We Are Smiley

Farewell, Faithful Friend

2012-01-22T11:54:00.005-05:00

Last week we had our 12 year old Ford Explorer towed to the Ford dealership. Because the air conditioner in it pooped out a couple of years ago, it didn't get much driving time this summer and it did a lot of sitting on the street in front of the house. It drives well in the snow, though, so we started to get it spruced up for winter, but were having a hard time getting it started and keeping it running. Rick thought the fuel pump might have gone bad. The Ford dealership had bad news: the gas tank was filled with rusty corrosion and that had caused the fuel pump to fail. $2500 to get it back up and running. So with heavy hearts, we signed the title over to Ford.

I kinda get why people get attached to cars and park them in places of honor on the lawn and let them rust into eternity. That was the first car I bought all on my own. I took it to Iceland with me. It drove me and my friends (including my new friend Rick Smiley) all over Iceland: up mountains, across fjords, over glaciers.
This is the Explorer on Snaefellsjokel. According to Jules Vern, the entrance to the center of the Earth is around here somewhere.

Our favorite Explorer story was when we took it camping at Thorsmork. There was a glacial river between the road and the campground and when we pulled up, a little Icelandic guy came out of the lodge, motioned to a huge tractor and rope on his side of the river, and hollered over to us in broken English that if we got stuck in the river he could probably tow us out. With Rick's coaching, I drove slowly and steadily across the river, glancing down to notice how high the water came up on the doors, and we made it! That afternoon, when we hiked to the top of a nearby mountain I took a picture of my proud Explorer next to a crazy Icelandic tour bus with huge all-terrain tires.

Its next great adventure was as a family car.
It transported my babies home from the hospital and Will to his first day of school.

Part of me sort of wishes we had forgone little luxuries like groceries and health insurance for a little while and poured ridiculous amounts of money into the Explorer to keep it running. Part of me is sort of happy that it will probably become an organ donor of sorts, donating its good parts to other cars in need at the Ford dealership.

Welcome 2012

2012-01-14T11:52:00.004-05:00

This is Salt Fork State Park.

This is a little lake-side cabin at Salt Fork State Park.

This is us celebrating the New Year in a little lake-side cabin at Salt Fork State Park.

Because the weather had been wet and the ground was pretty muddy, we limited our nature walks to the paved trails, like the cart path at the golf course.

In between outdoor adventuring, Will and Soren made spin drums to ring in the New Year.
Alas, Soren fell asleep a little after 9:00 and Will, though he tried his hardest to stay awake, passed out around 11:30.
Nice try, guys.

Happy New Year!

Christmas Day

2012-01-14T11:01:00.005-05:00

We were in Bedford this year for Christmas and our small-town celebration kicked off with a tour of the town Christmas lights, store windows, and holiday displays.

Christmas morning began with a big surprise at the bottom of the stairs.

All further festivities were put on hold while we all bundled up for a spin around the block.
If it looks like Soren spent most of the time careening wildly through people's yards, that's because pictures don't lie.

Only then did the mad gift opening commence.

Since we had gone to Christmas Eve Mass, the rest of the day was spent in lazy indulgence and other ill-advised things we don't normally do the rest of the year:

practicing dentistry without a license

and texting while driving.

Merry Christmas, Everybody!

Will is 6!

2012-01-14T09:39:00.005-05:00

After Christmas Eve dinner we celebrated with a piano-themed ice cream cake

and presents carefully wrapped in birthday wrapping paper.

The funny thing is I have a nearly identical picture of myself on a distant Christmas morning opening the 1970's version of the Play Doh dentist.
Perhaps the beginning of a family tradition?

Happy Birthday, Darling Will!

Melissa Jones Photography

2011-12-29T12:03:00.005-05:00

Some time in the fray of pre-holiday crunch, we got the chance to have photos taken by the talented and lovely Melissa Jones.
Thank you to my friend, Mary, for extending such a great opportunity to us.

Here are some of my favorites:

Christmas Concert

2011-12-29T11:41:00.003-05:00

Will rocked the house at the Atkinson Piano Studio Holiday Concert, playing rousing renditions of 'Jingle Bells' and 'Once a Year on Halloween'.

Timbuk!

2011-12-29T10:55:00.005-05:00

I figured out that this is the 10th year that I have gone to Timbuk Tree Farm for a Christmas Tree.
The first year I lived in Columbus, I went with my program director, Dr. Joel Weaver, and his family because Timbuk is their traditional source of Christmas trees. In years after that, I dragged other resident friends along. When Rick moved to Columbus, we went together to get our tree. Over the years, we introduced other good friends to Timbuk: Jen & Adam and Rod & Anna. Now we hunt the family tree with Will and Soren...

So it was back to Timbuk this year where

with the help of Ernie, the friendly driver

we once again found the perfect Christmas Tree!

Soren was so excited he had to lay down in the mud.

Santa Train

2011-12-29T10:15:00.006-05:00

Thanksgiving at Grandma and Grandpa's kicked of the Christmas season with a good ol' small town Holiday Parade featuring my cousins Andrew (playing the clarinet in the marching band) and Rachel (dancing with the dance team) and, inexplicably, a horse dressed as an igloo.

Then we were off to Roaring Spring for the traditional ride on the Santa Train.

Here come the holidays!

Halloween at Disney - Day 5

2011-12-26T21:49:00.006-05:00

We spent our last day at Epcot.
The day started at the Nemo ride where we explored the adjoining aquarium for a while, then met our friends the Thikkurissys for an early lunch
(shame on me for not getting a group photo).

Then it was off to the World Marketplace where...

William shopped for Mexican Hat Dance supplies in Mexico

Rick and Soren communed with Vikings in Norway

and Soren tried to access the Ministry of Magic in Great Britain.
It must have been closed for a holiday.

With heavy hearts and tired feet we headed back to Ohio the next day.
Fall was a great time to go to Disney:
shorter lines, decent weather, happy family!

Halloween at Disney - Halloween!

2011-12-26T21:11:00.004-05:00

It was torrentially downpouring in the morning, but being intrepid Disney fans/loons, we headed to the park anyway. We may have been damp and our shoes may have been squishy, but we didn't have to wait very long to meet Disney characters!

We went back to the hotel in the afternoon (just as the weather was clearing up, of course) to catch a quick nap. Then we costumed up for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party.
Will was Sir Smiley, the Golden Knight;
Soren was a fierce dragon;
Rick was a dashing Prince Charming;
I was Rapunzel;
and my dad was a very impressive Merlin.

We gathered treats, watched the parade, met the Seven Dwarfs, enjoyed the fireworks, and rode It's a Small World about 17 times.
What an awesome not-so-spooky Halloween!

Halloween at Disney - Day 3

2011-12-26T20:11:00.004-05:00

Our second day at the park dawned sunny and beautiful and, with temps in the mid-70's, we ran around taking pictures with the Disney characters.

Will got caught up in the Disney excitement and did several out-of-character things:
he chose carrot sticks instead of fries at lunch;
he let himself be talked into riding Thunder Mountain;
he bowed to peer pressure and went on The Haunted Mansion- a ride he declared he would not ride before we even left home.

The cast members on The Haunted Mansion are dressed as gothic, creepy maids. When we got off the ride Will asked, "Why are there so many maids in the Haunted Mansion and it's still not clean?"
I guess they have let the cobwebs get way out of control.

On this day, it was Soren's turn to sputter out at the dinner table.

Halloween at Disney - Day 2

2011-12-26T18:10:00.006-05:00

Our first day at WDW park started with breakfast at the Crystal Palace with Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, and Eeyore. Breakfast is served buffet style with a lavish spread of waffles, pastries, sausage and bacon, omelets-to-order, biscuits and gravy, breakfast pizza, and fruit. I had a proud parent moment when Will chose Raisin Bran and yogurt for breakfast.

Then we headed out to ride our favorite rides. Soren picked It's a Small World and when the boat floated into the first room, he said, "Oh, Wow!". Will picked Dumbo's Flight and The Mad Hatter's Tea Party. The weather was a little cloudy which may have been why the lines were short. My kids were happy to ride the rides over and over again.

A neat thing Disney does is distribute pins that let people know if it's your first trip to WDW or you are celebrating a wedding, a family reunion, an anniversary, etc. Since it was my dad's birthday, he was wearing a Happy Birthday pin. Everywhere we went, people said, "Happy Birthday, Rudy!". At dinner, the waiter brought him a festive sundae.Unfortunately Will missed out on the celebration once again.

Halloween at Disney - Day 1

2011-12-26T16:33:00.005-05:00

We left chilly Ohio in the wee morning hours.
Despite the excitement (and probably with the help of a little Benadryl) Soren slept through most of his first airplane ride.

We spent the afternoon settling in and exploring at the amazing Wilderness Lodge, then took Grandpa to the Whispering Canyon Restaurant for a birthday eve dinner. The theme of the restaurant is sort of a western cowboy camp; they serve meals in skillets and drinks in Mason jars, and though it's called 'Whispering Canyon', hollering is not only tolerated, it's encouraged.
The waiters holler at each other.
No one seemed to care that my kids were hollering.
And if you want ketchup, you holler for the last table that had it to bring it to you.
In what would become a recurring theme for the week, Will ran full blast all day and finally sputtered out at the dinner table.

The restaurant made my dad an awesome Mickey birthday cake. As you can see, Will was overcome by excitement.

Stadium Cake 2011

2011-12-26T15:50:00.004-05:00

This fall, we made the annual pilgrimage to see the Stadium Cake.
We always seem to get there just as they are dismantling and cutting the cake... which I guess is the best part.

Once again, Jen's family did an amazing job.
Something new this year- you can 'friend' the Stadium Cake on facebook.
(I'm pretty sure the cake has more facebook friends than I do.)

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-27T15:32:00.002-04:00

We Love Pigeon Roost!

2011-10-21T17:57:00.003-04:00

It was one of those afternoons when we were trying to herd the boys into the car and there was lots of whining and lots of complaining (and a little bit of yelling) and fighting and shouting in the back seat all the way there, but as soon as we turned into the parking lot Will said,
"This is Pigeon Roost! I love Pigeon Roost!".

The rest of the evening was spent running and playing, climbing and swinging, sliding and selecting the perfect pumpkins.

I love Pigeon Roost!

Dear Noodle

2011-10-21T17:05:00.009-04:00

Dear Noodle,

We have so many good memories of the time you spent with our family. From the moment you picked us by crawling onto Rick's shoe and falling asleep, we knew you were the perfect dog for us.

You loved camping

swimming

protecting the kids when we were out for a walk

sledding

relaxing by the fire

relaxing with your Grandpa

and riding in the car to Bedford.

You were the smartest dog in your obedience class.

You were gracious about sharing your bed with the kitties.

You were always such a good sport.

You were a beautiful, loving dog and we know the thing you will enjoy most about heaven is...

NO LEASH LAWS!We'll see you again some day, Mr.Dog.

Until then, be a good boy!

Has it Been a Year Already?

2011-10-21T14:46:00.005-04:00

It was hard to go to the Fall Foliage Festival this year without Noodle because Bedford is Noodle's most favorite place. But the awesome folks at MedVet were taking good care of him, so we made the annual pilgrimage. What I look forward to most now is catching up with my wonderfully talented crafting friends.

Debbie Burkey made this ginormous Great Pumpkin. I knew it had to come home with me when I got nervous every time someone else admired it in her booth.
It's pretty impressive, don't you think? You should see it in person.

A couple of years ago, Jill Zieglemeier made two of these hysterical Skully dolls. I'm not kidding when I tell you that I literally had one in my hand and Will let me know that he had to go to the bathroom so I set it down and took Will to find a bathroom. When we got back, both of the Skullys were gone! I was so sad.
This year Jill surprised me with a Skully that she had set aside just for me!
I love being in the Jill V.I.P. Club.

Jill also made this Masquerade Pumpkin.
I love how she's kind of creepy and sweet at the same time.
We did something new this year. After several instances of chickening out at the last minute, Will was finally willing to participate in these cute Tales of Middle Earth plays they put on. Rick and Soren were recruited too! I've seen these Middle Earth people at other events and they always look like lots of fun.

Prayer for a Sick Pet

2011-09-30T19:55:00.003-04:00

Heavenly Father,

Please help us in our time of need.
You have made us stewards of Noodle.
If it is Your will, please restore him to health and strength.
I pray too for other animals in need.
May they be treated with the care and respect
deserving of all your creation.
Blessed are You Lord God
and holy is Your name for ever and ever.
Amen

On Thursday evening Noodle suffered something called a Fibrocartilaginous Embolism which is characterized by sudden onset of paralysis without pain. We rushed him to MedVet and he underwent 4 hours of surgery. He is resting at the animal hospital this weekend and the vet is optimistic that he will recover well over the next few weeks. We were scared that we were going to lose our wonderful friend and he's still not out of the woods, but we are so grateful for the wonderful doctors who are caring for him and our friends who have shown so much support.
I'll keep you updated.

Let the Holiday Crafting Begin

2011-09-25T22:13:00.005-04:00

I was browsing Split Coast Stampers and ran across the instructions for these neat pocket hand sanitizer holders.
How fun are these?

The Apple of My Eye

2011-09-25T21:45:00.004-04:00

Last summer we visited Apple Hill to pick peaches.
This year we made it our apple picking spot because they have both Honeycrisp and Macintosh.
I was in Yummy Apple Heaven.
The boys were more interested in shaking the tree branches to see how many apples they could make fall and marveling over deer poop, but it was a beautiful day and Rick is pretty jazzed about canning apple sauce.
Again, yum.

My kind of town...

2011-09-25T21:16:00.003-04:00

A couple of weeks ago I went to Chicago to deliver a talk at the Dental Anesthesia Board Review Course.

It was a pretty quick jaunt, and though I spent most of the trip with a whopper of a case of butterflies-in-the-stomach because of my impending talk, I did manage to carve out a little time for sightseeing and fun with the residents.I talked the residents into doing the O H I O thing in front of the Bean in Millennium Park.

They were rewarded by a group of cute little old ladies (apparently from Ohio) shouting, "O-H" and fawning over them.
Honestly, you can find Ohio State fans anywhere!

We also gawked for a while at Crown Fountain.
Neat, right?

The butterflies proved to be non-fatal. I survived my talk and got some really nice feedback. Chicago is so close- I'd like to go back with Rick and the boys and see the sights I missed on this trip. Put it on the list...

First Day of Kindergarten

2011-08-27T16:58:00.003-04:00

This is Will on the morning of his first day of Kindergarten with his Schultute. In Germany kids get a Schultute on the first day of school filled with school supplies and goodies. Next year, he'll get a Schultute from school; St. Mary's practices the tradition of the German Village immigrants who founded the congregation. This year Mommy was happy to supply the Schultute.

This is Will in the cafeteria with his class, listening to the lovely welcome and prayer assembly led by our new pastor, Father Franks, and getting psyched up for Kindergarten adventures.

This is Soren after we left Will at school. He cried as many tears as Mommy. Daddy was the only brave one- I think he was a little excited, actually.

These are my Smiley boys, reunited after a long day and being nice to each other... at least for a moment or two.

First Checkup

2011-08-27T16:40:00.004-04:00

Because I am neurotic, I had a nightmare that Soren had to have his front teeth extracted.
So I asked my friend Dr. Bobby to take a look at Soren for his first dental checkup. Bobby and Soren did a great job.

If anyone is looking for a top notch pediatric dentist, Dr. Bobby Thikkurissy sees patients at OSU Faculty Practice.

Late Summer Picnic

2011-08-27T16:09:00.003-04:00

My mentor, Joel Weaver, and his wife hosted a wonderful picnic for all the dental anesthesia residents and the program graduates who still practice in the area. An evening at the Weaver's always means: good food, good fellowship, and rides in the antique cars and on the antique tractors that Dr. Weaver collects. At this gathering it also meant swinging in the hammock, picking ears of corn, and home-made ice cream made with a (what else) tractor driven old fashioned ice cream maker.
Yummy!Look at what a good lookin' group of residents we have!

Soren is Two!

2011-08-07T19:44:00.005-04:00

Grandma and Grandpa spent the day with us at Zoombeezi Bay to celebrate the momentous day.
Then it was home for Harry Potter cake and presents. Will did his big brotherly duty of "helping" Soren open gifts.
Happy Birthday, Darling Soren!

We love you!

Christmas in July

2011-08-07T19:08:00.003-04:00

The 6th Annual Christmas in July came and went in a flurry of snow cones and pinata candy.

The new addition to this year's festivities was an idea supplied by Grandma: make your own ice cream. You fill a little ziploc baggy with half-and-half, sugar, and vanilla. You put that inside a larger ziploc baggy filled with ice and rock salt. Then you shake it up for 5 minutes. The ice cream is really yummy and you can eat it right out of the little baggy with a spoon. Plus if you do it right, you can burn calories shaking up the baggy and it is less of a sinful treat.

We enjoyed the traditional favorite of Pass the Parcel. And Soren experienced a couple of firsts:

His first snow cone

and his first Brain Freeze

Oh What a Weekend

2011-08-07T16:18:00.005-04:00

I'm not sure what Will and Soren thought of the Fourth of July festivities this year, considering that in years past they were usually tucked into bed long before the fireworks started. This year it seemed like we couldn't get enough of fireworks displays.

The first one we enjoyed was Columbus' Red, White, & Boom. Children's Hospital hosted a great reading themed fundraiser called 'Read, White, & Boom', complete with music, hot air balloon rides, City Barbeque, balloon animals, and a great view of the fireworks.

The next day we were off to Grandma's house where the first fireworks we enjoyed were in Altoona with our fiends the Prezlocks.

On the actual Fourth of July, we enjoyed a lovely picnic on the farm hosted by our friends the Hites. My city boys reveled in the country pleasures of hunting tadpoles, picking blackberries, and feeding goats.

The reason why Soren isn't wearing a shirt in most of the pictures is that, within 15 minutes of arriving at the picnic, he fell into the pond.

That evening we were back in town for dessert on Grandma's porch, more amazing fireworks, and sparklers.

I can tell you what they thought of the car ride home: Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...

Oh, You Meant That Peace Sign

2011-08-04T17:17:00.005-04:00

Early in July, Will attended day camp at Balletmet with a Time Warp Theme. Each day for a week the kids spent the morning across the street at Young Chef's Academy, preparing a meal that they would eat for lunch. Then they trooped back across the street to spend the afternoon at Balletmet, playing games and learning dances that coincided with the decade that was the theme for the day.
On 70's Day, we picked Will up at the end of the day and had the following conversation on the car ride home:

Mom: "How was 70's Day?"
Will: "Good"
Mom: "What did you make for lunch?"
Will: "I made a pizza with a P made out of pepperonis"
Dad: "Why didn't you make a pizza with a W or an S on it?"
Will: "Because it's 1970's Day and the teacher said to make a pizza with a P sign"

The Saga of The Fence

2011-08-04T16:43:00.004-04:00

In April, I was in Arizona at a Meeting when Rick sent me this picture with the caption 'Need for a new fence'. Apparently a whole section of our fence had blown over in a wind storm the night before. Rick spent the rest of the day propping up the fence as best he could, creating this lovely ghetto effect:Did I mention that the day all this was going on also happened to be Rick's birthday?

I wasn't exactly surprised or sad to see the old fence fall over. It was an ugly fence that we had casually discussed replacing... at some point. The fact that it failed catastrophically simply forced Rick to spend most of his free time this summer turning this pile of woodinto possibly the loveliest fence in the city.

(Rick chose Red Cedar so the fence also coincidentally smells nice).Another wind storm not long after snapped our patio umbrella right in half.

Thank you, Mother Nature (and my endlessly hard-working husband), for the Extreme Backyard Makeover this summer.

Father's Day Picnic

2011-06-23T16:11:00.004-04:00

We celebrated a couple of awesome fathers in our family (mine and Will & Soren's) with a picnic at Shawnee State Park. As is typical when we go to Shawnee, a great time was had by all. We enjoyed, of course, eating, but also strolling, geocaching, swinging, throwing the frisbee, and getting soaked from head to toe in the water fountain.

Soren also enjoyed casting spells with his stick wand.
It's probably time to pull Harry Potter out of the car DVD player. I'm almost afraid to tell you that he also speaks Parseltongue.

Bravo!

2011-06-22T21:46:00.004-04:00

Earlier this month, Will performed in his first piano recital.
Since March, he's been taking lessons at Atkinson Piano Studio. We adore Miss Liz and admire her boundless patience. She also knows of some magic spell that enabled Will to overcome his stage fright (as much as we have enjoyed watching Will just stand there during his last two Christmas Programs at school) and perform lovely renditions of 'Twinkle Twinkle' and 'Two Lady Bugs'.

Maybe she whispered to him ahead of time that there was a gift card to Graeter's Ice Cream waiting for him at the end of the show.

Thanks, Miss Liz!

That's a Fat Dog

2011-06-22T17:31:00.003-04:00

Poor Noodle.
He'll be 8 years old in September and this winter I noticed that he seemed to really slow down. His joints seem stiff in the morning and he doesn't spring down the stairs like he used to; he steps more gently now. I guess I didn't really push him to go on long walks and he did pack on a few pounds over the past months. I'll be the first to tell you that he's been looking a little fluffier than usual.
Apparently this creates great alarm in perfect strangers.

Now that the weather is warm, we are trying to include Noodle in our outdoor activities. One evening last week we headed to Three Creeks Park for a little family stroll. Then the boys wanted to play on the jungle gym for a little while so Noodle and I rested on a bench nearby.

A little girl came over and asked if she could pet Noodle, then she said to me, "That's a fat dog." I said something about how that's why we brought him to the park to exercise and then she went away.
Not 10 minutes later a woman and her daughter came over to sit on the other end of the bench and I heard them say that they also have a chocolate lab (named Moose) at home. When the dad came over he said to me, "How much does that dog weigh?" I said I wasn't sure; at his last check up he was 85 pounds. "Oh" he says, "He weighs a lot more than that now."

As it turns out, there was not in fact a convention of rude people at Three Creeks Park that night. Last weekend we took Noodle with us to my parents' house in an entirely different state. On Father's Day we went to a state park near their house for a picnic. We were all walking along the trail when we happened to pass another group having a picnic and man called out to me, "How much does that dog weigh? 100 pounds?". I did my best to ignore him but his female companion felt the need to add, "My sister had a dog that got so big they had to carry him up the stairs."

Really, people?
I don't thing Noodle is a freak of nature or anything. I mean, his legs can still touch the ground; we are not having to drag him along with his stomach on a skateboard.
I have a theory that since I have lost weight, Noodle just looks much bigger walking next to me.
Honestly, though, lay off my fat dog.
He's very sensitive about his weight.

Farewell to Preschool

2011-06-04T10:12:00.004-04:00

Friday was Will's last day of Preschool.
Ever.
We celebrated with an end-of-year picnic: hamburgers and hotdogs on the grill, visiting with teachers, and tearing like maniacs through the school playground with our buddies.

I guess it's official. Will's been accepted to Kindergarten.
(sniff sniff) His first acceptance letter

Memorable Memorial Day

2011-06-04T09:20:00.004-04:00

If any friends in central Ohio want to start making plans for next Memorial Day, I'd like to recommend the Worthington Memorial Day Parade.Find a nice shady spot under a tree along the route and look forward to
marching bands (including The Ohio State Alumni Band), color guards, fire trucks, clowns, Shriners in little cars, boy scout troops, veterans in vintage cars, baton twirlers, military vehicles, local politicians, bagpipe players, and a guy dressed like Uncle Sam riding a motorcycle with just one big wheel.
Oh, and there was also a military jet fly over.

Amazing parade!
A great way to kick off Summer
(made all the more festive by a trip to Graeter's for ice cream afterward).

Right To Read Week

2011-05-22T21:59:00.005-04:00

Last year we were on vacation during Right to Read Week at school, so I had no idea what a big deal it was. Luckily Will only goes to school 3 days a week or the whole thing might have been a little overwhelming. The theme this year was 'Flight' and some of the highlights were the display of a replica of the Wright Brothers' Airplane and a visit from a Tuskeegee Airman.

Monday was a family cake decorating contest.
Will and I spent the weekend before slaving over a cake decorated like the Mo Willems book 'Let's Say Hi to Friends Who Fly'. Rick managed to get it into the school on that rainy morning. Sixty-four other cakes were entered in the contest and we won 4th Place!On Wednesday, Will's class performed a skit based on Eric Carle's 'The Very Lonely Firefly' in front of the whole school. Will made his acting debut as an awesome lightbulb.
Also that day every grade dressed in a different color to represent birds. The preschool students were penguins.The activity on Friday was to dress up as your favorite book character.
Whether he realized it or not, Will's favorite character was Draco Malfoy from the Harry Potter books,
mostly because we already had the costume.Whew! What a week. I wonder if they know the theme for next year.
I need to start planning.

Wonders of Nature

2011-05-22T11:39:00.003-04:00

In between rain storms last month, I wandered in the yard, wondering where to begin with the spring yard projects and I noticed that the water iris that lives in our pondspawned a land iris that lives in the flower bed next to the pond.Huh.

The Wedding of the Century

2011-05-08T17:15:00.005-04:00

With apologies to Will and Kate, that same weekend we attended another pretty awesome wedding:
Rod Stewart's Wedding

Rod and Anna were married at the Taylor Mansion directly behind our house. The gardens there are beautiful. And though it had rained every day for a month, the weather that day was lovely.

It appears that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were invited but were unable to attend as they were honeymooning.

Totally understandable

There Went Peter Cottontail

2011-05-08T16:07:00.006-04:00

This year we celebrated Easter at Grandma's house again.

It was all the more festive that we got to take the new car on its first road trip. Look at all that luxurious room:Clearly some kind of genius designed the car where children sitting side by side can't touch each other. And I'm sure it goes without saying that the backseat DVD players are pure magic. Why did I not know about them until recently? I guess I knew they existed. I just didn't know that they are... pure magic.

I was a little concerned when we got to Pennsylvania on Friday and it was 39 degrees and sleeting. But things were looking better by Sunday: about 60 degrees and only a little cloudy.

After church, the Annual Egg Hunt on Grandma's Porch It turns out Soren is an awesome egg hunter!

Uncle Ed arrived with more Easter goodies. Will's basket was a tackle box for fishing this summer with Grandpa. And Ed tucked in a couple of those single-use tooth brushes already loaded with toothpaste.
So cleverThe Easter Bunny was good to us.
The trip there and back was peaceful.
And back at home, our Egg Tree held down the fort.

Some thoughts on the Royal Wedding...

2011-04-20T21:12:00.001-04:00

Sigh....

Little Tree Studio

2011-04-17T15:36:00.005-04:00

Traditionally, early in the year we take the boys to get their pictures taken.
This year, I got the brilliant idea to take Noodle along for family portraits.
We tried out a darling studio in Old Worthington that a friend told me about.All I can say about the experience is - never have my children behaved so atrociously.
Soren cried. Will cried. At one point I'm pretty sure the photographer wanted to cry. Neither of them wanted to sit next to the other and they both refused to sit next to the dog. Speaking of the dog, he was the only good one and the only one we wanted to take home that day.Despite the chaos, Kyle and Steve did a wonderful job and captured some great shots.
I ordered an album of some of the goofier shots and we're calling it
'The Last Time We Ever Had Family Pictures Taken'.

Though I'm pretty sure it won't be the last time.
Maybe next year we'll take just the dog.

Reach high, Think big. Work Hard. Have Fun!

2011-04-17T15:18:00.004-04:00

At the beginning of April we took the boys to see the Imagination Movers.
At first I thought we had lucked into front row tickets, but as the usher was seating us smack dab in front of an enormous speaker, I started to wonder when the wine was going to be served.It was actually a very entertaining show.
And we got to go an after-party and meet the Movers. They were very gracious and thanked us for coming to the show.
To be honest, it was kind of a thrill,
especially meeting my favorite Mover:
Mover Rich

Like Baby Baby Baby Oh!

2011-02-20T08:48:00.003-05:00

The last time we went to get haircuts, Soren flat out refused to allow his hair to be cut despite Joanna's best efforts, lots of M&M bribes, and a short period of time where Rick restrained him with what looked like some kind of wrestling hold. Consequently he's looking a little Bieber-ish lately.
From a mom's perspective, he's still totally adorable.

Happy Heart Day!

2011-02-20T08:18:00.005-05:00

We celebrated another Valentine's Day by spending the weekend at a cabin in Hocking Hills.
There was still just enough snow on the ground to do a little sledding. And everyone enjoyed relaxing afterward by the fire.
Will rediscovered his passion for hot-tubbing.

One of the highlights: a group of seven deer stopped by to visit for a while on Sunday morning.

On the crafting front, I cased these projects from Mary's Stamp Club to make the valentines Will took to school and the cards I sent out.What says love better than owls with big googly eyes?

Me and The Best Dog

2011-02-19T18:17:00.004-05:00

Being cooped up in the house during the cold winter months has given Will plenty of opportunity to indulge in one of his favorite hobbies: making crafts and hanging them all over every vertical surface of the house.
This is the front of my fridge:

The sign reads: 'ME AND THE BEST DOG GOING TO THE CIRCUS'.
According to Will, our dog loves the circus.

Back From Blog Vacation

2011-02-19T17:55:00.006-05:00

It wasn't really a planned vacation from blogging,
I guess I was just waiting for inspiration.

To catch you up, here's a brief recap of our lives since mid-December.

Will turned five. Here he is decorating his Gingerbread House Birthday Cake.
Soren in helping.

Will got these sweet Batman glasses from Grandma.

Soren got overstimulated.

We celebrated the unusually warm New Year's Eve at First Night Columbus.
Everyone had lots of fun running around COSI until way after their bedtime. Good job on the fireworks, Columbus!

Timbuk Tree Farm and a Little Christmas Cheer

2010-12-21T07:54:00.005-05:00

Before the weather turned arctic we made it out to Timbuk Tree Farm to find the perfect tree.

On the hunt

Will supervises the harvesting of the tree.

Waiting for a ride back to the lodge.

The 'After' picture

Oh- and these are the cupcakes I made for Will to take to school for his birthday.

Merry Christmas!
I hope your holiday is warm and cozy
and your New Year full of health and happiness

We Elfed Ourselves

2010-12-03T14:23:00.002-05:00

Santa Train

2010-11-28T22:28:00.006-05:00

Thanksgiving at Grandma's House was wonderful as usual. Uncle Ed drove up to join us for a warm and cozy holiday weekend. It was nice to spend a few days not doing anything in particular other than spending time with family.

On Saturday morning we got up bright and early and bundled up to head out into the snow (!) and ride the
Roaring Spring Santa Train.
It was so much fun to ride the circa 1920's train through the Pennsylvania countryside, singing Christmas carols, and visiting with Santa.
This was Soren's first trip on the Santa Train, but it was Will's third.
I think this just might be becoming a tradition.
I'm sure that will be a comfort to the boys as I'm dragging them on to the Santa Train when they are teenagers.

Wild Lights

2010-11-28T22:07:00.004-05:00

In years past, I had read other people's blog posts about
Wild Lights at the Columbus Zoo.
My thought was always that the people in the pictures looked pretty cold. Not that I consider myself all that wimpy about cold, but still. We took advantage of the warm-ish weather last weekend to kick off our holiday season and finally take in the Wild Lights.

It was fantastic!
Though I'm not sure I would have enjoyed it as much if the weather was freezing or (heaven forbid) actually snowing.
And another pleasant surprise- there was a very handsome Santa and we got our annual picture on Santa's lap checked off the Holiday To-Do list.

Stadium Cake

2010-11-28T21:45:00.003-05:00

On November 13th, the Nittany Lions played the Buckeyes.
Though Ohio State didn't give JoePa his 401st win, the weekend was still very festive on account of the
Twentieth Annual Stadium Cake.
We went down to the stadium to visit our friend Jen as she and her family displayed the cake it took them a week to make, slice it up, and pass out pieces in exchange for donations to a scholarship fund.

Jen gets ready to wield her cake server.

Fans begin to gather.

My camera battery died before I got a picture of the Smiley boys enjoying their cake. I managed to get us all pieces that had tiny Penn State fans on them (little blue and white dots of icing).
They were delicious.

Boo at the Zoo (or Halloween Burnout)

2010-11-01T21:11:00.004-04:00

It seemed like the Halloween celebrations went on and on, so by the time October 31st finally came along I think we were all a little burned out.
But we decided to partake in one more festive event: Boo at the Zoo.

First, Will refused to wear his costume.
Then, when we passed the first station where they were passing out candy treats I asked Will if he wanted to go over and he said,
"Don't you think I have enough candy?".
(That was actually a Proud Parent Moment for me)

One good thing was that the zoo was not that crowded. So you know those animal statues that are all over the zoo that you can never get a good picture of your kids on because there are always 10 zillion other children crawling all over them? Well...

Trick or Treat!

2010-11-01T20:51:00.003-04:00

Got Milk Chocolate?

The Fourth Annual Trick or Treat Extravaganza in the 'Burbs
commenced last Thursday. The excitement kicked off with Vannessa's spooky yet tasty Mummy Dogs.

Then we stuffed the kids into their costumes and tried to keep up while they made the rounds of the neighborhood, gathering treats, and terrorizing the good people of Westerville.

Then it was time to bundle up next to the fire pit and chow down!

Thanks, Rich & Vannessa, for another
Spooktacular Halloween!

Caught in the Act

2010-11-01T20:12:00.005-04:00

Why did God make babies so fond of sucking on lemon slices?Was it so their parents would be endlessly entertained by the funny faces they make?

Pigeon Roost Revisited

2010-10-27T17:31:00.004-04:00

No busy pre-Halloween season would be complete without a trip to the pumpkin patch.
Our pumpkin patch of choice is Pigeon Roost Farm.So much fun!

Poor Noodle

2010-10-20T21:34:00.004-04:00

Because Rick served on submarines during his Navy career and my dad was a sub Captain, in our house we are suckers for all things 'submarine'. Unfortunately for Noodle, he became the latest victim of our obsession.
Today at Target Rick found this priceless number in the dog costume section.

Poor Noodle.
He really is a good sport about the whole thing.

Stamp It Up!

2010-10-18T20:34:00.004-04:00

My super creative friend Mary graciously agreed to put on a Stampin' Up workshop at our house last week. Little did I know I would have the honor of hosting Mary's very first workshop!
She did an awesome job and everyone had a great time stampin' it up.

Mary demonstrated this fun project

And we all got to make this card

Thanks for the fun night of crafting, Mary!

Another Fall Foliage Festival

2010-10-13T22:18:00.005-04:00

Once again we made the traditional trip to Bedford, PA for the glorious Fall Foliage Festival.
The weather both weekends was picture perfect and we had tons of fun visiting with our favorite artist friends, watching the antique car parade from Grandma's porch, indulging in the endless choices of comfort food, and reveling in small town American life.

I was excited to see what new creations had sprung from the mind of Jill Zieglemeier- the woman responsible for my favorite Halloween decorations. Some of the creatures that come home with me this year were Party Pumpkin (upper left), Winged Skeleton (center), Walking Stick Skeleton (right), and Skeleton, Pumpkin-Guy, and Hoot Owl (lower left).

Check this out.
Jill made this Bogey Man doll with a head that swivels to reveal 4 faces.
Isn't he neat?

Ta-da!

2010-09-28T14:49:00.003-04:00

This time the produce came from the Farmer's Marketbut that doesn't mean that we are enjoying the pickled green beans any less.

Hooray for Fall!

2010-09-28T14:32:00.003-04:00

Mums and pumpkin on the porch: check

Cement goose
(which Rick insists must live on the back porch so only our closest friends who love us anyway will see it)
dressed in his Buckeye uniform: check

Pumpkin spice latte: check

Photo-op in front a display of gourds: check

Aaahhhh- it must be fall.

Fishin' with Grandpa

2010-09-06T13:55:00.003-04:00

Earlier this summer Will vacationed at Grandma and Grandpa's house and spent his week riding horses, picnicking, and geocaching through central Pennsylvania. When we drove over to pick him up, I had the opportunity to go fishing with Will and my dad. Because fishing requires two things that Will lacks: patience and the ability to remain quiet for several minutes, we didn't catch anything. But it was a beautiful summer day and we spent a nice afternoon torturing the worms.

Summer of Ballet

2010-09-06T12:24:00.004-04:00

At the end of the school year I asked Will what activity he'd like to try for the summer. It may have been because he happened to be watching 'Olivia' at the time (that's a cartoon featuring a ballet dancing pig), but he said, "Ballet".
BalletMet runs some really neat summer camps that last for a couple of weeks and culminate in a 'recital' for families. Will participated in Folk Dances from Around the World,
Magic Garden,
and
Dance Me a Story.

If you've never seen little kids dancing ballet, it's pretty hysterical. And those teachers have the patience of saints.

I heard Will say to one of his friends on the playground, "I've been doing ballet so I can jump really high." He told me he enjoyed it and would like to continue in the fall.
I don't mind telling you that I would probably die of excitement if Will ever danced in the Nutcracker.

The Canning Craze Continues

2010-09-06T11:58:00.004-04:00

As promised, Rick planned a peach picking trip to Apple Hill Orchard.

From this

To this

The next Adventure in Canning:
Pickled Green Beans
(which I hear are great as garnish for Bloody Marys!)

Mr. Smiley Goes to Washington

2010-08-30T15:12:00.009-04:00

This past weekend Rick, Soren, and I traveled to Washington, DC to attend the
Restoring Honor Rally at the Lincoln Memorial.
We got there Friday evening and walked down the National Mall from our hotel to see some sights, take in the event preparations, and share in the building excitement.

There were already people camped out on the grounds, chairs and blankets set up, ready to stay all night to claim their choice spots.

On Saturday morning we met up with Grandpa who had taken a bus down with a group from Pennsylvania. Then we trooped down the National Mall again, this time with about 500,000 (by official reports) other people. We got there early enough to find a nice shady spot under a tree toward the end of the reflecting pool.

There were JumboTrons set up so that we could still see the program that included singing, prayer, and speeches by Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, and Alveda King that honored the military and urged people to include the principles of Faith, Hope, and Charity in their lives.
Despite the crowds and potential for politically charged atmosphere, I am pleased to report that everyone we encountered was polite and pleasant and respectful.

Being a politically active citizen suited Soren well.
Or maybe what suited him was being an only child for the weekend.
Will was at Grandma's house doing equally cool things like making home made Play-Doh.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in July

2010-08-20T21:30:00.005-04:00

At the end of last month, we managed to pull off a very festive
5th Annual
Christmas in July party.

A new addition to the revelry this year was Matt the Balloon Guy who amazed and delighted us with his creations including:

The Three Musketeers
A Frog Corsage
and The Little Mermaid!
We also observed the time-honored traditions of grilling out, blowing bubbles, and passing the parcel. Fun was had by all.

Funny enough, we spent the next day at Zoombeezi Bay where they were also celebrating Christmas in July. I knew it!
Christmas in July is sweeping the nation!

One Year Ago

2010-08-01T21:57:00.003-04:00

One Year Ago last night
Grandma and Grandpa arrived one week before your due date so we would have plenty of time to get ready
(or so we thought)

One Year Ago today
I missed Mary's Stamp-A-Stack Fundraiser
(I don't intend to miss it this year! Check it out here)

One Year Ago today
I heard your voice for the first time.
It was the most wonderful sound because I knew right away that you were healthy and strong.

Happy First Birthday, Our Darling Soren!
We love you and are so excited to watch you grow!

More summer outings

2010-07-20T21:25:00.005-04:00

Last weekend we drove to Dayton to visit the National Museum of the US Air Force. They were celebrating the anniversaries of the Apollo 11 and Apollo 15 Moon Landings.
There was tons of fun stuff for kids going on: story readings, craft stations, building and launching rockets, and so many different kinds of flying machines to look at!

(Cue the 'Top Gun' theme music)

(Cue the 'The Right Stuff' theme music)

We even picked up some freeze dried Astronaut Ice Cream in the gift shop.
It was... um... interesting.

Personally my favorite part was the beautiful park outside filled with monuments and memorials to pilots and squadrons and veterans. If you go I would recommend parking at the far end of the parking lot and strolling through the shady park on your way to the museum's front door.

Oh- also there is no admission charge for the museum. It's hard to beat that.

Summer outings

2010-07-20T20:59:00.005-04:00

In June my dad came to Columbus to go with Rick to see Bill O'Reilly and Glenn Beck. He got into town early enough that there was enough time to visit the new Polar Bears at the zoo.

From the pictures they took it looks like the bear displays were possibly more fun than the actual bears.

Seriously, we are lucky to have such a great zoo in Columbus.
We never get tired of seeing the animals.
Maybe the animals get tired of seeing us.

A little yummy for your tummy

2010-07-20T20:37:00.004-04:00

On the Fourth of July we went here

and picked about a billion yummy black raspberries.

When we got home Rick turned this

into this

Now Rick is on a canning kick and is planning a trip to pick peaches.
I'll let you know how it goes.

Welcome to the Neighborhood

2010-07-08T18:40:00.006-04:00

We have a new associate at work
so this past weekend we threw a little backyard barbecue to welcome
Dr. Steve Phillips and his family to Columbus
(it's actually welcome back since Steve was my junior resident at OSU before moving to Arizona to practice and his wife is originally from Ohio).

Braden and Soren discuss important baby issues.

Braden cleans his plate.

When the sun went down we enjoyed sparklers and a few festive fireworks.

Welcome (back) to Columbus Phillips Family!

First Word

2010-06-28T19:36:00.003-04:00

Drum-roll please......

"Uh-oh"

I hope this is not a harbinger of things to come.

Windy Sunday Afternoon

2010-06-10T21:42:00.003-04:00

What to do on a windy Sunday afternoon?

Make a kite out of a paper bag and "fly" it in the back yard, of course!

No more pencils! No more books!

2010-06-10T21:06:00.005-04:00

Even though Will will go back to preschool next year, it felt very momentous last week when he completed his first year of formal education.
I think it will be a day I will reflect on when he is graduating from high school,
graduating from college,
graduating from grad school,
graduating from his first term as President of the United States.
(No pressure, Will)
I'm sure I'll wonder where the time went.

St. Mary's Preschool put on a lovely picnic complete with watermelon and running through the sprinkler.

I was surprised that Will got a little emotional when it was time to say goodbye to Miss Toni.
She is pretty fantastic.

These are the teacher gifts I made. They turned out pretty cute, right?

We topped off the day with dinner at Mimi's Cafe and Will's favorite Dirt Cake for dessert. Mmmm... that's brain food for sure.

Happy Memorial Day!

2010-05-31T19:34:00.004-04:00

Happy Memorial Day, Everybody!

Kudos to Grove City for putting on a terrific parade.
We were lucky that the rain held off. In fact, the clouds parted and the sun shined down on the lovely memorial ceremony at the cemetery.
It was beautiful!"It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived."
-General George S Patton

Back from Florida - Part III: Disney World!

2010-05-24T22:45:00.008-04:00

The travel agent had neglected to mention that they had relocated Disney World to the surface of the sun. Whew- was it hot! And humid. Did I mention it was hot? Since it was Soren's first visit to Disney,
here are a
Few of Soren's Favorite Things:

The Rides.
His first Disney ride was It's a Small World. We all enjoyed that the line was in a mostly air conditioned area.

Will has already been to Disney 3 times in his short life (mostly thanks to strategically located anesthesia conferences). Will felt nostalgic when we revisited his first Disney ride: Jungle Cruise.

Rick graciously volunteered to watch with Soren while Grandpa and I rode the Mad Hatter's Tea Party 112 times with Will.

The Characters.
Soren especially seemed to enjoy nibbling on them. The ones who got the best reviews:

Cinderella

Pinocchio

Pluto

Piglet

His First Haircut.
Many thanks to my mom's friend, Angie, who clued us in to this unique opportunity. Miss Barbara did a fantastic job at the Barber Shop in Liberty Square.

Here is Soren admiring his ears that have 'First Haircut' embroidered on the back.

The Lizard.
A darling lizard hitched a ride on our stroller for a little while in Tomorrow Land.

The Fireworks.
(No explanation needed, right?)

Grandpa.
It was great of my dad to come along. He was a very good sport and I know Will enjoyed being his traveling buddy. The key to the success of this trip: The grownups outnumbered the children.
Thanks Grandpa!

Back from Florida - Part II: Key Biscayne

2010-05-24T22:05:00.003-04:00

We finally arrived in Key Biscayne and Will was thrilled to get back to the beach.

Soren loved his first swimming pool experience- especially the waterfall.

We were excited to find that, unlike his brother, Soren doesn't mind getting his face wet. Maybe Soren will be my swim team kid.

Oh yeah, there was also an anesthesia conference going on...

...which means we got to spend time with friends we haven't seen since last year!
By far the highlight.

Back from Florida - Part I: St. Marys, Georgia

2010-05-24T21:38:00.005-04:00

On the way to Florida we stopped in St. Marys, Georgia.
I had not been there since high school when my dad's submarine was stationed at Kings Bay. Interestingly, Rick was also on a submarine out of Kings Bay so it was also a return trip for him.

Soren got his first close-up look at a palm tree.
Hair raising!

There is a beautiful little water front park in St. Marys that was new since any of us had been there.

Grandpa and Will relax after a long day in the car.

Thumbs up for Suessical the Musical

2010-04-21T11:36:00.004-04:00

Will and I went to see the Columbus Children's Theater's production of

Seussical the Musical.

It was excellent.

This is a picture of Will at intermission holding the dandelion he picked in the parking lot on the way in. It was kind of fitting because the story line heavily featured Horton the Elephant who spends a lot of time holding a clover flower on which a whole buch of Whos live.

There's a great song in the musical that's been stuck in my head all week:

(I got the lyrics from the internet; I didn't memorize them at the show)

When the news is all bad

When you're sour and blue

When you start to get mad

You should do what I do-

Tell yourself how lucky you are

When your life's going wrong

When the fates are unkind

When you're limping along

And get kicked from behind

Tell yourself how lucky you are

Why decry a cloudy sky

An empty purse

A crazy universe?

My philosophy is simply

Things could be worse!

So be happy you're here

Think of life as a thrill

And if worse comes to worse

(As we all know it will)

Thank your lucky star

You've gotten this far

Tell yourself how lucky you are!

A nice lesson from Dr. Seuss

Look who's a Catholic!

2010-04-19T21:29:00.003-04:00

Last Sunday Soren was baptized at St. Mary's in German Village.
I love that St. Mary's is the same church where Will was baptized, where Rick was baptized, and where Rick and I were married.

Apparently being Catholic is hard work.
This is Soren sleeping through his celebration brunch.

Easter at Grandma's

2010-04-19T20:49:00.009-04:00

Easter at Grandma's house was full of fun treats.

A super bubble bath in Grandma's fancy tubColoring Easter eggsEnjoying the Spring weather at the parkAfter church, we were relieved to see that the Easter Bunny knew how to find us. There was some intense egg hunting on Grandma's porch.Some baseball in the yard with Uncle Ed
Thanks Easter Bunny! (bock bock)

Day of Cakes

2010-03-26T21:24:00.004-04:00

What more could a girl ask for?

Except maybe someone to help with the eating.

Happy Happy

2010-03-17T17:44:00.004-04:00

Happy Spring! Happy St. Patrick's Day! Happy Corned Beef and Cabbage!

So lucky

2010-03-16T21:56:00.003-04:00

We are so lucky
to have a friend like Eleni
who will go with Will to yoga

and take Will ice skatingwhile mom is out of town.
Thanks Eleni!
You are better than most!

(that's a little inside joke)

I HEART N Y

2010-03-09T20:58:00.006-05:00

Last weekend I went to New York City for the first time.

All I can say is 'WOW!'
and 'Why did I wait so long to get myself there?'.
I traveled with a couple of gal pals from work to see a concert at Carnegie Hall in which another colleague of ours played the piano
(yes, I work with a talented bunch).

We stayed here

We went to the top of this building

for these views

We joined the party in Times Square

Some of my favorite things about New York City:

There was so much eye candy. So much to look at. So much going on. And you missed half of it if you didn't look up. I loved that it all was very familiar because I had seen it in a movie or heard of it in a song or a book or a magazine.

Usually when I travel I like to blend as much as possible and not call attention to the fact that I am a clueless tourist. So much for blending on this trip. After the first 10 minutes, we wandered around with our cameras out and shamelessly and frequently stopped to take pictures. I saw a lot of people doing that. No one seemed to mind. I sensed no judgment. I think New Yorkers like that other people are in awe of their city.

Apparently anything goes fashion-wise. We saw all kinds of interesting outfits. Again, no judgment.

Contrary to what I was expecting, there was no jaywalking, the streets were very clean, and New Yorkers were largely very polite! I even heard people saying 'Excuse me' (it's possible those people were other tourists).

The weather was gorgeous.

I ate Manhattan clam chowder in Manhattan.

It's Lent!

2010-02-17T20:20:00.002-05:00

Happy Ash Wednesday, Everybody!

Back to the woods

2010-02-17T15:28:00.005-05:00

We went back to the snowy cabin in the woods for

sledding,

icicle treats,

scenery,

and valentines.

Then home to shovel the sidewalk...
again.

So long, furry little buddy

2010-02-15T21:35:00.003-05:00

This weekend our kitty, Captain Hook, went to Kitty Heaven.
He came to us from our friend Denise about 6 years ago. She called him Steve.
We changed his name to Captain Hook because his tail had a little curl at the end. We called him Cappy and Cappy Capperson and sometimes Cat-person.
He was a sweet, friendly kitty and had very pretty light green eyes.
He loved to give furry, purry kisses... especially if you were trying to sleep.

My Celebrity Kids

2010-01-31T20:51:00.005-05:00

Mmmmmmm... Rice Cereal

2010-01-31T20:36:00.003-05:00

Soren reached a major milestone this weekend when he had his first solid food!

The reviews were mixed.Rick and I were reminiscing about the first solid food Will ate. It was actually a chrysanthemum. He plucked a flower off the plant I had in the shopping cart at Lowe's and popped it into his mouth. I've never tasted chrysanthemum, but judging by the face Will made, it might be about a notch below rice cereal.

Me and my buddies Courtney Cox and Gwenyth Paltrow

2010-01-22T21:33:00.006-05:00

Actually, it was my buddy Eleni who turned me onto this awesome workout. Twice a week we go to Urban Moves in Bexeley and exercise for 30 minutes on the Power Plate. It is basically a vibrating platform and we do lunges and pushups and crunches on it. Because the platform vibrates it forces your muscles to do hundreds of tiny little contractions.
I can tell you that this is a workout that leaves you begging for mercy.
It's awesome!It also makes me feel like I should be dodging the papparazzi when I leave the gym. If you go to the Power Plate website, they have celebrity endorsements by Courtney Cox and Hilary Swank. I hear Madonna takes one of these machines on tour with her. Say what you want about Madonna, the woman's got guns.

Aha! moment

2010-01-17T15:23:00.005-05:00

I usually sort of dread this time of year. I used to call it the Winter Doldrums. The holidays are over. The weather is yucky. Everything is gray: the sky, the patches of dirty snow, the salt encrusted cars. It'll be another few months before we get another three-day-weekend at work. Blech.But then a very wise friend of mine made an off-hand comment that hit me like a ton of bricks. She shared her view of this post-holiday season that I am definitely adopting as my own: this is the quiet time of year after the holiday chaos that started way back in October finally subsides. This is the time of year to catch on projects, clean out closets, enjoy the quiet peace... until the festive chaos of the year catches up with us again.

Funny how God puts people into your life to tap you on the shoulder and whisper His messages to you.

...And a Hocking New Year

2010-01-04T20:32:00.004-05:00

This year we went to Hocking Hills for a few days to ring in the New Year.

Our snowy, cozy cabin.
Rick sledded with Will and Noodle.
Soren and I thought about going back inside.

Will became a fan of hot tubs.

Noodle relaxed by the fire.

We had a nice time in the our little cabin in the woods- a very lovely way to welcome 2010.

Hint taken

2009-12-28T22:22:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I got a not-so-subtle message from the Neighborhood Home Owners Association
(in the form of an urban raccoon)
that it was time to take the pumpkins off the porch.

May your days be merry and bright

2009-12-24T16:56:00.006-05:00

A few weeks ago we made our annual trek here:

With our friends Rod and Anna to ride the festive bus driven by cheerful Official Santa's Helper Ernie:

Out into the field to find the perfect tree:

Which we cut down, dragged back to the lodge and loaded into that machine that shakes all the loose needles off and wraps it up in twine:

(Oh, and we also saw Santa) The trees were loaded onto the cars and we pulled out of the parking lot just as it started sleeting.
This time of year it's easy to believe that that may have possibly been a tiny Christmas Miracle.

Elf-ish

2009-12-24T10:45:00.004-05:00

My friend Denise has a darling daughter, Riley. Yesterday, they had the funniest conversation in the car:

Elvis singing on the radio: "Here comes Santa Claus
Here comes Santa Claus
Right down Santa Claus way."
Radio Announcer: "That was Elvis singing 'Here Comes Santa Claus'"
Riley: "What kind of elf is he? He has an awfully deep voice."

Right about then, Denise laughed coffee through her nose.

Just couldn't resist

2009-12-14T21:07:00.003-05:00

Thanks for the idea, Mary!

The world would be a better place...

2009-12-01T19:55:00.006-05:00

...if everyone had their own Turkey Leg Crown to wear on Thanksgiving.

I hope everyone had a cozy and warm, bountiful and blessed, loving and wonderful Thanksgiving.

(cue the Christmas music)

Thanksgiving Garland

2009-11-16T20:36:00.002-05:00

Though this craft does not involve a sweet treat, I love it! What a great twist on the Christmas paper chain. I only wish I had seen it earlier, it would have been a nice activity for the month of November- next year for sure! Click here for the super simple tutorial on Tangled and True.

The Glee is back in my life

2009-11-13T20:33:00.004-05:00

Something unexpected that happened while I was on maternity leave was that I watched a lot more TV than usual. It seemed ultimately indulgent to curl up in a comfy chair and nurse and cuddle and nap with Soren and watch Judge Judy or whatever was on the History Channel or maybe a Made-For-TV Movie on the Lifetime Network. Delicious.
I happened to catch the season premier of 'gLee' and I was hooked. The Glee was missing from my life for several weeks while baseball was on, but last night 'gLee' was back.

Top 7 Favorite Things I Like About This Show:

1- It is set in Ohio. Lima, Ohio to be exact. I'm not sure where that is, but every time they mention that they are in Ohio, it feels like when you're at the concert of a really cool band and the lead singer announces how great it is to be in (insert the name of your town) and the whole crowd screams "Woohoooo".

2- The characters attend William McKinley High School. William McKinley was my grandmother's cousin. Another "WooHoooo" moment.

3- My favorite character is Sue Sylvester the cheerleading coach. She's wicked crazy.

4- My second favorite character is Emma Pillsbury, the obsessive/compulsive, germ-phobic guidance counselor.

5- My third favorite character is Principal Figgins. Hysterical Pakistani guy.

6- The "cool" couple is Quinn Fabray and Finn Hudson. Quinn and Finn. Hee hee.

7- Though I am typically not a fan of musicals ('The Wizard of Oz' and 'The Sound of Music' being notable exceptions) the singing fits naturally into the story line because... well, it's about a Glee Club.

*Disclaimer: There are some dubious moral messages in the show. For instance, in this week's episode they are having a bake sale to raise money to charter a 'handicapable' bus so the whole club can ride to a competition together, including Artie who is in a wheelchair. The bake sale is a flop until they make cupcakes laced with marijuana and that seems to be passed off as okay. Maybe that's why it comes on late at night... Whew- these days 9 o'clock is past my bedtime.

Get a load of these cuties

2009-11-13T20:15:00.004-05:00

For this month's Stampin' Up Club swap, I made Nugget Turkeys (the idea for which I got from Splitcoaststampers and this blog) and 'Happy Harvest' covered peanut butter cups (!).
Obviously I'm a sucker for any craft that involves sweet treats.
The best part is giving them away.