nose this week. "Mom, my nose is making me crazy, the snot keeps sliding out of it." Cold and flu season is upon us. At least my kids haven't had any fever-induced hallucinations of Batman yet, unlike our beloved friend C (who hopefully is on the mend. Geesh.) (Gretechen was jealous of the hallucination. She wants to know why she hasn't had that happen to HER. Because sometimes life isn't fair, sweetie. That's why.)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Gretchen prepares for her pre-church shower. Cleanliness is next to good.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Before I finished taking down all the Christmas decorations, I thought I'd take a picture of my favorite corner. I was pretty proud of how the living room turned out.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">ALL MY DECORATING SECRETS ARE NOW REVEALED!!!!!!! </td></tr>
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Ok, see you guys later! I'm going to go watch some zombies try to eat people now.<br />
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xoxoxo</div>
Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-63709791970923645182013-01-06T12:31:00.001-08:002013-01-06T12:31:26.904-08:00Um, Hey!<br />
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Hey Guys!</div>
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Check this out, I'm FINALLY POSTING after a 6+ month hiatus! I could try to fill you in on all the things we've been doing, but that thought just totally overwhelms me, so instead here's a quick flash-back...</div>
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The Girl Scouts marched in the Veteran's Parade. It was on Sunday, so we came to help set up, deliver the banner we'd made & then had to run off to church. But look how fun! Go Reno! </div>
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I tell you what, Girl Scouts is awesome. Every time I think, "We've really got to cut some stuff out, Girl Scouts has to go," then something like this pops up. Or we go to the Veteran's Hospital and deliver hand made notes and ornaments that say, "We love you! Feel better soon!" in sweet little 7 year old handwriting. Or one of the moms tells me, "M just loves you. She said you have the nicest voice and she just loves coming to Girl Scouts." Obviously M has never heard me yell at my children. </div>
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They're making it really hard to quit.<br />
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In the beginning of December, Ella had her Junior Lego League competition. The theme was "Senior Helpers", so they had to think of lego inventions that could improve a senior citizen's life. The other teams came up with some great ideas, but Ella's team was my favorite. Possibly because she's my kid. But whatever. The other teams had a super awesome wheelchair that could go up stairs, and an "Unlonely Park" to help facilitate socialization. Ella's team had a "Memory Machine" to help fight the symptoms of dementia. A little watch-like computer they could wear on their wrist. It played music from the senior's youth (music is supposed to help dementia patient's memory and moods), reminded them when to take their medication, had a tv sensor and turned the tv off if they'd had it on for too long, had a gps with walking maps to help them get exercise and find their way home again, and made a shopping list with recipes to help them remember to make healthy meals. Of course the prototype was, you know, legos, so it didn't ACTUALLY do all that. But it sure looked cool. They hooked the watch-thing up to gears in a mocked-up-lego head. Super fun. And their club advisor was EXCELLENT. She really helped them understand the challenges of being a senior. They had a Senior Advisor, but she unfortunately broke her shoulder at her Red Hat Luncheon and wasn't able to attend. We were so sad for her!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Ella's team in front of their display</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Admiring their medals</td></tr>
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Then it was Christmas. Yeah, I didn't get any pictures of that. By the time it rolled around I was SO EXHAUSTED, I was just ready to get through it. Way to celebrate the reason for the season, right? Good thing we didn't have to leave our house or else I might have died.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; text-align: center;">Luckily Auntie Adrianne is better at documenting the cuteness than I am. OMG BABY VERONICA, COULD YOU BE ANY CUTER?</td></tr>
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Our dear friends came to town to visit their family. We were lucky enough to squeeze in some playdates. And a massage and lunch and shopping for the moms. THANK YOU DAN!!!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Of this picture, Gretchen says: CUUUUUUUUTE! She's walking in the snow! Her head is so close! HannahBananah (repeated very inensely about 20 more times) HANNAHBUH-NANNA! Mommy, how old is Hannah, 7? Oh my gosh, she's not a Grandma! 7 years olds are kids. (giggle) (pokes Hannah) (giggle) (continues for next 5 minutes).<br /><br />Our poor dog.<br /><br />Sigh.</td></tr>
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Ella has been working on her Science Fair project. It's on how music affects the development of ladybugs. And yes, she came up with it mostly on her own. It's a fun project except for the fact that we've had the radio on 24/7 for the past 2.5 weeks and it's slowly driving me mad. On the plus side, I'm now TOTALLY CAUGHT UP on all the super fun pop music that's out there (note sarcasm. Seriously, how is WE ARE NEVER EVER EVER GETTING BACK TOGETHER on the radio? Seriously. Also, HOW COME IT KEEPS GETTING STUCK IN MY HEAD AND NOW I SING IT WHEN IT COMES ON!!! $#@*&# Taylor Swift! OF COURSE he listens to indy records much cooler than yours!!! Also, your friends don't want to talk on the freakin phone to you about it. Seriously.)<br />
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Awesome tunes aside, the experiment is actually turning out. The ones in front of the radio are about 4 days developmentally ahead of the "control" ladybug larvae. I'm worried it might be a temp difference or light difference. We have to do the experiment twice to prove the results. That means we get to have the radio on for ANOTHER MONTH! Woo hoo! Feel free to quiz me on all the crappy music I'll have memorized. <br />
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Hey! You guys are invited to Gretchen's 5th Birthday! Except not since it already happened. You're invited in spirit. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Number of arguments we had while Gretchen Art-Directed this photo: 3,094. <br />She wanted to be wearing a "strapless dress". Um, no.<br />She wanted an anime face. Um, no.<br />She wanted a different crown. Fine.<br />She wanted a sunset with stars in the background. Fine.<br />She wanted wings. Fine.<br />90 minutes and 30 grey hairs later, DONE.</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRXqieWwV1XTIjmF0g3crGx-HSIYFAVKUYKfHXsuBEAJHhZ6-AmCYUvgGKDhhW-1Ns25Fs8MetnStVojD_vxsgHsSAYsPCJJQ-eBI3u0SCDgVO8pfJKXyLI-lfqlRcCVwakAVB1I8LEBH3/s1600/11-PreTicketBlaster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRXqieWwV1XTIjmF0g3crGx-HSIYFAVKUYKfHXsuBEAJHhZ6-AmCYUvgGKDhhW-1Ns25Fs8MetnStVojD_vxsgHsSAYsPCJJQ-eBI3u0SCDgVO8pfJKXyLI-lfqlRcCVwakAVB1I8LEBH3/s320/11-PreTicketBlaster.jpg" width="234" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Thank you Targer for her amazing Party Outfit. Seriously, how could I NOT buy this gettup?<br />She waits patiently in front of the unfortunately named "Ticket BLASTER".</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Getting blasted by tickets. She was SUPER in to this.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">WE LOVE PARTIES!!!!!</td></tr>
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Instead of gifts, we asked for a $5 donation. Half of our collection she donated to the Humane Society, half to her American Doll clothes fund. <br />
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Gretchen is super-duper in to cats. Aren't these pics just the sweetest things EVER? It totally makes up for all the grey hair...<br />
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<br />
All right, I'd better get dressed now. And possibly eat some lunch. Late church is good for blogging, but not good for getting me out of the house. <br />
xoxo<br />
Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-3610403431720456622012-09-09T10:12:00.001-07:002012-09-11T22:02:30.684-07:00The Short Sad Life of Sparklenose Stott<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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First we're going to start out with a story, then we'll share some pictures, m'kay?<br />
<br />
Despite
my anti-social tendencies of late, I have made a lovely new friend in
our new ward at church. We decided to do a "Kid Swap" once a week. The
first two weeks have been going great, even though Ezzie has a
horrified fascination with Hannah The Bulldog. (He wants to be right
next to her, but at the same time is completely terrified of her).
We're working on our dog issues. But that's not the point. The point
is, that Gretchen went with them to the park. While she was there, they
found about 3 billion frogs! But she only brought the best one home.
She named her Sparklenose. "She's a STOTT!"<br />
<br />
Before we go any further, I would like to just put it out there. I am an idiot. Everyone got that? Ok.<br />
<br />
The
mom had tried to call & warn me that Sparklenose Stott was coming
home, but living in a dead zone sometimes makes cell phones extra
exciting and random. So I didn't get the message. But it's ok, I was
delighted to meet Sparklenose. This is what Gretchen told me about her:<br />
-Sparklenose is a Girl Teenager<br />
-She found her in the grass<br />
-Sparklenose really loves her<br />
-When you pull out her leg, it's cool. (Please don't do that anymore honey!!!!)<br />
<br />
We
looked online & found out about frogs. They do not make good
pets. They need to live in the wild. Please don't hold them to much,
or they will die. If they stay at your house, they will die. No,
seriously, they will die. So we decided we'd get some crickets of meal
worms from the pet store, keep her for a few days & then release her
back to her family.<br />
<br />
I scrubbed out a jar and put some
water conditioner and some big rocks for Sparklenose to sit on. She
revived a bit once she was in the water. We packed her and Hannah into
the car to pick up Ella from school and then run to the pet store.
Gretchen wanted to carry Sparklenose to show Ella. I held Hannah's
leash. Hannah was wearing her new hat. Gretchen was carrying her new
pet frog. We were oh-so-cute.<br />
<br />
Until Gretchen dropped the jar.<br />
<br />
And it completely broke.<br />
<br />
On the sidewalk.<br />
<br />
In front of Ella's school.<br />
<br />
As school got out and dozens of kids were walking by.<br />
<br />
The
frog was laying on her teenage girl back amidst broken glass, large
rocks, and a puddle of water looking as dead as you'd expect her to be.
Gretchen found her, picked her up and said, "Mom! She's moving!" It
was a miracle.<br />
<br />
So of course Gretchen immediately dropped her. On the concrete sidewalk.<br />
<br />
Luckily
my friend Christina walked up and said, "Um....can I...help you with
something here?" (Motions to the hot mess she sees in front of her...)<br />
<br />
She
held Hannah's leash while I gathered up the glass pieces. (Who gives a
glass jar full of water and rocks to a four year old to carry? Yeah,
that was me...) Luckily it didn't SHATTER, just sort of broke into 7
large pieces. I piled them up and ran them to the dumpster, tucked them
into a cardboard box so no one would go blind from flying glass when
the dumpster got emptied, and grabbed Ella on my way back to The Scene.
<br />
<br />
As you might expect, Sparklenose didn't make it. There will be an official memorial, details to follow.<br />
<br />
The moral of the story is: LEAVE THE FROGS AT THE PARK. And don't give four year olds glass jars filled with water and rocks. <br />
<br />
The End. <br />
<br />
<br />
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<br />
Does anyone one want some itty bitty baby plumbs? They're oh-so-cute. And we've got oh-so-many...<br />
<br />
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The
girls grew so much this summer, we had to get new school shoes AGAIN! I
swear, we do this every 3 months! Gretchen picked out the most
horrible white velcro tennis shoes. They were the only ones in her size
that light up. My friend Jaime saw her wearing them & asked if she
was going to the Early Bird Special at Red Lobster with the Senior
Bus. They look almost cute in the photo below. The photo LIES. When
she picked them out, I said, "Colby, can we really let her get these?
They're so U-G-L-Y!!!!"<br />
<br />
Gretchen heard me & asked so sweetly, "Mom, did you just spell 'PRETTY'?"<br />
<br />
That made me laugh so hard, I had to buy them.<br />
<br />
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<br />
Awkward
Segue: Another reason Reno is amazing is the Reno Hot Air Balloon
Races!!!! Ella's class had a field trip to the Balloons on Friday. We
woke up at the crack of dawn to watch all the balloons fill up and take
off from the field. It was MAGICAL! Seriously, so so so cool!<br />
<br />
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<br />
All
the kids in her class (who weren't too scared) went up in a balloon.
Ella held on super tight to Gretchen so she wouldn't fall out. Awwww,
good big sister! <br />
<br />
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<br />
The
class tables all made their own tissue paper balloons! Volunteers
helped them fill them up with hot air so that they could fly.<br />
<br />
Anticipation....<br />
<br />
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<br />
Success!!!! <br />
<br />
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<br />
THERE IT GOES!!!! It was amazing, it went so high! Good job, little engineers!<br />
<br />
Speaking
of Engineers, Ella tried out for the Jr. Lego Robotics League at school
and MADE IT!!!! This is amazing for many reasons, one of them being
that:<br />
-She doesn't actually, you know, PLAY with legos...<br />
-She decided the night before she wanted to try out for the club<br />
-There were about 40 kids who tried out, and only 20 made it.<br />
<br />
We're proud of her nonetheless & now know what to get her for Christmas. <br />
<br />
And,
finally, Gretchen had her first day of Dance Class this week. It's
nice that we had the summer off, because now we REALLY appreciate it
again. It's so freakin' cute! We went out for muffins afterwards.
And, you know, to do some sidewalk dancing. <br />
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<br />
Now
I'm going to finish my apple-pie Second Breakfast and get ready for
church. (Anyone want to help me set out the Super Saturday display?
Sigh....)<br />
<br />
xoAprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-71466088621318365642012-09-09T09:36:00.001-07:002012-09-09T10:14:54.550-07:00And So It Begins....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyeG5mlVBykuVB7IDgDHmqD9IGrX7te8ppth4WJ4iq9lqu36Epq-BQrIGEbuNg2YHPUpYmHc4b2Lo5dAzyq1ro_mVerl1Xio4__4CxCdMbinrbgzbgw_MJEQ6e_p8XcrcUav2zxMFfwbk/s1600/20-FirstDayOfSchool.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyeG5mlVBykuVB7IDgDHmqD9IGrX7te8ppth4WJ4iq9lqu36Epq-BQrIGEbuNg2YHPUpYmHc4b2Lo5dAzyq1ro_mVerl1Xio4__4CxCdMbinrbgzbgw_MJEQ6e_p8XcrcUav2zxMFfwbk/s320/20-FirstDayOfSchool.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pizza Picnic after the FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!!!!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The fact that summer is over is so bittersweet. I honestly don't think we could have crammed anything else into our summer (well, at least not without mommy going crazy and ending up in the closet crying hysterically). We had a GOOD SUMMER. I know I keep saying this, but we had just ONE MORE TRIP to Tahoe before it got too cold (though I may try & go next Saturday too. We'll see....)<br />
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This little boy you see pictured above is Gretchen's New True Love. She already talking marriage. He's kind of a hot item in the 4-6 year old crowd and it sounds like she's got some competition. It's ok though, her back-up suitor is ready, waiting in the wings. (Back-Up-Suitor is desperately in love with her. The other day he cried before church because he was afraid Gretchen wouldn't like his outfit. That is a lot of power to give to my temperamental little child. I'm hoping he won't get his heart broken. Poor kid. )<br />
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We ended the afternoon at Red Robin. Or, as it's also know, Red Robin Hood. Endless fries and Fun were had by all. Also, just in case you were planning going to a restaurant after going to the beach, make sure you really REALLY have clothes for everyone. You can't go in your swim suit to a restaurant. You know that "No Shoes, No Shirt, No Service" thing? Because our car is a depository for All Things Random, we just happened to be able to pull together THREE little girl outfits before we walked in. A small miracle. But since I just cleaned out the car, that won't be happening again any time soon (I just drove for the first field trip of 3rd grade & cleaned it out before that so people wouldn't see the level of filth we live in. It looked like a circus had been back there. Gretchen had spilled a cup of peanut shells over the layers of junk. Shoes. Books. Dried up food. Literally. A circus. A nasty, dirty circus. NO MORE EATING IN MY CAR. Also, KIDS ARE DISGUSTING!) Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813265142300318548.post-1629570165918354322012-08-19T09:40:00.000-07:002012-08-19T09:40:35.756-07:00Wrap Up<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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WE LOVE SUMMER.<br />
<br />
No, seriously.<br />
<br />
But
sad for us, it's over. Over and done. Ella started 3rd grade this
week. And though we are excited about the new school year, summer is
still over. <br />
<br />
<br />
But at least we know that we tried to make the most of
it. With visits to the hammock, trips south of town to see Baby
Lucy.... <br />
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A weekend with Grandma & Grandpa, and almost as exciting, their city's splash park... <br />
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And
bike wipeouts. Then taking pictures of the aftermath. (I already told
him, but I'm telling y'all now too. Let it be know that if Colby dies
in a bike accident, I will exact my revenge (revenge for leaving me a
widow with two small children) by having him cremated, and the ashes
scattered in the Costco parking lot. Or somewhere equally horrifying.)
(Also, let it be known that being cremated is what I WANT. Though
Colby disagrees. So if I die first, you can help get that taken care
of, m'kay? And I don't really care where I'm sprinkled, but would
prefer it NOT be the Costco parking lot.) <br />
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Day
Camping. It's the best. It's where you glom onto your friends camping
weekend, but don't have to, you know, actually camp. BUT YOU STILL GET
SMORES. I know. <br />
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Camping
Drama. Gretchen was upset that Julia was sitting on the "dwarf's
seat". Then she, "Didn't like that you take a picture, mommy!" Then
she, "...didn't like anyone in the WHOLE WORLD." <br />
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But she got over it. <br />
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Ella didn't want to pose for any pictures. Or let me sneak any. <br />
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Last Official Summer Trip to Lake Tahoe with Ella. All the kids piled on the paddle board. <br />
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When
they're having fun, they're so sweet. When they're not, J tells
Gretchen, "You're breaking my heart, Gretchen! This was supposed to be a
fun day. But now it's a SAD day. You broke my heart." And Gretchen
responds to that with her infamous, "I DON'T LIKE ANYBODY!!! IN THE
WHOLE WORLD! NOT EVEN YOU!" <br />
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I know, strong words from a little girl in braids. We figure she's just preparing us for puberty. <br />
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So how is your summer wrapping up?Aprylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03615088624995560587noreply@blogger.com1