On the Run

First Day of Fall

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 03:21:00 +0000

At this point, I think we've all come to understand why I only committed to the S.O.B.

Once school and Bible study and soccer and football and run club and math olympiad and college football and pumpkin eating-season begin, I'm toast.

Plus, people around here want laundered clothes and food at regular intervals.

And sadly, blogging is near the bottom of the priority list...unless I get way behind on cleaning, in which case I'll do anything to avoid scrubbing the bathroom floor.

These pictures I finally uploaded are from our Labor Day hike up Devil's Head.

It was the perfect day, our backpacks were ridiculously loaded with snacks, and the kids didn't even complain once the entire hike. Miraculous.

A similar-aged kid whined and groaned the whole way up the trail about how long and painful and boring it was. It helped Jackson and Lilly tremendously to see how unbecoming the complaining appeared on another child.

{We've extended that favor to MANY other families, MANY other times, so it felt like sweet payback.}

Lilly shimmied up this rock with no plan to get down.

Her only tactic was to have me catch her or free fall onto super sharp rocks. It was one of those teachable moments when the Love & Logic people probably would've advocated a natural consequence.

But in plain sight of other hovering/judging parents, I decided to play it safe and keep her alive.

At the top of Devil's Head, there are 142 stairs that lead to a watch tower. In the olden days, the fire watchman would stand up there and look out for forest fires. If he saw the trees ablaze, he'd then race down the stairs, 3 miles down the mountain to the middle of nowhere, and alert the bison that fire was imminent.

{this is about halfway up}

I couldn't exactly figure out how this was efficient, but J had fun climbing the stairs a few times to check things out.

The four of us had an amazing day, as evidenced by the kids falling asleep in the car on the way home. Whoo hoo for awesomeness!

****************************************************************************************************

So, being that it is no longer summer, I'm not sure if this is good-bye or if I'll blog again.

It's so much fun to chronicle our insignificant family happenings...and even though they're rarely interesting or spectacular, they're the special collection of little moments that make up a lifetime.

Another distraction is a new job I began recently...one that feels a lot more like a hobby, involves writing and trends, and has me working with an amazingly talented team of people. They haven't figured out that I have no idea what I'm doing, so I'm going to ride this wave while it lasts:)

More about that another time...

But for now, I'm returning to my favorite mantra:

They're probably the most freeing words I say every day. When overwhelming feelings creep in, I realize I forgot that I wasn't created to be everything to everyone.

God gives me just enough grace for each moment, each decision, each child, each person, each need that comes across my path each day.

And while I firmly believe we can't have it all, I know I have enough.

So tomorrow we are on the run again...but filled with "enough" my heart is carried through it all.

Rif Ram Bah Zoo Lickety Lickety Woo Woo

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 02:23:00 +0000

If that reads like nonsense to you, then you probably didn't go to TCU.

I don't think the ol' chant/cheer is still in good favor because I didn't hear it once at the game this weekend and the university probably realized there was a little something in the sauce the night it was penned.

We're coming off one of the most fun footy-footy-football {name that movie} weekends of ALL TIMES. And that is saying something because I've enjoyed a lot of amazing football.

One element that added to the wonderfulness was having our fellow purple-blooded cousin, Rylie, here with us. She and her dad are professional Horned Frog fans, so her extensive player knowledge helped us a ton.

Mark and Rylie flew in from Dallas to cheer on the Frogs in Colorado Springs at the TCU vs. Air Force showdown.

But I'm getting ahead of myself...every good game starts with an even better tailgate. Friday night unofficially kicked off our festivities while we canvassed Target in search of the perfect tailgate accessories and food.

We debated...

cute little grill or larger more functional grill {cute! i won!}

sliders or full-size burgers {sliders}

Doritos or Cracked Pepper Kettle Chips or Salsa Sun Chips or Black Bean Roasted Garlic Tortilla Chips or Cheetos {ALL}

And of course, we grabbed root beer for the sub-21 crowd.

The girls mostly liked hanging out the windows yelling "Go TCU!" to everyone who walked by.

I don't know if it's a sign of the times, but none of us had ever grilled with charcoal before. Or at least not in recent memory.

But the Big Man with the Little Grill made it happen.

The kids chugged root beer like it was super water {Parks & Rec fans??}. That was in-between football tosses, befriending fellow Frogs, and "hikes" in the "woods."

{Chillaxin'}

The friendly tailgaters next door even offered to share their posh food after they saw our leetle bitty grill and felt compassion for us. A full-on Asian Fusion buffet, complete with dipping sauces and a gorgeous Williams-Sonoma tablecloth awaited us.

One stray bean bag flew their way during Corn Hole, and suddenly we were devouring their skewered grilled scallops and setting up a love connection in Oregon for a very eligible bachelor friend of ours.

Isn't that the joy of the tailgate? The food, the camaraderie, the match-making?

After downing a couple dozen sliders and a bag of chips {each}, we made our way into the game.

This was an official TCU "travel game," so the stands were packed with Texans! YES! And our cheering definitely out team-spirited the Air Force.

In their defense, the fighter jet flyover was pretty cool. The Horned Frogs left their F-16s at home this one time.

Of course, by the third quarter {Lilly kept calling them "innings"}, the Frog Faithful were getting a little tired.

But Rylie's Horned Frog spirit just cannot be put down. Even by exhaustion.

{would you be so kind as to notice the lady in front of us who was shielding the sun with her program? following an incredible catch, the girls got a little wild with the pom-poms and she shot us a death glare like they were PERMANENTLY displacing her hair. and then she rests a magazine up there like it won't mold her sweaty hair to her head in the shape of a tent.

just sayin'.}

After the game, Tank Carder came over and high-fived his biggest fans.

And then I asked possibly the worst candidate in the stadium to take our photo with my phone. I should've denied his cheerful volunteerism when he said "so how do you work this thing?" but I didn't want to insult his lack of tech-savviness, so assured him he would be fine.

And other than not getting Lilly in the picture, he was awesome!

Indescribable

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 04:32:00 +0000

I think everyone will be glad to know that I have been talked down from the meal-planning related cliffs of insanity. My sister-in-law was laughing because we had this exact conversation exactly one month ago and I researched a bunch of websites that vow to help out with dinner/grocery shopping issues and emailed her some suggestions.

The difference is that she actually reads the websites and takes their advice. Her family is well-fed and happy.

Mine are under-nourished, but forgiving. {Chocolate chip cookies will get you that, at least.}

A sweet friend really helped me find my cooking mojo again...knowing that I work on inspiration, not organization or planning. {This would explain a lot of decisions in my home, like the revolving door of decor on the main level and the pit of shame in the basement.}

Anyway, she suggested I watch some cooking shows where they make amazing food, and pretty soon I'd be wanting to join their ranks.

Well, she was right.

I didn't even have to watch the shows. I just had to think about them and click around on the Food Network website and...HEALED!

Tonight, one of our primary food groups of summer was re-visited: The Burger and It's Many Wonderful Variations. All it took was a little caramelized onions and jalapenos, swiss cheese and spicy barbecue sauce before I was shunning the pizza/pot roast combo forever.

In the name of accountability, here's our menu for this week:
M-burgers {check, glorious check.}
T-chicken & mozzarella ravioli
W-spicy chicken & sausage jambalaya
Th-chicken cordon bleu
F-Hot Dog Quesadilla Wrap {OH, I KID}

********************************************

We did have a particularly awesome weekend...and yes, it involved food.

After living in Colorado for NINE entire years {approximately 7.5 longer than we ever imagined}, we've grown tired of being the shame of the entire state.

This is amazing, beautiful country, and we rarely leave our suburban campsite that could double as suburbia anywhere.

Brad and I came to the terrible reality that we spent more time in the mountains--as vacationers and skiiers--before we lived here.

On a clear day, you can see Pikes Peak from our house, and we decided this would be the weekend we summited the mountain.

If you're thinking we hiked, than you've never visited Pikes Peak. But if you saw the photo above and immediately knew Lilly devoured a donut with awesome puffing capability due to the altitude, then you are a veteran.

I'm a little hesitant to post so many "scenic" pictures, because I'm picturing an old blue floral velvety picture album at a nursing home opening up, while the reader gets a look of panic and dread while wondering how long MeMaw is going to bore her with an unending narrative of Pikes Peak{!} and eleventy million pictures that don't even contain people.

But we're not at a nursing home and you can click away RIGHT NOW, so be my guest:)

But in defense of a lengthy photo montage, our little excursion was really cool.

Just ask Lilly.

The beauty of the uphill drive, the extra-tall mountains, the glimpses of thousands of miles of land were so gasp-worthy, that I could totally see how Katherine Lee Bates could write "America The Beautiful" while hanging out up there.

I'm not even a songwriter, and I wanted to write something or sing something or just run around freaking out because it was so beyond words.

{I am wondering a little about the "fruited plain." Didn't see it. Even the "amber waves" seemed more like dead grass and trees, but the beauty of poetic license is that she could've imagined it to be grain, but I saw on the drive up the mountain that it was clearly NOT.}

Instead of getting patriotic, we cranked up the David Crowder and had our own little worship time in the car.

And we talked a lot about the geologic chicken or the egg-- "mountain or the rocks." Did God create mountains and then they crumbled some and then these huge rocks were created? Or did he just create rocks as sprinkles on top of the mountains?

Either way, it was great to see this beautiful state from a brand new perspective.

I tend to be a little indoorsy, and find no shortage of opportunity to praise God for a clearance item at Target or a just-reduced pair of jeans at Nordstrom Rack.

But it's humbling to thank Him for creating rocks that cry out His praise and to stand on mountains that were clearly carved by His voice. It brings a different joy to see the dimension of clouds a breath away and the awe on a diverse community of faces as they collectively revel in what no man could make. It reminds me that I am so small and He beyond what I can even conceive of as "big."

But since they don't have trampolines on top of the mountain, we had to come back down.

And if you haven't read Psalm 19 in awhile, you just might:)

Can We Talk?

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 03:36:00 +0000

I am having some serious meal planning/preparation issues. This is what my fridge looks like ~~once in awhile~~ with alarming regularity.

I asked the kids and NO, they didn't want to eat rotting meat, expired yogurt, and pickles for dinner.

Each week starts with grand ambitions and sometimes even a menu{!} that looks like this:

M-pulled pork tacos
T-chicken scallopini
W-calzones
Th-spicy tilapia
F-grilled balsamic bbq chicken

But our reality last week looked like:

M-take & bake pizza
T- sandwiches
W-pot roast (the fancy microwave kind from costco)
Th-leftover pizza and pot roast (on the same plate)
F-peanut butter chocolate chip waffles
Sat--suspect buffalo burgers from a New Age street vendor (lunch) and hot dogs (dinner)

We all love good food, but I am struggling to figure out when and how to a) buy food and b) prepare it.

And that is even after we added this bad boy to our family:

I'm so proud to have scored this awesome gas range at a home sale for $100. Whoo hoo! We already had a gas outlet, so Brad just had to drop it in and we were in business.

Actually, he had to power down the entire house and do some shady wiring and re-routing of electric currents, but it's working like a dream.

Even though it hasn't seen much dinner action, the gas range has scrambled enough eggs to make entire chicken coops nervous. I love my overly naive and supportive kids who tell me every morning, "These cheesy eggs cooked over a gas flame taste sooo much better!"

{Did you catch that? I do make eggs. All is not lost. The smoke signal of despair will be when I buy Pop-Tarts.}

I have even made some fantastic lunches, due to my favorite invention, the bento lunch box, at EasyLunchboxes.com.

I LOVE not digging for tupperware containers/lids or using a million Ziploc bags.

Before you think I'm all Martha-y with the lunches {because I'm assuming that you've blocked out that I served re-heated pizza and re-heated pot roast on the same plate last week}, this lunch organization is not an everyday thing.

{I should mention that when I served the sketchy pizza/roast duo, Brad was out of town and we didn't get home from practice until 7.}

{But I should also mention that when I'm out of town, Brad eats things like triple decker PB&J's and hot dogs in a tortilla with cheese...which he actually named "The Quesadilla Hot Dog Wrap."}

So what I'm humbly asking the precious blog-reading community is for you all to fix my problem. Even meal planning and grocery shopping require too much thought. I need something magical, like a Harry Potterish spell that could fix dinner every night. Expecto dinner delicioso!

Clearly, I can plan the menu, I just can't execute the menu.

People talk about things like crock-pots all the time, but I'm always worried about drying things out or serving a gloppy mess for dinner.

This is a weird problem because I love cooking, but it seems like if I haven't cooked dinner by 9 a.m., it's not happening. Also, groceries aren't spontaneously appearing at my house like they used to.

My conscious is slightly guilt-ridden, because I did manage to find time to bake muffins, chocolate peanut butter cookies, peanut butter brownies, chocolate chip cookies, and m&m brownies this week. Somehow I always manage to have those ingredients on hand??

So here's the deal, if anyone can help, I'll make you a cake the next time you need Polly Pocket floating in a blue jell-o pool while Chewy & the Storm Trooper battle it out.

And please don't mention anything about priorities.

Par-tay Part II: El Photo Booth

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 03:55:00 +0000

Oh boy. I'm panicking right now.

Just logged on to blogger and it all looks different. The old version beat me down on a good day and now the new version is all crazy and mixed up. Or maybe that's just me.

I'm now going to attempt to upload pictures, so hold your breath and hope that I return.

STILL HERE!

If you have an internet connection, you've probably noticed that photo booths are everywhere. Weddings, parties, boring afternoons.

Not wanting to miss out on a trend {or even the possibility of one}, I thought a bunch of 7, 8, and 9 year-olds would love nothing better than grabbing a bunch of props and hamming it up for the camera.

I was right:)

Jackson isn't so awesome at wacky. He's best at serious and endearing. But this was a nice try.

The best part about a photo booth is that it takes approximately two seconds to set up if you have an especially junky basement {check} to gather up all the props.

It's like we've been specially storing our costume rejects for the very moment when we knew we'd need both a Darth Vader mask AND an inner tube! Luckily for us, they were both in reach.

Right next to the Darth Vader mask, mini top-hat, and leis. It's not disorganized, it's "party ready."

This is where I should mention that the other key to great party pics and a fabulous photo booth is a wonderful friend who uses an actual camera instead of an iPhone.

And I'm blessed to have someone who has a super-fancy camera, KNOWS how to use it, and is amazingly generous with her time. {THANK YOU!!! big hugs!!}

Which is how she was able to shoot our Christmas card picture for this year:

HO HO HO!!!

And...Exhale

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 22:30:00 +0000

It's not with any pride that I admit Blogger has had me beat for a week. We battled over uploading pictures and it got so ugly that a dark side of my heart that I haven't seen for a long time almost longed for some scrapbook paper and a glue stick so I could create print out pictures, create a little page, mail it to Blogger, and force THEM to upload it to the blog.

{sigh}

But don't worry--I'm not missing the irony that the 8 month overdue birthday party also has some overdue picture reporting.

Common theme = ME :)

So, let's start with the part of the party that was most important to the kids...the decor.
In what can only be described as God's favor, red, aqua, and yellow were clearanced at nearly every party store. Whoo hoo! It was perfect for a boy/girl combo party.

Like most parents, I am a vocal hater of party favors, but I am a lover of party favor tags.

Backpack size Nerf guns for the boys.

Hula hoops for the girls. {I keep wanting to type 'hula hupes.'}

They are best used jump rope-style on the trampoline.

After we got back from the pool, some drinks were waiting...

The kids couldn't stop commenting on the cute signs everywhere and how it all coordinated!!!

One of my strongest gifts is copying things I see on the internet. Especially here. All of these signs were printables inspired by one of her featured summer parties.

On the menu: sliders, hot dogs, chips, and watermelon...all served in those adorable red fry baskets.

I'll never go back to paper plates again {until next week.} They are perfect for kids to navigate through the chow line.

And kids who have spent two hours at the pool are hungry with a capital starving.

All of the boys chose root beer...there is something very man-like about drinking from the bottle:)

It was awesome having Jackson & Lilly's party on the same day...one crazy day, but we are blessed to have lots of friends and neighbors who are like family to us, so it was more like a wild family dinner with intermittent trampoline action.

This face is soooo Jackson...

And that is my girl with the ketchup on her face.

And of course, we had the cake:

Before last week, I didn't even know it was possible to pour a blue jell-o pool in the middle of a perfectly good cake.

It was definitely a construction triumph, from the baking point of view. Jackson and Lilly always get wild ideas about what kind of cake would be perfect for their party, and I'm supposed to figure out how to execute.

Again, thank goodness for the internet.

Yes, that is Polly Pocket sunbathing away the day on an Airhead raft, while being pursued by a snake. Chewbacca and the Storm Trooper are paddling/blasting each other by the water slide.

And the blue jello? GROSSNESS. But they loved it:)

"Tomorrow" I'll post the rest of the pics...including our fun photo booth.

Thank you for not believing me and lowering your expectations:)

What Else Would We Be Doing in August...

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 02:57:00 +0000

...besides having a double birthday party for two people whose actual birthdays are in May and December?

It was pretty awesome to have a pool party, sprinklers on the tramp, and water balloon fights.

In the past, it's snowed for our camp-outs, the yellow brick road has blown away, and I beat myself up for throwing parties 7 weeks late.

Lilly is definitely closer to eight than 7. But whatever.

God blessed us with an amazingly sunny day:) I felt the love.

I'm sure you're curious about the colors.
Red, yellow, and aqua. It was perfect.

The birthday boy was perfect, too.

And so was the girl.

But these people are nuts.

More details tomorrow :)

Swallow Your Coffee Before Reading

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 03:14:00 +0000

So yesterday, I was vacuuming Jackson's room while the kids were at school, and stumbled across a little orange note scattered on the floor between a nerf gun and smelly t-shirt.

Before I share it, you need to know...

Lilly does NOT need personal space.

Or public space.

She likes to be touching, holding hands, snuggled up, scratching your arm, playing with your hair, close as a breath, in your space {which she actually thinks is hers.}

ALL THE TIME.

{I think they're 3 and 4 in this photo.}

She rode her scooter home from school today one-handed to free up the other one for some hand-holding with mom.

Lilly also loves her brother to pieces. Of course, that doesn't mean she treats him well all the time.

{As a total aside, just moments ago before bed, she was in a tearful fit..."It's like my brain turns off sometimes and then I say something horrible to Jackson and then it turns back on when it's all over. Why do I hurt Jackson with my words when I love him more than anyone in the world? I don't MEAN to, my brain just goes OFF."}

Oh sweet girl.

If Jackson should ever try something audacious, like stealing a moment to read, breathe, or think alone, Lilly can be immediately found in his presence.

{Disney World}

Begging him to play, trying to make him laugh, and using whatever persuasive wear-down tactics she can, Lilly will not let it rest until he angrily gives in.

The frustration in his voice explains that he's weighed the outcomes of joining her ploy and that playing whatever she wants is less painful than fending off her persistent interruptions.

Back to vacuuming his bedroom...I reached down to throw out an orange piece of paper, glanced at the handwriting, then vaguely recalled shouting up the stairs earlier that morning that Lilly should have "NO physical contact with Jackson whatsoever while he is innocently trying to read a book."

Lilly will annoy--through words, touching, or pen.

And Jackson's response perfectly captured his personality.

And then I laughed so hard I couldn't breathe.

I Only Hold Records for Idiocy

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 01:06:00 +0000

Friday was our third theme day of school colors/corny sayings. {As if having the Golden Retriever for your mascot isn't corny enough.}

But golden retrievers are faithful, loyal, friendly, enthusiastic, and fantastic readers--all perfect attributes for students.

I think we had to get RED-y to Learn!

Or something like that.

L & A rocked their Fourth of July wear--which is what you do when you go to school this early in August.

This included the before-school phone call to confirm outfit choice. Actually, it was a text. When did 2nd grade become jr. high?

Since we're not ready to surrender to summer, we celebrated the first 3 days of school with a sleepover.

They jumped on the tramp for hours, devoured grilled pizza, and even opted for a homemade ice cream sundae bar over a run for frozen yogurt.

And in one swift move, two nights of 8:30 bedtimes were crushed and exhaustion set in again.The girls cuddled up in bed and watched "Because of Winn-Dixie" {we carried the dog theme to extreme}.

Jackson & Zach watched "National Treasure," declaring it the coolest movie of their lives. Until next week.

Part of Saturday's unbelievable excitement included a drive-by of houses to check out the shutter situation.

Brad is determined to make the shutters, and I'm thinking that's not a great idea right now. He just finished up a summer-long flooring project, then cleared 37 power tools out of the garage so he can park in there for the first time in 2011.

And I actually had crown moulding next on the docket...NOT shutters. But we'll see.

So after those three days of black, gold, and red, today the kids could let loose with their own school wardrobe choices. Lilly grabbed exactly what she wore yesterday out of the hamper, which suddenly made me long for a dog shirt.

The kids were out the door at 9:05, leaving my day potentially filled with productivity and accomplishment.

That lasted until about 9:30 a.m.

Yes. Those are my keys. In the my car. With the doors locked. {AGAIN!!!!!} Attached to my water bottle, which will prove to be the worst part of the deal.

Arriving at the gym at 9:20, I slammed the door at 9:20:02 and realized my grave error.

Luckily, I was meeting an awesome friend, and she offered to give me a ride home so I could grab the other set of keys.

{Ironically, she is the same friend I saw two weeks ago while I was out running. I had gotten wrapped up in some music and found myself 7 miles into a run and not exactly near home. At a stoplight, I saw her car and I jumped in the front seat before she could refuse my sweaty self.}

In light of the previous rescue, I didn't want to make her drive me back to the gym. I needed to run anyway, so even though it was 95 degrees out, it sounded like a good idea to run 5 miles back to the gym incredibly thirsty, clutching a key, and starving.

My logic: wrong.

We had just finished barbell and I did it waterbottleless, so my mouth was already like dry-sponge. I was hungry, but didn't want to eat because eating before a run doesn't really go well for me.

5 mile run + exhausted muscles + heat + dehydration + sketchy stomach = "discomfort"

My arms dangled from my shoulder sockets like limp spaghetti and even my triceps were throbbing. {I know the tricep isn't one of the larger muscle groups involved in running, but that just shows my level of bodily distress.}

However, the REAL bodily distress came about halfway through when I started praying my entire digestive tract would be raptured.

I'll spare you any further details.

By the time I finally got home {at 1 p.m.}, my visions of productivity had been replaced with hunger hallucinations. I may have eaten cardboard at that point, but I do know it was delicious.

My thought process was a little blurry at this point, but I remembered I had a free Starbucks drink that expired today, so suddenly caffeinating myself seemed urgent.

Something about an iced coffee was surprisingly refreshing, but somehow my senses were still a little dull. Who knows where the time went, but I found myself racing against time and traffic to get home before school got out.

And Little Miss Sunshine got there at the exact same time.

And then I couldn't stop eating for the next 5 hours. And I'm STILL hungry.

Thursday

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 04:02:00 +0000

For all my tough talk about not shedding a tear, today was a little more emotional.

Even though time faithfully treks on each day, the beginning and ending of school years seem to punctuate life stages like nothing else.

School is just so defining...I still remember every elementary teacher in every grade. {High school is a little more foggy.}

In general, life rhythmically moves from one week to the next without significance, but today I could tangibly feel the pages turning. And while I'm excited for the next chapter, I really liked this chapter.

It is like the most wonderful story that you can't help but dread the end.

{I'm hopeful that explains why I cried THREE separate times in the latest Harry Potter movie.}

We had the most wonderful summer and I wasn't ready to wrap it up. Taking trips, staying up late, and having no scheduling conflicts except deciding which pool to visit were an amazing gift.

That said, I never want it to appear like we have this perfect little family that speaks calmly, lovingly, and rarely fights. Who eats healthy meals and all sit down around the table for dinner. Who tell enchanting bedtime stories and bathe daily and give generously and leave random surprises for each other.

Actually, we ARE some of those things, some of the time.

But we also have short tempers, issues with attitudes, eye-rolling, and razor-sharp tongues. Sometimes we do the bare minimum {poorly, at that}, and selfishness divides us. We drink too much soda, regret money spent, and have a basement that isn't fit for swamp vermin.

So I remember that it is a choice, {not denial} to see the small beauty in the midst of messes. I choose to cling to the hopefulness of trying but failing, instead of the repeated frustration that my effort was not enough. Again.

I LOVE having the kids at home for the summer.

And I LOVE when they go back to school.

I honestly don't prefer one over the other--they each have unique joys and challenges. But my contentment can't balance on whether or not the day suits my tastes. Contentment it is simply finding happiness matter what unfolds each day.

Isn't that what joy is? Contentment in anything...not waiting for the new/improved/better/finished this or that.

So anyway...

I'm working on that whole contentment thing...starting with being content that it will take a lifetime of growth.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

The wind tunnel of Parker has gifted us with some new to bi-fold shutters.

I think it's pretty common for shutters to break/bend in two while we're out to dinner.

But of course, it cracked me up that I couldn't get a picture of the damage without the rainbow in the background. Sometimes the Lord has to make the silver lining really obvious.

With Apologies to AC/DC

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 02:22:00 +0000

Look who I sent off to 4th and 2nd grade today...

{gasp of disbelief}

And for all of you AC/DC fans...YES, our theme was "Back in Black."

In the past we've had the privilege of wearing awesome t-shirts with the MIGHTY Golden Retriever mascot on the front.

{2009}

But due to some budget cuts, we got to wear our own non-canine black clothing.

{Whew}

J had some major nervousness last night, so we talked and cried through it. He couldn't articulate exactly what was bothering him {I knew it wasn't fear over long division and the four types of topic sentences...even though that's what he said.}

"Mom, that's why I said I'm OVERWHELMED. It's so much of everything and words can't describe it."

I couldn't really argue with that.

This morning, after some syrupy french toast, cheesy eggs, and strawberries on the red plate, he was feeling more confident.

Since we'd been gone all summer, J hadn't seen many friends. As they swarmed him and called out his name, his familiar, comfortable smile returned.

He bear-hugged all of his peeps, even though I could tell most of the boys would rather bump knucks. He is a lover. And I love that about him.

Lilly was calmer...mostly to play spoiler to Jackson's nerves. But that's ok...less drama for me:)

The first thing every friend noticed was her braces. And she handled it great.

Even though it's her least favorite thing about herself right now.

After I dropped them off...two wonderful things happened.

Firstly, I didn't cry this year. Not a tear. Not that it wasn't a happy/sad thing. It was.

My heart still hurt in a strange way. But strength doesn't come without strain, and the strain {yes, theirs and mine} is necessary.

Last year my tears flooded the neighborhood. FOR DAYS. By having both kids in school all day, I realized I was grieving a season of life that included kids who spent most of their time at home with me.

The shooting pain that knotted my heart only lasted a few weeks, and I was actually thankful to have the capacity to deeply feel the transition from a house of preschoolers to a home of school-aged kids.

It was a merciful reminder that I promised them to the Lord from the time they were born, and any feelings of control I have are just an illusion. In my heart of hearts, I really don't want them for me anyways. Because they are His first.

They're the best gifts I've ever been given, and I can't express thanks in any bigger way than to hold them with an open palm.

{Why is my throat is feeling tight?}

Secondly:

I TOTALLY forgot {until my dad called from the airport}, that he was coming to town today!

It was the best surprise, even though it was fully due to my faulty memory, not an actual *surprise.*

So when the kids burst out of school to see Papa standing there...awesomeness:)

And when we ate our way through the Grand Lux, culminating with a Deep Dark Chocolate Fudge Cake...I was reminded that if happiness had a flavor, it would be chocolate.

Now those babies that are so big and so small all at once are asleep.

*smile*

Car Tawk

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 01:50:00 +0000

So here's what my mint-condish rearview mirror looks like:

Not that bad considering the side of our garage regularly jumps out and attacks it as I pull in and out. The only downside is that you can't really see out of it unless it's a perfectly clear day and no one is behind you.

The defrost mechanism stopped working awhile back and the replacement cost is a year's wages.

So, no.

And here's what it looks like after you close the door:

I WOULD use duct tape to keep it on, but those dangling wires are doing a great job.

These are even those breakaway mirrors but I don't think Chevy anticipated the extensive amount of breaking away these bad boys were going to have to do.

And lastly, here's a little gem from the Colorado Emissions Testing place:

The kids and I just couldn't stop giggling.

And this is Just Day 1

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 03:00:00 +0000

In what turned out to be a genius move, I confirmed that I DO, in fact, want my kids to go back to school this week.

Sometimes, right before school begins obscenely early in August, I have thoughts of a longer summer, more late nights, ice cream runs {although my shorts are protesting}, and lazy days.

Then today, millions of children came over, played wildly, needed 75 band-aids, bled all over the house, caused me to tweezer splinters out of a few pairs of dirty feet, fought, name-called, cried, and became irate when after SEVEN HOURS of non-stop play, I broke up the party.

So, back to school on August 3rd?

YES.

But I'm going to live in my fantasy vacation world a little longer...so we're finally to one of my favorite parts of our trip: the beach!

I hope that a murky lake with an artificially sandy shore qualifies as a beach, because that's where awesomeness happens.

The past several years, we've gone to camp in Michigan with Brad's family...all the uncles, aunts, cousins, grandparents and those in various stages of dating come to have a wonderful weekend together.

It's so much fun to watch all of the kids play together, build sandcastles, water ski, play mini golf, kayak, zipline, and giggle.

The adults talk, talk, talk, lifeguard when necessary, and try to read books.

It's a place where a swim suits are the only attire required and showers don't even get you clean.

But that's ok, because it's fun:)

Didn't get nearly as many pictures as I wanted, but the sand/water elements make having the phone/camera at hand VERY risky. VERY.

Lilly is always one to be part of the castle-making effort. I love her navy and white swimsuit. Such a classic.
Navy and white always feels Kennedy-ish...like we're vacationing on the Cape in our compound.

I mean, doesn't this just SCREAM elegance and fashion?

Right.

Lilly and Allie are looking a little beach-ified, but sweet. Allie is our newest cousin and STINKING CUTE. There really aren't words. She is like a little peanut you can put in your pocket, but tough as nails.

Well played, Allie.
Oh, I forgot to mention the water gun fights.

And digging for buried treasure.

And paddleboats.

And sandcastles.
And COUSINS! Did you see them all? They rock. There is an amazing bond and so much love even though they don't see each other nearly enough.

Of course, the fave activity is anything related to the boat.

Lilly is pretty much the Evel Knievel of tubing.

She is too strong and too little to throw off the tube without causing serious harm.

Sadly, I didn't get some of her best tubing moments on camera. She and Jake took more of a sea cruise around the like that involved him clinging to the tube for dear life while protesting the "speed" of the boat, and Lilly standing up behind him experimenting with various gymnastics poses.

I was too busy laughing so hard I cried to get pictures.

We had no problem, however, throwing Brad and Jackson.

{Too bad the iphone doesn't have a telephoto lens. Maybe the 5.}

Dude, all that fun is tiring.

Yes, indeed.

Chi-town

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 01:18:00 +0000

My blogging mojo is nowhere to be found.

We've had a constant, awesome stream of friends and family staying out back in the lavish guest house {with private pool}, so there hasn't been much time to upload horrific pictures to the blog.

Until tonight.

But first, I should share that in my continuing pursuit for organizational excellence, I got my vehicle's emissions test AND renewed the vehicle registration today--the very last day of the grace period.

It seems like most citizens take care of things like this yearly, but I narrowly avoided a ticket in February for having expired license plate stickers.

In my defense, I had PAID for the stickers last July, but promptly lost them and didn't want to go back to get another set. Turns out, that might've been a good idea.

Luckily, I befriended the cop and came out ticket-free. {He pointed out that next time he might also ticket me for having a non-functional rearview mirror and texting at the stoplight.}

{Again, in my defense--our garage is really narrow and the mirror is holding together wonderfully considering it's been bumped at least 50 times, and I WASN'T texting at the stoplight. I was just reading the internet at a stoplight. In a car with expired stickers.}

Which leads me to Chicago.

{not really}

We had the best time with Brad's side of the family waaayyy back in early July.

The kids flew solo to see Grandma for a few days. From all descriptions, the flight was great and they had more fun than should be allowed.

Brad and I feel amazingly blessed to have parents with far more energy than us. Grandma Mac had more fun with the kids before 10 a.m. than I could hope to accomplish in an entire summer.

I crashed the par-tay on Wednesday and we went to see Peter Pan.

Holy smokes it was unbelievable! Peter Pan has always been one of my faves and this was the best production ever. We were up close and personal, which made it extra-cool.

My only complaint was that Captain Hook wasn't nearly as cute as I remembered.

Next up was the Sears Tower. I could call by it's new name, the Willis Tower, but no one, including myself, would know what I was talking about.

Last time we went, I was somewhere in the kid years, so it was fun to see it through adult eyes.

It is TALL. And tower-like.

How could Chicago NOT be your favorite city in the world?

I haven't been most places, but I'm sure it would still rank higher. And if not, I probably don't want to find out:)

The biggest change to the Sears Tower since my Debbie Gibson-loving days is the addition of The Ledge.

Didn't get any great pictures of them from the ground, but they're these *ledges* that hang out over the side of the building, 103 stories in the air.

Cue the theatrical drama.

J was doing his Michael Jordan impersonation 103 stories over a very busy street.

I'll never be asked to author a book on effective parenting, but Brad and I consider Jackson's love of Michael Jordan to be a child-rearing success.

It's the little things.

Lilly wanted to play dead. And I was far more concerned about how gross it was to have her face where thousands of people put their nasty shoes each day, than I was worrying about the glass suddenly breaking and her plummeting to her death.

It's the little things.

Thanks, Grandma, for a stellar day in the Windy City!! I didn't even mention the awesome sandwich shop we stopped at for lunch or the fact that even the airport smells delish.

If I don't get distracted by choosing new paint colors or attaching registration stickers to my car, I'll have some photos of family camp posted "soon."

Partied Out

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 23:24:00 +0000

Oh heavens.

I've hit the same rustic brick wall of blogging yet again.

The one in which we've had so much fun and been so many places and have so many pictures that the thought of blogging about them causes a brain power-down.

And then I think of the fun times I DIDN'T grab on my camera.

So instead of blogging, I painted my door for the third time this year.

I also sold our old plasma TV {which I am picturing right now at a pawn shop} and king mattress on Craigslist.

Actually, we listed the mattress for FREE to anyone who could come pick it up.

And they weren't even alarmed when it rolled rather burrito-like into the back of the car.

I may not be a smart man, Jenny, but I know that a taco-esque mattress given away for free has questionable future at best.

In the name of blog accountability, I'm just checking in to let you know I'll be back with all the vacay funnery.

Until then, here are a few pics from before we left. The kids had a great time at basketball camp. They both improved a ton and rocked the hoop on tournament day.

The {early} morning the kids left for Chicago, we kept running into this guy in the airport.

I finally had to take a picture the 7th time we ran into him, because Brad and I kept giggling at his SWIM TRUNKS.

6 a.m. on a Sunday. With a fanny pack.

I wanted so badly to ask him what un-missable swimming opportunity lay on the horizon at his destination. That is preparedness, people.

I'm Dreaming of a Warm Summer...

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 03:54:00 +0000

just like the ones I used to know...

where the sweat glistens,
and children listen
to hear something other than the sound of rain and tornado sirens.

Colorado is a lovely, lovely place.
But I had to use the seat warmers in the Burb tonight.

That is just wrong.

Haven't even turned on our air-conditioning yet.

While I appreciate the savings, that is just WRONG.

So that's why I'm looking at pictures of our swim-a-thon in Texas. We did try to swim here one day, but they closed the entire pool deck when lightning was spotted in Wyoming.

Yesterday, we shuffled Jackson and Lilly onto a plane ALL BY THEMSELVES to go see Grandma and Grandpa in Chicago. Whoo hoo!

They are having a blast. I'm so thankful for awesome in-laws who love to have fun and party non-stop.

That is Jackson perfecting his can-opener flip. Super handy for Olympic diving competitions.

And I would say Lilly's flip gets an A+ on technical merit.

Brad and I have been doing some pretty amazing things while the kids are gone...including, but not limited to: mattress shopping, pillow shopping, Harry Potter marathon, and eating popcorn for dinner.

My dream was so sit on the patio at my favorite Mexican restaurante last night, but the monsoon prevented it.

Last January, while Brad was in Chile, it was way below zero and the ol' heater froze. No heat.

In fact, that I had to climb up into the attic, with electrical tape leftover from the Wizard of Oz birthday party and use a hair dryer to get our furnace working again. I made an emergency call to the HVAC guy and bought some heat tape that still required me to MacGuyver the furnace into working again.

It was not a great moment. But somewhere in that dark, cold, and scary attic, I felt the promise of sunny days and HEAT just four months around the corner.

Instead, I have three sweatshirts in my car and perma-goosebumps.

WHAT IS GOING ON?!

Baseball

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 01:02:00 +0000

4th of July eve, we all headed to the Texas Rangers game. It's become an annual tradition because we all love baseball and were on a quest to find out exactly what temperature kills healthy humans.

It was really convenient to celebrate America and the Rangers since they wear the same colors. Score! Brandon-boy had to sit this one out. As charming and delightful as 2 year-olds are at baseball games, we thought his first experience might go better for all when he's 5:)

There is this awesome family area out behind center field where the kids can pitch, run the bases, take batting practice, etc. I, however, spent as much time as possible meeting new friends over by the misters.

No idea what the game time temp was, and I honestly don't mind the heat. It's summer in Texas--what do you expect? My only issues with the heat come due to the fact that I sweat more than sumo wrestlers in a steam room.

Within minutes of being outside, I felt sweat trickling down my leg. No, that's being polite. I felt river-like rapids drenching my shorts.

My wrists sweat. My shins sweat. And I have no way of proving this, but my eyeballs even sweat.

But I've learned to embrace it and I don''t even pretend the giant wet spot on my shirt was due to a water spill. {Although equally likely.} It is my own filth on display for total strangers.

Hopefully you are noting throughout the multiple clothing variations between Lilly and Rylie. The hats and shirts were flying around like it was a costume party.

Love this picture of J and Papa. Dad put the love of baseball in my heart as a little kid and he is doing the same for Jackson. As they say, baseball is a "talkin' game" and that's what I love about it so much.

Talking about the game, about life, and about future concession stand decisions.

One of our most dire food choices was made for us because it was $1 Blue Bell sundae cone night.

I wish the cones had come with a siphon, because it wasn't so much a savoring licking motion as a whip-lashing for your tongue as it raced around the cone to devour the melting ice cream.

But the real winner of the night was the portable air conditioners.

Grammy snuck out Sunday afternoon and stocked up on fan/spray bottles and batteries. I thought it was a little much, but in hindsight might I say: GENIUS.

{J just looks like he's being defeated by the heat, doesn't he?}

Lilly and Rylie took it upon themselves to mist our entire section. And they truly didn't mind.

Due to my sweat issues, I barely needed the spray action. JUST GIVE ME THE FAN.

Their little trigger fingers had to be exhausted by the end of the night. I would conservatively say they were pumping water 99.9% of the time. Maybe more.

While driving home, we were trying to decide if we were dirtier after a day in Disney World {a day in the park will leave you wearing a layer of first-class grime} or after the Rangers game.

Rangers, hands down.

More Riveting Vacay Pics to Come...

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 02:00:00 +0000

...but until then...here are the kids at basketball camp:

{with our BFF Zach}

They are in HEAVEN hoopin' it up this week. Lilly is the only girl and the youngest one there, but she handled it like a champ.

The hoops are 10 feet high and she's used to shooting on an 8 footer.

My mama bear instincts wanted to panic and talk to the coaches to make sure everything was ok.

But instead I kissed her, told her to have a great time, play hard, and prayed for 3 solid hours that she would know God was with her if things felt tough.

And she loved it!

Slight Link Between Eating and Chubs Discovered

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 19:45:00 +0000

*sigh*

Well, I uploaded these pictures several days ago, hoping that I'd find time to write fascinating captions and post them and maybe add some sort of high-techie 4D setting where a giant space heater blows 155 degree heat on the reader seated in a steam room so you could FEEL the heat that these pictures in no way convey.

But that isn't happening...so lame commentary will commence.
We had the awesome privilege of going to visit my friend, Amy and her two little handsomes--Hogan and Rece. We got to meet Rece for the first time and Hogan had doubled in size since we last saw them.

Despite the heat and talk of cat-sized rats swimming in the murky river to our left, it was so great to see them. It had been wayyyyy too long.

We were in such vacay mode that I even let the kids drink a Crush from the can with their lunch. It felt very villianous, seeing as parents JUST LIKE ME are blasted on the nightly news for recklessly offering their kids Coke and contributing America's obesity problem. But the heat needed some refreshment and some high-fructose corn syrup-dyed-orange did the trick.

NBC's health reporter would pass out to know that we had ice cream twice later that day. {Just glides down the throat so effortlessly, what can I say?}

Without a doubt, the fatigue from the 100+ degree heat on their faces is obvious. My fault, we strayed from the bread and butter of coolness: the pool.

Our friends Ben and Ayla remedied that.

We love them, we love their parents, the kids love each other, and we drank YET MORE COKE with our meal. Yes, a LOVE FEST. No matter how long we spend with them, it's always too short and very sugary.

Oh sweet heavens. I just looked down.

I uploaded these pictures a few days ago, and of course, forgot what award-winning photographic content was sitting on my very own blog.

Yes. MORE FOOD.

Although this is more of a light, heavenly, ethereal food. Barbeque. Ribs. Brisket. Sausage.

And I didn't even take pictures of the fresh, hot rolls they deliver straight to the table from the hot, buttery oven.

{I'm not kidding...they don't mess around. The oven is actually IN the dining room, which sounds hot, but is actually indistinguishable from the 100 degree outdoor temps.}

Brad, {who, YEA!, joined us for the last couple of days} likes to slide an entire pat of butter carefully into each roll and let it perfectly melt. On the conservative side, I'd say his butter to roll ratio is about 3:1.

The kids can pound a rack of ribs on their own. EASY.

And with feeling.

After all the heat and the eating, clearly, we needed to sit down and be VERY still. For a loooong time.

Brandon is at that cute age where he LOVES the movie "Cars." Loves.

The boy could not be interrupted to so much as GLANCE my way for a picture.

There are some genetic traits that are beginning to emerge from our family:

1. Chubbiness. Including, but not limited to: cheeks, folds, cankles, multiple chins, tummies, buns, rubberband wrists, and ear lobes.

2. Concentration. Have you ever had friends say, "my kids just won't sit still long enough to watch TV!" They are not my relatives.

3. Sugar obsession. I haven't even trained them in this...it is just there. Brandon literally jumps up and down {aforementioned chubs wagging} and twirls around and pants when we mention "ice cream." And would NOT eat it until I put the m&m's on top. And syrup. And crushed Oreos. These things are not taught; they're instinctive.

4. Swimming. Honestly, I wish I would've videoed this. Brandon is the last in a very short line of Jackson, Lilly, and Rylie who swam early, fearlessly, and without any knowledge that oxygen is part of the secret formula for being alive. Brandon doesn't want to be in the water, he wants to be under the water. At all times. Floats and life-preserving devices be shunned.

Lillers concentrating on the ice cream cookie sandwich.
Rylie concentrating on getting back in the pool.
Jackson concentrating on being the only one to cooperate.
And Brandon concentrating on holding in his tummy underneath the swim shirt.

Love this little bunch!

And Tomorrow We'll Do It Again

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 01:57:00 +0000

Well folks, I am beat.

I intentionally used the word "folks" because it signifies that I am old. I'm wearing SPF 85+ and my feet are sore from walking around the pool deck.

But at least being old is fun.

Saturday night, Rylie and Brandon slept over because their parents were at a wedding in Austin. We had a blast doing things that I honestly can't remember because of the aforementioned old.

This is Rylie and Jackson before church on Sunday.

Did you know there are people out there who get four (OR MORE) children ready for church each week? Bless them.

This is Lilly and Brandon. He isn't upset, just solemn as a judge. I had gotten in his business while he was trying to watch Cars and that was my mistake.

After church, we went to The Sonic to get four kids all hopped up on grease and salt. I have developed a love for the green chile cheeseburger and come to find out, it's NOT AVAILABLE in Texas. How could this be? I had to settle for the regular Sonic burger and luckily, it was not even a small sacrifice. The tater tots and chocolate Coke eased my pain.

We got out and ate on the lovely Sonic veranda and fingerprinted up their window while we waited.

I think after that we went swimming, but I have been chronically wet for at least 72 hours, so it's hard to tell the swimming from the showering from the sweating. But either way, there was some damp-ish activity after lunch.

But Monday morning is when I realized the extent of my agedness.

A water park kicked my tail.

Don't be fooled--there is nothing relaxing about a place called "Hawaiian Falls." It was FUN and HOT and HOT and fun and HOT, but not in a lay-on-a-Hawaiian-beach sort of way.

We wave-pooled, water-slided, and rode the Hawaiian half-pipe. I think I have mentioned this before, but even the lazy river is more of a wild rapids race course, than "lazy." The kids don't like to use tubes, so they swim lapafterlapafterlapafterlap around the entire water park. OH MY.

I recall in high school I could very nearly SLEEP around the lazy river. For hours. Those are now days of yore. {If that means I can scarcely remember what it was like and have no hope it will ever happen again.}

We packed enough snacks for the entire island of Hawaii, but J & L don't really enjoy a snack break because it implies that you would NOT be retrieving your bathing suit from inside your body after riding the Typhoon.

Our spirits were flagging a little in the afternoon, but J was bound and determined to stay until it closed. I am usually all in favor, but it was over 100 degrees and my feet were being repetitively exfoliated by the scathing heat of the concrete, coupled with a jagged stray rock or two. Exfoliation is usually good for the first layer or two of skin, but after that it is called EXCRUCIATING PAIN.

Rylie came to join us in the afternoon and that proved to be a shot of adrenaline to demonstrate the finer points of double-tubing and lazy river {lack of} etiquette.

At this point, the entire water park was rocking because the wave pool had permanently disrupted my equilibrium. But we forged ahead and I'll admit to pretending I was Bethany Hamilton a few times.

Then today, after learning during a morning run that my eyeballs DO, in fact, sweat, we got back in the pool.

We got to spend time with my friend, Shelley, and her kids. And Shelley's Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream. I can die now.

There was even a taste test versus Haagen-Daaz and her homemade stuff killed it.

Two out of three meals today were eaten poolside--is this a problem? Fantastic pizza with a garlic-parmesan flavored crust {go with me on this} was our lunch. A bad crust can be a pizza ruiner and this crust was unlike anything I'd had.

It was so much fun to watch our kids {who have not seen each other since infancy} play and laugh and eat together.

Shelley and I solved most of the world's problems including but not limited to: pantry issues, dining room chair paint, sofa fabric, and various grill phobias.

Later this afternoon, we changed swim suits and segued to our next pool with our cousins.

There was more swimming and water slides and eating. I really like their pool because of the unlimited iced tea supply and the ability for adults to enjoy a nice cold beverage in the pool without so much as a lifeguard whistle.

However, when I saw a kid devouring his chicken tenders in the shallow end, I concluded that it might be nice to separate the eating and swimming activities at least a little bit.

Or not.

A few chicken tenders, burgers, fries, and cookie dough ice cream sandwiches later, we were happy.

Another great thing about Pool #2 is that there are showers so we can go home CLEAN and HAPPY. {Of course, that is really a figurative happy, because after eight hours of swimming, people are mostly tired and cranky rather than cheerful and pleasant.}

A pajama-fied Lilly and Brandon played some foosball on the way out.

As I sit here typing the dullest recap to a post which could've been entirely captured by the words "WE SWAM AND WE ATE," I think I am actually hungry again. How could this be?!

Art IS Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 02:43:00 +0000

Well, kind of.

At least I have fun.

It's relaxing, creative, surprising, and I'm constantly reminded that the joy is the process, not the creation.

Possibly, my favorite part each week is when I unveil our soon-to-be-project and they both declare that there is NO WAY they can do that.

And then they do.

They are so proud of themselves and even though I have to give the same pep talk each week, it's worth it.

Today, I even heard Jackson pass along the same thoughts ("art isn't supposed to be perfect," "do you think Van Gogh got "Starry Night" right the very first time?," and "lots of erasing makes for a great artist") to his five year-old cousin.

*love*

Instead of a blow by blow of our projects, I made some fancy collages. {Learned how to do that here.}

These are just a couple products we've had fun with this summer. I get most of my ideas here.

And we almost always invite friends {or this week, COUSINS!} to join us.

I try to pick projects that appeal to both boys and girls, have several steps, and use a variety of mediums. {That is my final attempt to sound "official."}

Be warned: there are almost always tears. There is fighting over colors and materials. There are outbursts of "I am the WORST artist ever!"

But I really think it's worth it.

Reunited and It Feels so Good

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 01:28:00 +0000

Yes, my precious is back.

I imagine this is how Luke Skywalker felt after Darth Vader light-sabered off his hand and then he got the new one with fingers that even wiggled.

That good:)

I tried to go to sleep last night and realized being phoneless wreaked havoc on my fancy bedtime rituals.

Alarm clock--fail.

Nightly devotional--fail. {By the way, did you know there's an app for Spurgeon's entire "Morning and Evening" for 99 cents? A BARGAIN. Plus, the icon is a lovely portrait of Charles H.}

Late night texting--fail.

Waves/rainfall/golf course ambient noise--fail.

I could not even drown out my tears with some Pandora.

But actually, my favorite reunion of the day involved myself and tableside guacamole.

In my parents' town, there is a wonderful restaurant that reminds me of Cheers. Or at least what Cheers would be like if it was a Mexican cantina in north Texas.

The standard for tableside guac was created here and I'm always bummed when I go other places and it's not remotely the same. (Do not attempt this anywhere in Denver.)

Didn't get pictures, because it IS where everyone knows your name...so it's a little awkward to be flashing photos...also since it's dark and the flash is like an exclamation point usually reserved for jalapenos.

Case in point, we ran into my doctor who delivered Jackson nine years ago.{He and J didn't recognize each other.}

But there is this wonderful cart, more of a magical trolley, really...that comes around overflowing with avocados, peppers, pico de gallo, onions, and a giant mortar and pestle. Ramon peels the avocados, lovingly scoops them into the huge bowl, and customizes the spice, flavors, and deliciousness. Then, serves it onto your plate one softball sized glob at a time.

And then you die.

Right now, guacamole and the cajun turkey sandwich at Heidi's are top in my Last Meal list.

***********************
Hordes, JUST HORDES of faithful readers have asked how to do a screen shot on your iphone.

Giving technology tips is definitely outside my skill set, but this I DO know.

Hold the the top button and double click the main button on the front.

Or watch this video.

I find the screenshot to be especially helpful when taunting others with current weather stats or immortalizing ridiculous texts.

******************
Even though we just got to Dallas, we're already missing Brad. I'm beyond grateful that he lets us swim and eat Mexican food until our guts ache (which is actually a sign that we're ready for more.)

The kids decided to leave Brad around eleventy thousand notes throughout the house so he would know how much he's missed.

Some are in places that he'll find right away.

Others give him ideas on how to pass the time...

Some notes are protecting our most precious assets...

And some remind Brad of basic home maintenance...

By the way, a neighbor called him on the carpet tonight about watering my flowers.

"Last year, when Nicole and the kids went away, they all DIED."

YES, they did. So he willingly committed to water them when he remembers.

I have many covert spies, so we'll see how this goes:)

Which Makes our 12 Year Anniversary a MIRACLE

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 02:48:00 +0000

On the heels of a man-made flash flood and leaving on my flat-iron {that heats to over 400 degrees} for DAYS, it would seem that I am due a 24-hour time slot that doesn't involve grave peril for our home.

And thankfully, that happened.

Today, the kids and I headed out of town {by plane!--I am still rejoicing}. I even remembered all the key elements I usually forget: boarding passes, ID, and underwear.

But instead, I spent several hours on the airplane in prayer while I couldn't find my phone.

UGH.

Story of my life.

This happens daily(ish.)

{Okay. Daily.}

However, we're like most(?), many(?) families of this Modern Space Age that abandoned our home phone long ago for the mobile.

And mine is more than a mobile phone...it's like my brain. And truly, the only part of my brain that works.

ALL of my contact info, my ONLY camera, my calendar {which I don't use that often, but if I have a personality transplant and decide to attempt an Organized Lifestyle, it could become extremely useful}.

It tells me the weather on demand--what, OH WHAT--would I do if I didn't know the exact temperature and that winds were blowing at approximately 25 m.p.h. at a moments notice?

Games for the kids, Angry Birds, sports scores, facebook, twitter, Pinterest, Craigslist, my alarm, email, google, ipod {my heart is now racing}.....do you SEE the magnitude of my loss?

It's like being locked in a cell that is neither padded nor cutely decorated because I don't have Pinterest to plan out the cot and toilet layout.

Well, my awesome travelers {of whom I have no pics because of the aforementioned dilemma}, proved their awesomeness again today.

After walking through security, over the land bridge, down the escalator, to gate A32 (the bowels of DIA), I sat down and simply wanted to know the time.

{Did I mention it is also my watch?}

Rummaging through my bags, it became clear to me and the entire waiting area--who saw every single item I packed--that my phone was NOT with me.

So my posse loaded up and walked approximately 5 miles back to security.

Apparently, I had the look of Total Irresponsibility transcribed on my forehead because the Chief Security Guy offered to run my bag through the scanner to we could be sure the phone was NOT in my bag.

I definitely need one of these at home since I lose things on my own person more often than you might think. {This would include keys that I have found in my pockets WHILE the cops are sticking crowbars in the doors to unlock them.}

Well, NOT in the bag.

Security Guy even called my phone while the kids nestled their ears against our suitcase collection to make sure it wasn't somewhere inside.

No dice.

At this point, I figured it was at home. Somewhere.

Or in Brad's car. Somewhere.

Or in the airport. Somewhere.

The bright side of constantly losing things is that it doesn't send me into a frenzy. I'm frustrated at myself, and feel even worse that it inconveniences others, but I figure that it would turn up somewhere.

Or not.

Without so much as a phone call or text, we found my mom in Dallas (I know!) In order to get the withdrawl shakes to go away, I texted Brad from her phone, to gently ease him into the idea that I wasn't 100% certain of the phone's location.

Of course, I didn't use the word "LOST."

That would be foolish.

Not that Brad can't see right through this.

He has been to the "Nicole can't find her very expensive/important/priceless/irreplaceable _____" rodeo many times. And he is remarkably patient, despite the fact that our monetary losses from my carelessness could fund several small nations.

So I literally threw up my hands in praise when I received this:

Don't most people set their phone on a TABLE SAW for safe keeping?

In the garage?

I exhaust myself.

It Was Not Exactly a Sacrifice

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 02:51:00 +0000

As the ultimate Father's Day gift for Brad, I failed to succeed in two separate attempts to destroy our house this weekend. I've come close a few times, but can't seem to close the deal.

For this year's installment, instead of flooding the inside of our home, I left the hose running at full blast in the front yard.

I'm still not sure what caused me to walk away from a water force so strong that it mimicked white water rapids, but I probably got hungry for some M&M's.

Conveniently, during my M&M break, Brad suggested we head out for dinner. It was a great night and we talked on the patio for awhile the kids played mano y mano hide and seek. {It's times like those when I feel villianous for only having two kids. Hide and seek would've been a lot more fun with a smallish tribe.}

Thanks to the beautiful evening and fabulous conversation, we headed for home after a few hours.

As we got closer to the house, flood-like waters surged down the street gutter. Of course, I wondered whose sprinklers were on overdrive.

Then I couldn't help but notice that sidewalks looked like a very exclusive rainstorm occurred on our property. Did I remember the hose at this point? No. I just thought it looked oddly wet.

Not until Brad said, "Did you forget to turn off the hose?" did I vaguely remember turning it on.

Vaguely.

Dang.

The front yard is now a delightfully swampy bog-ish ecosystem all of its own.

I will cry my tears when I get the water bill next month.

*************************
Luckily, I already had plans in place to redeem myself.

We kicked off Father's Day with a breakfast in bed {prepared by the kids--sort of}.

The Snickers pancakes were a hit.

Then we had a surprise for the afternoon...

Baseball! It was free Tulo jersey day...and the kids were so excited. Jackson snagged a signed Tulo ball at a school assembly this year, so the matching jersey was icing.

The weather was great, the hotdogs were all that one dreams a ballpark hotdog to be, the salted peanuts crunched awesomely, and parking was only $5.

The stuff of dreams.

J & L aren't baseball diehards yet, but they love planning which fine ballpark delicacies we'll be eating each inning.

Brad leaned over while we were watching the kids soak in the ballpark atmosphere and said, "When we were sitting at Cubs games in high school...did you ever picture this?"

Um, no.

But I'm soaking in every second of it right now:)

J kills me that he missed half the plays because he was watching the jumbo screen.

{"Back in our day, they didn't HAVE tv's at ballparks! You went to the park so you didn't HAVE to watch the game on tv." ugh}

Brad loved it all. After working ourselves into a frenzy over the Mavs games, it was great to be at a sporting event where we could just relax.

And eat.

We finished out a great night with a little US Open golf, teriyaki steak kebabs, and frozen yogurt.

Good times:)

Celebrity Alert

noreply@blogger.com (Nicole) — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 03:06:00 +0000

So every Thursday {or exactly 2 in a row, which counts for "every" in my book}, we're doing Crafty Thursdays.

Yes, this is stolen right from Meg's playbook.

Ironic, yes. I'm NOT crafty and most crafts make me sweat buckets the moment I enter Hob Lob and think about dealing with their antiquated check-out system.

BUT I love painting and lettering and I think it's really good for the kids to work through the process.

Jackson HATES art, but he's a really good sport anyway.

Lilly LOVES art, and is always making wild projects. If I can't find her, she is usually behind closed doors in the office, using an insane amount of paper, tape, staples, and Sharpies to embellish an old box into some sort of futuristic public transportation.

This week, we decided to experiment with oil pastels.

{"We" meaning "me."}

In case you've never worked with oil pastels {don't I sound all artisty, like I HAVE, in fact worked with oil pastels?}, they're a lot like crayons, but blend like paints. FAB.

I was imagining some sort of Georgia O'Keeffe wildflowers or New Mexico-era adobes.

But instead we got this:

They both went with the highly artistic Chicago Bulls logo.

Not exactly the pinnacle of my Crafty Thursday hopes and dreams, but I'm trying to be more about building confidence and having fun than the product.

After starting the drawing with groaning and whimpering and protesting that this was too hard, J & L were both thrilled with their finished products.

Guess who is getting two MUY GRANDE renderings of the Bulls logo for Father's Day??

I made a really cool piece for the kids' bathroom. It is pretty lame, but they think it's magnificent and I am a very accomplished artist in their eyes. Score!

**************************
Our kids both slept over at a friends' house last night. Fun for them, fun for us.

Brad and I went out on a date night/work obligation {our standards for romance are minimal}.

But truly, the best part was this morning...I went on a long run watching the sun rise, Brad headed off to work, and then I came home to enjoy some time in my happy place.

A more accurate rendering of my happy place would reflect the three 18 oz. cups of coffee I drank, but my fingertips are still twitching while I write this.

**************************

And what would a day be without mention of my furry friends?

I'm thankful human babies don't grow this fast or I would be in serious therapy.

They are hilarious. Serious. Focused. Bomb-like.

And I believe they are already celebrities.

I'm raising Angry Birds! I think I'll charge unsuspecting neighborhood kids $5 each to see Angry Birds LIVE!!!

This is going to be awesome :)