We Three Blooms

Taking Care

2012-01-27T17:11:00.000-07:00

I called-in sick today. Its not that I'm not well....its that I am.....un-well.

And I knew if I didn't do something about it. Today. That I would keep getting more tired, more frustrated, more overwhelmed.

So I took that a-hole, burning-it-at-both-ends bull by the horns and kicked its ass to midnight.

I called-in sick. I got a massage. I hung out with my husband. I napped in the sun with Holly. I drank green tea and hot chocolate. I read a magazine, did a couple loads of laundry.

And I feel SO much better.

So much better that when my girl asked me to give her a pedi, instead of feeling put out and grumpy I felt enthusiastic and grateful that she wanted me to take care of her.

So I did.

I Have A Dream

2012-01-23T19:54:00.000-07:00

From a school assignment:

For my community: "Take care of all my pets. 1 dog and 2 birds. What I do with my dog is pet her a LOT! What I do with my birds I cover them."

For my country: "no bulling or you won't be that nice when you grow up no afance (offense)".

For the world: "Recycle the most as you ever did the world will mak a biger place." (because there will be less garbage on it)

Ocho!

2012-01-22T13:07:00.000-07:00

Another Circle

2012-01-20T10:33:00.000-07:00

I am the mother of an eight year old today.

I woke her up at 2:11am to tell her she had just been born, 8 years ago. I plan to wake her up, wherever she is, at that time for the rest of her life. Yes, I plan to be THAT annoying.

School is out today, so she got to sleep in. I was up getting ready for work and heard the familiar morning request..."Mama? Can I have chocolate milk?" I mixed it up and took it to her in bed. She was warm and soft and had delicious morning breath. I helped her sit up against some pillows, handed her the glass with straw, and laid my head in her lap. Her fingers instantly went to work, twirling and swirling my hair around. When she finished drinking we snuggled face-to-face for a long time. I put my face in her neck and inhaled as much of her as I could.

Last night she requested a teppanyaki dinner. We were seated at the grill and then joined by two other parties. One was a couple with a 7 month old baby. I wanted to tell them how quickly that 7 month old will be sitting next to them with her napkin in her lap, talking to the waitress with confidence, eating with chopsticks, carrying-on a lovely conversation. At the end of dinner we sang happy birthday (with tamborines! and gongs!) and she enjoyed an ice cream sundae. The waitress took a photo of us and we hung it with all the other celebratory photos on the wall. I stared at the photo after hanging it, loving what I saw.

I saw a man, so handsome, so freaking photogenic! He takes such good care of us, sometimes in untraditional and quirky/Clarky ways. We feel loved.

I saw a girl. A GIRL, who is absolutely blossoming as she grows. Each day her generosity, kindness, sense of humor, intuitivness, and insightfulness astound me.

I saw myself. And I liked what I saw. I saw my little family.

And we have an EIGHT year old!

Happy Birthday, Boogie. I love you like a love song, baby.

Idol Memories

2012-01-19T09:55:00.000-07:00

Last night was a very special, and dare I say, sacred night in the Bloom household.

The Season Premier of American Idol.

Eight years ago, Clark and I were watching the season premier while my labor intensified. I was bouncing away on my big green yoga ball, watching the first ever season of Idol. Old school, people.

Clark kept saying maybe we should go to the hospital?

And I was like, hold on, I want to see this next part.

And then I would scream a little louder and he would say, do you think maybe we should go?

And I would be all, Dude! This is history right here! It's almost over and then we can go.

We got to the hospital at whatever time it took to leave our house when it was over at 9 plus drive to LDS Hospital. We had Tia 5 hours later. And a few weeks later, Kelly Clarkson won the first American Idol and will always hold a little piece of my heart for being there with me that night.

Final Touch

2012-01-18T07:39:00.000-07:00

And now the kitchen is done for reals!

Spice racks from Ikea and an under-the-cabinet light.

The cool pottery that holds herbs is made by our friend Aaron of

Ashcraft Pottery.

Almost Eight

2012-01-14T20:09:00.000-07:00

Looking decidedly eight-ish at ballet class this morning.

An early birthday cake treat made by Grandma J.

Our baby will be 8 in 6 days! CRAZY.

That Whole "Ask Less Questions" Goal of Tia's...Not So Much

2012-01-12T13:59:00.001-07:00

First, I know it should be FEWER questions. It was Tia's goals and I love her adorable grammatical errors... what can I say? My favorite word confusion of her's right now is when she uses container for the word retainer, ie "I probably won't need braces, just a container".

Anyhoodles. Last night we had plenty of time for QUESTIONS because we drove from home to dance, and then from dance to our hair salon, and then home. On the way to the hair salon I got quizzed on topics ranging from my first marriage and divorce, to the miscarriage we had before we made her, to what her LDS friends believe, to why there are holes in swiss cheese. I am not kidding.

On the way home from the salon she said, "Okay, Mama, now you ask me lots of questions". Here is a small sampling of her answers.

Q: What is your biggest dream?
A: To be single, live til I am 96, and be pretty the whole time.

Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?
A: A movie star.

Q: What is your favorite book?
A: It's A Book. (she likes it because she gets to legitimately use the word jackass at the end)

Here's to the lines of communication remaining forever open and unfiltered!

Two Words

2012-01-11T11:52:00.000-07:00

THIN MINTS

It is Girl Scout cookie time, people.

All the usual suspects...Thin Mints, Samoas, Tagalongs, all of them....just in time to sabotage your New Year's resolutions.

If you are interested in placing an order for cookies with our favorite Brownie, email me at km_bloom@yahoo.com and I will place an order for you. I cannot officially place your order until this Saturday, but if you let me know beforehand, I will simply take your order as an advisement and officially place the order on Saturday. Got that?

The Girl Scout cookie theme this year is "What a cookie can do". What Tia hopes it can do is earn her an i-pad, which entails selling 2,500 boxes of cookies.

The thought of managing the delivery of 2,500 boxes of cookies gives me cold sweats. A more immediate and less cold-sweat-inducing goal is to earn her way to Girl Scout summer horseback riding camp.

If you live far away and would like to purchase cookies to be donated, the girls have chosen to donate cookies to our local firestation. (Actually, I sort of chose it because I want to hang with hot firemen under the guise of community service. Whatever)

If you live far away and still want the cookies we can ship them to you eventhough it means denying me extra points with hot firemen. Still. For you. I'll do it.

The cookies are $3.50 per box. Our troop receives .40 cents per box. My girls want to go to Disneyland.

No pressure.

xoxoxo

Second To None

2012-01-10T18:29:00.000-07:00

{Last night, after a rousing episode of The Bachelor (I know, I know), Tia whips out a bottle of lotion and starts giving me a calf and foot massage}

Me: Tia, you are the sweetest thing on Earth.

Tia: No, second sweetest.

Me: Who's sweeter than a girl who gives her Mama a foot massage?

Tia: A baby koala.

PS...it was awesome.
PPS...taking her to the nail salon is paying off! woot!

She Really Doesn't Wear The Apron All Day Long

2012-01-09T18:16:00.002-07:00

The girls in front of a beautiful sunset tonite.

Ditto on the smells coming from the kitchen again tonite.

Grandma J. is at it again.

Color me spoiled...by her and the view!

It Takes A Village

2012-01-08T17:52:00.000-07:00

We are very happy to have Grandma J. visiting for a whole week.

She retired last summer so now we get her here for longer visits.

The smells coming from the kitchen are aMAZing...and Tia loves helping.

I am so thankful she has people in her life who will teach her to cook.

Here are Tia and Grandma J. figuring out ingredients.

I spent the time taking down the remaining Christmas decorations.

It feels soooo good!

Clark works on Sundays, so we had a lovely girls day of movie, lunch, and shopping.

Tia's New Year Goals

2012-01-02T16:46:00.000-07:00

...As written in an assignment she did at school today.

*Be kinder

*Be smarter

*Win more. (She spelled winner as "winer" so I said "you want to whine more? and she said NO, WIN MORE. I said win what? She said I DON'T KNOW)

*Ask less questions (But I love your questions)

*Cover the birds at night without having to be asked.

*Running (I said, you want to go running? And she said, well, walking.)

And Furthermore...

2012-01-01T13:33:00.001-07:00

*Go explore the Great Salt Lake since I have lived here for almost 10 years and haven't done that yet. That is sort of embarrassing to admit.
*Match my bra and panties more often than not. Then if my worst fears come true and I am in public and my underwear have to show (medical emergency, etc) I will have a better chance of being caught in a good undergarment situation. And yes, I DO care about that even in a life and death situation.
*I've always wanted to be one of those people who looks cute at home in their loungewear. I will try harder at being one of those cute people.

We are headed to the mall. Clark has something to return to Sears (a likely story) and I want to start the year off with an Orange Julius.

Switch/Change

2011-12-30T19:50:00.000-07:00

I love the ritual of moving into the new calendar. Last year we had birds, this year Tay Tay.

Its so fun to revisit the past months and remember what we were up to.

Around here, we go straight from the birthday of Baby Jesus to the birthday of Baby Tia.

Christmas decorations come down, birthday decorations go up.

Taking down the Christmas decorations is as satisfying as it is fun to put them up.

Tomorrow is New Year's Eve.

I have been thinking about some goals for the year.

Here they are so far:

*Remember to put sunscreen on Tia's face every day.

*Keep a journal by my bed so I can write down the crap I think about at 2am....for instance....the other night I had a dream that I could only remember parts of after I woke up. One part I remembered was that Clark had bought a 32 dollar jar of pickles out of a hotel mini-fridge and he was all non-chalant about it. I wish I remembered the rest of that dream because it sounds like a total fantasy!

*Write more letters. On paper. And mail them. With a stamp.

*Say yes more to things that make me uncomfortable. That is a lot more things.

*Say not to: There is this blog I compulsively read...by a super successful blogess who drives her kids around without seat belts and is super into Mitt Romney and guns and took donations for 2 years but now has a sailboat and season passes to a ski resort South of here for her entire family. Anyway, stop compulsively checking this blog and contributing my meager hits to her insanity while simultaneously pissing myself off for both compulsively reading it AND for what I read.

*eat right, exercise more, blah blah blah.

*Drink less wine and eat less Nutella.

(That last one was a joke)

Happy New Year!!

xoxo

2011-12-29T10:45:00.000-07:00

I am at work today.

I have a cold.

Coffee still tastes really good.

I am glad the holidays are (mostly) over.

Our house is still sort of a wreck, in a Christmasy sort of way.

We have friends coming over for dinner tonite and our house is (see above).

I feel pudgy.

I have a stack of reading to do for school next weekend.

I think New Year's Eve will be a very quiet one for us. I like that.

I am excited for the New Year.

A Very Happy Girl And Her Prezies

2011-12-25T20:13:00.000-07:00

Horsies!

2011-12-24T07:59:00.001-07:00

For Tina and Ryan's last night in town, and for my horse-loving mom, we had to go do the sleigh ride again this year.

Duke and Dan.

This is what a group of people freezing their asses off looks like.

Steve and Nana

Tia's eyeballs were cold.

Auntie T. and Ry

Oh sweet jesus, the warm restaurant at last.

Tia and Ry took turns being our paparazzi.

We took Tina and Ryan to the airport very early this morning. Sadness. It was such a fun visit and so great to see the kiddos together.

I can't believe it is Christmas Eve. Tia is beside-herself excited that Santa is coming tonite and she gets to open gifts tomorrow. I can't wait to see her be thrilled tomorrow.

Happiest of Holidays to Everyone! MWAH!

xoxo

When In Rome

2011-12-22T08:03:00.000-07:00

We took Trax downtown to see the lights at Temple Square.

Fuzzy the Koala has been accompanying us almost everywhere lately.

The train ride home never fails to put Tia asleep or nearly asleep.

When we got home we had brie and bread with balsamic while Clark popped the veggie lasagna he had made earlier into the oven. Steamed artichokes, too. (Back up off ladies, he's mine!)

It has been so great having Tina and Ryan here. The time is going by wayyyy too quickly. Mom, Steve, and Heidi the Wonder Pup arrive this afternoon! We are going to do our gift exchange with Ryan and Tina tonite since they leave early on Christmas Eve and we have fun plans in Park City tomorrow night.

Tia And Ryan's Adventures

2011-12-21T16:10:00.000-07:00

Nightime snow walk

Indoor sledding.

A Favorite Tradition

2011-12-18T11:41:00.000-07:00

We had our 6th annual Gingerbread House Palooza last night with the Masons. This night is always one of the best parts of the holiday season. No pressure, no stress, lots of wine, whatever food we decide to order in and copious amounts of candy to play with. More IS more!

Clark is the master of roofs. Note the H for Holly on the side of the house.

Tia's own graham cracker house.

Making the evening even better for Tia; she got to sleepover with two of her favorite girls afterwards.

For Talia

2011-12-13T11:42:00.000-07:00

It reads:

If I was a saler (sailor) my boat would be clod (called) the fun boat.

I would sale (sail) to Sadiog (San Diego).

I would find my cousin and we will do a pickchers (pictures) all

a round the world and on the way we foud (found) are (our) friends.

I LOVE the phonetic spelling of picture!

But not as much as Tia loves her Talia!

Nesting

2011-12-13T10:00:00.000-07:00

Honey Tree and Coca Cola at bedtime.

Tea For Us Two

2011-12-12T16:34:00.000-07:00

We had a mahvelous time at our tea yesterday.

The Grand America (or GRAND, as they are calling themselves) was beautifully decorated. Tia said the whole thing reminded her of being in San Francisco.

There were a few groups of women there decked out in fascinators and hats. It was a really sweet experience.

Tia's favorites were the smores truffle (middle of the bottom plate above), and the currant scone with lemon cream, raspberry cream, and um, cream. We also had some cream.

My favorite thing was the green tea blossom. When you sit down there is a weed sitting in a glass in front of you. The server pours hot water into the glass and the flower blooms. The green tea it made was sooo delicious...earthy and mellow.

I bought two blossoms to bring home. Its going to be my new party trick.

Here I am drinking it in full bloom.

I also loved the savory finger sandwhiches....especially the salmon in puff pastry and the cucumber with olive and pimento.

Tia and I agreed we need to do tea more often.

We highly recommend it, dahlings.

Le Sigh

2011-12-09T16:44:00.000-07:00

So, you know THAT mom. The mom that does it all? Tia has a friend who's mom is that mom. I hear things like..."her mom made her SWIMSUIT and it is soooo cute!", "her mom made our teacher a birthday cake and it was TIE DYED!", "her mom makes homemade croissants....everything is homemade".

I admit, I am super sensitive to hearing these things from Tia because I am SO NOT that mom. I am opposite of that mom. Why, oh why would you make croissants when you can buy perfectly lovely croissants at the bakery? I just don't get it.

When I picked Tia up from the bus yesterday she had yet another story about something amazing this mom had done. I was coming off a rough day at work....one where I led a focus group on the trust and communication issues in our office (good times!)...and...well, I just didn't want to hear it. "I'm sorry I'm not more like her" is what I said. Way to be a gross martyry victimy yucky mom.

Tia responded the only way she could know how to by saying "it's okay, Mommy"...which in my gross martyry victimy yucky space sounded like "I'm okay with how much you suck. I have accepted it".

In the past I have told myself she doesn't work.....which is like the biggest cop-out ever because even if I didn't work, I still wouldn't be like her. I am not built that way. I wouldn't LIKE being that mom because I hate doing all the shit she is so good at. But Tia clearly admires her talents and thus I realize I am jealous of her for being so awesome that my kid is impressed.

And that, my friends, is how teeny tiny a person I am! Self realization is AWESOME!!

With that, I wish you all a beautiful weekend.

Clark and I get to have a date tonite while Tia is at a birthday party.

Tomorrow is my work party. Two words: OPEN BAR.

On Sunday Tia and I are going to enjoy Tea at the Grand America.

I will most likely have a CROISSANT!

Watching Me Get Dressed This Morning

2011-12-08T10:05:00.003-07:00

Tia: That looks a little too Little House on the Prairie.

{Long Pause}

Tia: That was a "no".

Caroling With My Scouties

2011-12-07T19:58:00.001-07:00

We took the Troop-a-doop Christmas caroling last night.

I would say it was off-the-charts cute....

but there IS no chart that could contain the cuteness unleashed last night.

Nope.

They had a 3 song repertoire: Jingle Bells, Rudolph, and Santa Clause Is Coming To Town.

The people the girls sang for smiled ear-to-ear.

We saved Clark for last and then we went inside for delicious hot chocolate and amazing cookies that the troop mamas brought. This is definitely one of my favorite holiday memories ever!

2006

2011-12-06T11:48:00.000-07:00

I was cleaning up my work computer the other day and came across these photos from Thanksgiving Point in September 2006.

Not a lot has changed....

Tia still has her rad sense of style. I WISH she still had those boots. And that vest.

Her friend Neve here is now her BABYSITTER holy shit.

And, OF COURSE, I look exactly the same. No changes there. nope.

Last summer this little girl went away to horseback riding camp by herself for a week.

This morning she took such a long shower that the fish called, asking for their ocean back.

She also checked her email account.

While I took a freezing cold shower.

She still drinks chocolate milk every.single.morning.

And if I sit close and put my head in her lap, she still twirls my hair around while she drinks it.

I know its weird to say I hope she still does that 5 years from now, when she's thirteen.

But I do!

As Of Late

2011-12-03T21:04:00.001-07:00

On Thursday night Tia and I strung 72 jingle bells onto curling ribbon while watching Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (Clark's favorite). Tia's class has its "Store" day next week and this is the merchandise she chose to sell. Each student has been busy earning virtual money and they'll get to shop their classmates stores and buy stuff with their money.

On Friday night I went to class and got my shameful midterm exam grade back and turned in my final paper. I conducted a memorial service for my previously stellar gpa and thanked it for hanging around for so long. It was nice while it lasted.

Clark and Tia made cupcakes for me to take to class for a little baby shower we threw for an expectant Mama in our cohort.

Saturday morning Clark woke up early to frost the cupcakes and get all the snow off my car. He is, hands down, the BEST.

In class I did my poster presentation and finished up another class. Check. Check. We got our books for our next class and learned we have a little reading between now and January 6th, but not enough to spoil the holidays or anything like that. Sigh of relief.

On Saturday night my favorite girl and I got foxed up and went to the Nutcracker. We didn't go to the official Ballet West production this year. Instead we went to a kid friendly production called Molly Mouse's Nutcracker Debut. It was short and sweet and totally adorable. It was performed in the same theater that Tia performed in a few weeks ago and she was super excited to see the stage and space from the audience perspective.

The extra head of hair above belongs to Mer the American Girl doll. Tia wanted her to come see the Nutcracker with us and they even wore matching outfits. It cracks me up that Tia always throws on a bit of lipstick when we go out to something fancy!

It was a treat to be downtown and see all of the holiday lights. It looked sooo beautiful and it was BUSTLING! It made me feel proud, seeing SLC all shiny like that.

Tomorrow is my FORTY FOURTH freaking birthday. How the HELL did that happen?

We girls are going to visit the new Utah Museum of Natural History and do lunch while Clark is at work. When he gets home we are going out to dinner. Then we'll have chocolate cake with chocolate frosting for birthday cake.

I am such a lucky girl.

Have a beautiful weekend!

xoxo

Woo Hoo!

2011-12-01T11:10:00.000-07:00

This little gem arrived in the mail last night from my sister, thou who knows me so well! I listened to it on the way to work and it is soooo sweet!

It will be in heavy rotation at home throughout the holidays.

Next We'll Be Sharing Shoes

2011-12-01T07:22:00.000-07:00

Tia went up to put on her jams last night and when I found her all jammed up, she had borrowed one of my t-shirts. I had one of those I'm-a-dude-and-you-look-super-cute-in-my-favorite-team's-jersey moments.

Letter To Santa

2011-11-29T14:48:00.000-07:00

Here is a reprisal of Tia's letter to Santa, which I couldn't scan because of its size. It took a lot of tape and many stamps to get the sucker sent off to the North Pole.

It went like this:

Dear Santa,

I have been very good. I would like a Monster High Doll, a picure of your reindeer, toys for my birds that are finches, and an Eloise custome.

Then, she created a secret area of the letter where she had a little flap of paper to cover this request:

I would also like a lap top.

LOVE, TIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is so much easier now that she knows that the mall Santas aren't real. I don't have to answer the questions that come along with that whole charade....Why does that one look different? How come he is here AND at the other mall at the same time? How come? How come? How come? Infinity....

Now, she declares: That is not the real santa AND I don't sit on strangers' laps! I think that is a pretty awesome life philosophy in general.

Santa Elves are working away on the above requests.

Thanksgiving Kicks A

2011-11-27T17:03:00.001-07:00

Four. Day. Weekend.

Mashed potatoes, stuffing, and sweet potatoes for breakfast, 3 days in a row.

Finally exploring H&M (Tia got two cute things).

No alarm clocks.

Hot coffee + newspaper with tons of ads + nowhere to be = bliss.

Having time to check stuff off the list: winterizing the yard, sewing patches on Tia's Girl Scout sash, cleaning.

Addressing holiday cards.
Wrapping gifts.
The Sarah McLachlan album "Wintersong", again and again.

Putting up the Christmas Tree and all the decorations.

Tia and Clark baking brownies.

Cleaning out our CD collection. Stacking the CD deck with all Christmas music.

Finishing an amazing book.

Seeing The Muppets.
Long walks with Holly. Long baths. Long visits with friends near and far.

Watching Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. Learning a LOT about history watching a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.
Finally getting why my mom always cries to Silent Night.
Puzzles, games, dancing, drawing.

Four days devoted to togetherness and eating.

xoxo

The Past

2011-11-26T13:00:00.000-07:00

(My Grandmother's tablecloth and plates, glasses given to Clark and me as a wedding gift)

I have been in a bit of a time warp lately. It started last week when I cyber stalked my ex-husband. He is super easy to stalk because he is EVERYWHERE online....no social media outlet is left unturned by his words. He even has a book available on Kindle for 99 cents. But, even if I did want to spring for it, and give him his 5th sale (sorry, that was mean)....there is no point. He calls the book a memoir of his time in "Hollywood" (funny, I thought we lived in Los Angeles) but I know without even reading it that my character has been written out of those stories just as it has been erased from any history he reveals anywhere else. Apparently he is going through a rough divorce and for that I am sorry. But at least this second ex-wife will live in his story.

There is something proundly sad to me about being forgotten by him. Ten years of my life have been erased. So I find myself thinking of those ten years and remembering...because its important. I would not be who I am, where I am, if not for my time with him. And he would not be who he is, where he is, without his time with me, as much as he might hate to acknowledge it. My mind drifts from then to now, present to past, as if to reassure myself that those years DID happen....even if they only happened to me.

Something the memories of my time with him gives me is an intense appreciation for what I have now, which is peace. Which he and I never had. Which I hope he has someday. Maybe the next time I google him I will find he has some. I really do hope so.

Gratitude In November-The Famlia

2011-11-23T11:22:00.000-07:00

Happiest of Thanksgivings to all!

Love and Hugs!
xoxo

Saying Grace....

2011-11-22T11:34:00.000-07:00

...The Greg Focker way:

O dear God, thank You. You are such a good God to us, a kind and gentle... and accommodating God. And we thank You, O sweet, sweet Lord of hosts... for the... smorgasbord... You have so aptly lain at our table this day... and each day... by day. Day by day by day. O dear Lord, three things we pray. To love Thee more dearly. To see Thee more clearly. To follow Thee more nearly... day by day... by day. Amen. Amen.

Or! The Ricky Bobby way:

Dear Lord Baby Jesus, or as our brothers to the south call you JÈsusÖwe thank you so much for this bountiful harvest of Dominoís, KFC, and the always delicious Taco Bell. I just want to take time to say thank you for my family, My two beautiful, beautiful, handsome, striking sons, Walker, and Texas Ranger, or T.R., as we call him. And of course my red hot smokiní wife, Carley, who is a stone cold fox, who if you would rate her ass on 100 it would easily be a 94. I also want to thank you for my best friend and teammate, Cal Naughton Jr, Whoís got my back no matter what.

You're welcome.

This Whole Thing Is Getting Harder And Harder To Pull Off

2011-11-20T18:34:00.000-07:00

Unpacking our first ever Elf on a Shelf today:

"Mama? Is our Elf real?"

"He will be after we get him out of his box"

"Okay, because I think he was made in a factory. He has a Made In China tag"

This Made Me Smile

2011-11-16T11:45:00.000-07:00

I know I am the mom and all...but are those not the cutest little kitty toes you have ever seen?

xoxo

Gratitude In November-Better Living Through Chemistry

2011-11-15T12:12:00.000-07:00

I woke up with a raging headache this morning. Actually, it was with me all night. Thank you to the creators of ibuprofen. Thank you for the caffeine that rushes it through my bloodstream. Thank you to my department for providing both.

Gratitude In November-Its The Little Things (And There Are No Little Things)

2011-11-13T18:27:00.000-07:00

This Weekend, oh soooooo grateful for

My classmate (she knows who she is) who has become my friend.
My instructor allowing me to leave class to see Tia's dance recital on Saturday.
The Daddy who got the dancer to the performance venue two hours early, with hair done and "light blush and lipstick" applied, per the dancer's instructors, just right.
Watching Tia dance with total joy in her face and body.
Friends who came bearing flowers and a homemade card for the dancer.
Another weekend of class d.o.n.e.
Knocking some to-do's off the Christmas list.
Christmas cards are ordered! check! And they should be here in time to address over the Thanksgiving weekend.

xoxo

Gratitude In November-TWO LITTLE LETTERS!!!

2011-11-11T15:49:00.000-07:00

H & M

opened in SLC at noon today mutha effers!!!

Woooohooooo!!

There are currently lines outside the doors.

I am trying to restrain myself from going this weekend.

Maybe Sunday will be okay?

OMGOMGOMGOMG

Gratitude In November-Books

2011-11-10T10:41:00.000-07:00

I am grateful for books! And that I find such joy in reading a great book. I remember waking up most mornings to find my mom in a big chair, with a big cup of tea, and her latest book. As a kid, I went through my parents' collection top to bottom, bottom to top, and then again about 10 times. Some of the titles were NOT appropriate (Helter Skelter comes to mind!) but I ate it all up. I just finished a historical novel about a Medieval knight and his family. Currently I am ripping through The Bucolic Plague, recommended to me by two trusted sources, and worth its weight in gold. I need to figure out what is next up. When I started school I thought my pleasure reading days would be on hold for two years, but I actually find I need this reading to counterbalance the text books and articles. It is my brain's yin-yang.

Now that Tia is reading to herself and enjoying rather than struggling with reading, we spend the last hour of the day in bed, with tea, reading. We read to ourselves and with each other. We started Dicken's A Christmas Carol a couple of weeks ago, so lately I read Tia to sleep with that. Isn't that one of the most delicious luxuries? Being read to sleep? aaaah.

Other luxuries to do with books....beach reading, pool reading, airplane reading, doctor's office reading, in-the-bookstore reading (WHY does that make me have to poop!?!?!), fireplace reading, ski lodge reading, hotel room reading. Have I forgotten anything?

What should I read next? I would love to hear your recommendations!!

xoxo

Insight

2011-11-09T15:08:00.000-07:00

In answer to the homework question "Which do you like better, day or night? Why?":

I like night better because you don't haff to worry about anything.

I love getting "peeks" like this. Too often I get caught up in thinking what a fabulous kid life Tia has. I forget that she is a person who is spending 7 hours a day in school learning how to do pretty monumental stuff, like I donno READ, and that she wants to do well, and gets frustrated if she doesn't. And she is navigating multiple relationships with adults and kids, and then figuring out who she is and then going to dance and then going to drama and then and then and then.

No wonder it feels good to fall asleep at night and not haff to worry.

Gratitude In November-My Squeeze

2011-11-08T11:18:00.000-07:00

Today is Clark's birthday and I am so very grateful he was born. And of course grateful that all the twists and turns we traveled along the way have led us to celebrate the 44th anniversary of his birth today, together.

An Outside Perspective

2011-11-07T11:12:00.000-07:00

I logged onto Etsy this morning to start some Christmas shopping and here is what I saw:

Items Matching Your Taste

I am a little bit worried about myself.

Gratitude In November-Friends And Neighbors

2011-11-06T12:29:00.000-07:00

Tia was 10 months old when we moved into this house. Two years later our neighbors had a little girl and they have been friends every since. Today (so far) they have danced, played princess, played dress-up, had a tea party, worked on a puzzle and jumped rope. We kind of like the rest of the family, too, and are very grateful to have them as neighbors and call them our friends.

Gratitude In November-School Days

2011-11-05T10:22:00.000-06:00

I am so grateful that Tia loves school and looks forward to being there every day. And that she is happy and full of news when I pick her up at the end of each day. I am also grateful that she feels safe at school and that I feel she is safe and well cared for there.

Tia had her parent-teacher conference on Thursday. We also got to visit the art show she participated in and see her blue ribbon!

Outside her classroom there were more art displays. So cute! I live for this shit.

Can you see the little peace signs on his arms?

Tia came home the day they did these bows and taught me all the steps in drawing them.

The meeting with her teacher was great. She said Tia is very respectful and that makes me happiest. She is doing great at math but needs work on her handwriting (duh). One thing she mentioned which I had been wondering about is how Tia still struggles with sounding words out. Her teacher said it will come, it is just a stage in the process. I love reassuring teachers! On the other hand, she has gotten 100% on every spelling test.....I wonder if she is like me and can picture the words in her head when she is trying to spell. Her teacher also said she excels at her reading expression and that it is really fun to listen to her read. This speaks to the actress in her personality me thinks!

This Made Me Feel Old

2011-11-04T10:50:00.000-06:00

Below is the transcript from a Fresh Air piece on NPR yesterday. I almost crashed my car into the side of the road and cried while listening. Whaaaa the fuuuuuuuuuu??? (2 spaces) I will NEVER be able to break this habit!!

"Two spaces is wrong. ... The reason two spaces were put into practice was because of the manual typewriter. And there was a type of font on the manual typewriter called 'monospace font,' which means the space between every letter was the same, and the width of every letter was the same. So in that type of font, it looked slightly more readable to have two spaces between sentences than it did to have one space. But when we switched to computers, we went back to using the kinds of fonts called proportional fonts. With proportional fonts, every letter has a different width that corresponds to what it is used for. Because every letter has a different width, the space after a period has its appropriate width when you use just one [space after a period]. So that's how many you use. ... The two-space rule is really a holdover from typewriters. The reason you were taught it in school was because your teachers learned to type on typewriters, but we no longer type on typewriters."

Gratitude In November-Modern Medicine

2011-11-04T09:53:00.001-06:00

Today I am very grateful for antibiotics. That weird rash on Tia's face? Impetigo.

Also, while at the derm I complained about my sun damage and was given a prescription to help fade my numerous blotches.

So, gratitude for medicine. The necessary and the vanity-driven.

xoxo

Gratitude In November-The Basics

2011-11-03T09:44:00.000-06:00

In honor of Thanksgiving and Christmas after that, I am committed to writing what I am grateful for each day of November. And since I am starting on the 3rd and missed two days, I am going to write down lots of things for today.

As soon as it gets cold and the holidays roll around, I start thinking about people who might be cold (I HATE being cold), or worried about providing a nice holiday meal or gifts for their families...or worse. I have a heightened awareness at this time of year of all the basics I can sometimes take for granted, but am extremely grateful for when I slow down and think about it. Things like:

*A closet bulging with coats for each member of our family, for each and every weather contingency.
*Same for shoes.
*A warm home to shelter us. A HOME.
*The ability to go to the doctor when we need to go (I just made a dermatologist appointment for Tia today...some strange rash on her face).
*Going to bed nourished, with full tummies, under clean, warm covers and fluffy pillows, in a comfy bed.
*The privilege of having pets and being able to meet all their needs and then some.
*Our health.
*Our transportation so we can get to
*Our jobs and
*Earn livings because
*We went to college. And traveled. And had amazing life experiences.
*Which leads to our parents and families and
*Friends. Friends who believe in me and see the best in me.

I would love to hear what you are treasuring and contemplating this month, too.
xoxo

Me And The Beebs

2011-11-01T11:56:00.000-06:00

The Beebs is always showing off his moves.

Here we are making our big entrance in the costume parade. I moonwalked, yes I did.

The Beebs never knows when enough is enough. I had to drag him back to our seats.

Where we celebrated our adolescent love for one another...

AND our 2nd place finish in the contest.

We're number two! We're number two!

Peace Out.

Happy Halloween!!!

2011-10-31T15:00:00.002-06:00

Love, Us

xoxo

Whew! That Was A Lot!!

2011-10-30T19:48:00.000-06:00

Tia finished up her art project and felt great about it.

The theme was DIVERSITY MEANS so she decided the poster would say:

"We all see the world differently!!!!! Diversity Means accepting eachother!!!!!

The middle circle is a photo of the word PEACE that I took. The photos on Tia's side were taken by her, to represent how she sees the world, the photos on the left are mine.

Next we moved on to her class project. She is superstar in class next week so she had to complete this poster and then pick 5 things to take for show-and-tell.

She packed her black stuffed dog, which Nana gave her when she was still in my belly. Seaglass that Grandma J. brought her from Alaska. A photo of herself with Talia. Her Up With Kids "Academy Award" from last spring, and the shell Ms. Smart brought her from Haiti last year.

Just to add some excitement, Holly had a major freak-out when this kitty wandered onto our deck.

We baked a dessert for my work Halloween party and bake-off.

(Toffee bars from a Pioneer Woman recipe)

Dug our hands into gooky pumpkin guts and then attempted to carve Holly's face into our pumpkin.

Not pictured...

A beautiful fall morning at the Farmer's Market where Tia tried her first pain au chocolat. (It was a hit)

Hazel's (the new car) first trip through the carwash.

A late afternoon trip to the park with Holly.

Clark's amazing red bell pepper and caper pasta sauce.

All the laundry put away.

Clean sheets.

A big ol' glass of wine.

Sunday Night Football.

and can I get an aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh?!?!

I Cutted My Hairs

2011-10-28T17:00:00.000-06:00

Tia took this super scary, waaaaaay too close up photo of me as part of a photography project she is working on for an art show at school.

And THAT is a whole other story....one I am a wee bit grumpy about.

Anyhoo, the photo shows my new short hair.

And my crows feet.

And my sun damage.

And lots of other stuff.

So I thought I would share.

Happy Weekend.

I have school tonite and tomorrow. Tia has a Halloween party tomorrow night (I get to go drink wine with the moms). On Sunday morning Tia and I are going to head to the Wasatch Front Farmer's Market at Wheeler Farms and say hi to our friends at the Creative Capsule!

xoxo

My Blurry Eskimo

2011-10-27T10:31:00.000-06:00

At the Halloween Parade at her school today.

It's all-Halloween-all-the-time from now til Monday.

Let the madness begin!!

Across The Miles

2011-10-24T17:23:00.000-06:00

We needed our Powell Family fix, so we decided on Mesa Verde National Park as our meeting place.

Our first destination in the park was Cliff Palace.

Our Park Ranger telling us how we would get OUT of Cliff Palace...up long ladders...

whaaaa???

Being inside the cliff dwellings definitely put our comfy life into perspective.

From above...sooo beautiful!

There were multiple Kivas, used for ceremonies and for gatherings, especially in the hottest and coldest months.

Wild horses, deer, tarantulas...all things we saw in the park.

The kids were sworn in as Junior Rangers.

(I wanted to give this woman the bra off my back, seriously)

The kids gamefully climbed the ladders down into the Kivas.

The adults...not so much.

Soot from the fires they had in their dwelling.

Krista lets me be her friend eventhough I am stretched out all funny.

(We'll talk about my hair later. I swear it looks cute in person.)

Tia posing in front of a pretty spot on our 7 hour drive home. She was a trooper, Clark was a super trooper, and the State Trooper who pulled us over was awesome for not giving us a speeding ticket.

Hanging with the Powells was the cake AND the icing.

We all picked up right where we left off.

Besides getting to see the park with people I love, I enjoyed being in the car with my fam for so many hours. We got to talk about all that stuff that comes up when you're not trying to just update or share information.

Mesa Verde is a place in the world I would like to see more of. And the Powells are stuck with seeing more of us no matter what!

xoxo

2nd Grader

2011-10-19T16:06:00.000-06:00

I was so ~~relieved~~ stoked to see we had SUCCESS with this year's school pictures!!

Tia said, "you only ordered one sheet of photos".

Yep sister. That's called learning from my mistakes.

Her necklace was made and given to her by her bestie and has not come off since. I love that it is in this photo.

xoxo

May I Ask A Favor?

2011-10-17T19:40:00.002-06:00

Around January-ish, when I start bitching about living here and blah blah blah....

Please refer me back to this post and tell me to shut it!

Thank you very much.

Black Island Farms 2011 Edition

2011-10-16T19:24:00.000-06:00

We made our 5th annual trek to Syracuse and Black Island Farms today.

Who else hates corn mazes? I HATE them. They are basically the most un-fun thing ever. Like for fun I want to feel lost and confused and freaked out? I don't get it. Tia LOVES them.

I love all the wide open space there.

My punkin the cheeseball.

We came home with 3 big pumpkins for carving, a small "pie" making pumpkin and 3 little ornamental ones.

I like to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, or pumpkin chocolate bread, so I might try using the "pie" pumpkin for that.

We ate gobs of kettle corn, fed the llamas, slid down grain silos, and watched pig races.

Tonite we ate crock pot chili...yum!
Love love loving our fall!

Let's Try This Again

2011-10-15T17:23:00.000-06:00

Honey Tree has a new bestie, Coca Cola.

They seem to be getting along famously.

We like that it is much easier to tell these two apart.

Tia says that Foil flew to San Diego to live at the beach.

xoxo

Lately

2011-10-14T14:38:00.000-06:00

Tia is super into playing school these days. She sets up her "school" (her bday gift from Sharone, Matt and Talia last year) and either teaches her stuffed animals or imaginary (invisible only to us) students. I love hearing the chatter that emanates from her world.

Last night she took her sidewalk chalk outside and wrote SCHOOL in big bold colorful letters on our driveway.

If you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up, she will always list teacher as one of her options.

It might be that teaching is in her blood, since my dad, two of her grandmas and her great grandma were teachers. I think another part is how much she ADORES her teachers, past and present.

And another part is that she likes to be large and in charge. Oh yea.

The past couple of nights we haven't had the tv on at all. We've just been playing and doing all the busy stuff that comes with dinner time, homework, the end of the day, getting ready for the next day, and all that.

The cooler temperatures have made the house seem more cozy and we are back to lighting lots of candles, now that it is dark enough to see them before 9pm.

It is such a REFLEX for me to turn on the tv and it kind of drives Clark crazy. I am working on being a better hippie.

We have a fun, busy weekend planned. I have school tonite and tomorrow. Tia has two TWO halloween parties this weekend and we're going to hit our favorite pumpkin patch on Sunday.

Have a beautiful fall weekend!!

xoxo

Nature Girl

2011-10-13T09:51:00.000-06:00

The whole 2nd grade went on a nature walk yesterday.

Honestly, when I signed the permission slip, I imagined they would walk around the school grounds and pick up some leaves for a half hour.

But noooooo.......

They walked from school to a park with these books they made for their collections.

I pretty much think it's the cutest thing ever.

I had NO IDEA you could pull apart the little maple seed pods and stick them on your nose!

See!

Tia LOVES her school, her teachers, her friends.

Hopefully it "sticks" as she gets older...sort of like that there seed pod.

Napa With My Gurls

2011-10-10T19:22:00.000-06:00

Tina and Kristina (my sistah from another mistah) planned a weekend together ages ago and it finally happened last weekend! Kristina lives near Sacramento, where we all grew up together. We used her amazing home, which she shares with her wonderful hubster and freaking adorable 4 year old twins(!) as our home base. Everyone needs a Kristina in their lives. Girlfriend is a HOSTESS!

She planned the most fantastic Saturday for us. Check it...

This is Phillip. The driver.

(I told you)

Born to ride.

Every limo must have Doritos. It's a rule.

Bubbly while we plot our day in wine country.

Wine labels at the store where we lunched. And lunched. And then we ate some more lunch.

We dined at Brix, a farm-to-table delight. OH MAN was it delicious.

We sat in the sun and laughed and ate and laughed and laughed some more.

See that rouquefort, top right? I am going to make a cheese suit and wear that cheese everywhere so I can just nibble on it all day.

I'm sorry...I had to have a shot of grapevines.

My sister is so pretty.

Kristina and Tina in the tram at Sterling Vineyards.

Me and my sistah.

Me and my sister.

(my squinty left eye=wine drinking)

From Sterling Vineyards looking across to Castello de Amorosa, our next stop.

In the private tasting room at Sterling. Oh yea, we went there.

The Castello.

Give those girls turkey legs and lagers!

Looking back at Sterling.

I veel crush you!

Kind of pretty, huh? For a castle and all?

We had the absolutely best time. Thank you so much, Kristina and Tom for EVERYTHING. We even got to see Kristina's mom! It had been AGES.

Tina and I contemplated kidnapping the twinsies but that didn't seem right. So we just stole lots of hugs til next time.

Clark and Tia had a great weekend together, but they did lose a bird.

Foil=Free in the wild.

Tre has a new name...Honey Tree...because as Tia said, "you can't be a compound word without the other half".

xoxo

Three (Okay, Four) Little Words

2011-10-06T10:30:00.000-06:00

(muthereffing)

SNOWING

Picture Day!!

2011-10-05T10:19:00.000-06:00

Is it me, or does she look REALLY OLD HERE?

Thank the lawd she felt good about her curls, oh my.

This is the non-fake, non-stroke smile we have been working on. This photo is my insurance in case she reverts to her fake/stroke smile in the photos I had to actually pay for.

xoxo

Hold On To Your Hairspray!

2011-10-04T12:56:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow is picture day at Tia's school. This morning we had this:

Tia: Mommy, can we curl my hair like Talia's was that one time?

Me: What did it look like?

Tia: She curled it with a straightener.

Me: You don't curl hair with a straightener. You straighten hair with a straightener.

Tia: Well, she curled her hair with a straightener.

Me: I think she was using a curling iron.

Tia: Nooooooo. It was a straightener and I want mine to be curled like her's!

Okay, so yea....I did convince Tia that we should wash and dry her hair tonite, so that the morning can be devoted to curling it with a straightener.

Also, we need to practice smiling naturally...which I know is sort of counter intuitive, but believe me, necessary.

Wish us luck.

Good Moning!

2011-10-01T10:52:00.000-06:00

We had a super exciting morning here.....Foil got out of his cage while we were cleaning it. He landed on the ceiling fan at the top of our very high ceiling and wouldn't come down....until I turned the fan on. We may have giggled a teeny bit at the sight.

Foil is back home safely with Tre. Tre did NOT like being alone in her cage. Poor Foil...his little heart was beating out of his feathery chest.

Amid that excitement we have managed to: have fresh-from-the-oven banana bread for breakfast, clean the house, watch Tangled from where Tia left off last night, and take Holly on a romp to her mountain. We are thinking of heading up to Park City for the first half of the day. It is so beautiful and FALL here.

Happy Weekend!

xoxo

Up All Night

2011-09-29T09:35:00.000-06:00

Is anyone else watching Up All Night? Holy Hannah I laugh my ass off.

Speaking of night....dark hours sure are coming earlier and lasting longer. Here is what it looks like when I get up to go to yoga in the mornings.

I am little worried that once some freezing cold temps and snow are added, lazy Kim will win out over exercise Kim and my yoga routine will suffer.

In the meantime, I had an awesome practice this morning.

Besides watching a lot of tv and going to yoga, we've been enjoying the last days of summer. We ended up getting three small but beautifully sweet peaches from our baby tree. We've been giving away lots of pears and Clark has juiced some of our apples.

We've been going to the park and riding bikes outside in the afternoons.

I made a batch of sun tea.

We ordered Tia's Halloween costume. (Eskimo girl this year! Love it!)

Life is good this Indian Summer.

xoxo

PS if you are local and would like some apples or pears, let me know.

The apples are great for pies and applesauce.

A Chip Off The Big Block

2011-09-27T12:08:00.000-06:00

Last night, watching Dancing With The Stars:

"Mommy, can we vote for Carson and Chaz?"

xoxo

Mrs.Snuggle Pants

2011-09-21T18:30:00.000-06:00

Each of us spends time each morning curling up with, and burying our faces in, this puppers.

She is warm and soft and smothering her in love helps us transition from sleeping to waking.

Then in the evenings we do the opposite.

And then the next morning we start all over again.

xoxo

Tableaus From An Awesome Playdate

2011-09-20T19:42:00.000-06:00

xoxo

Utah State Fair

2011-09-18T09:00:00.002-06:00

So, yea. There was a Marine Corp booth, so in honor of my dad I did the flex arm hang challenge. I lasted 55 seconds which won me a Marine Corp hat. (Thank goodness I had just practiced with Tia and her friend at the park last week!)

Tia took this photo because Clark's hands were full holding all of our crap.

I'm thinking this was near the end.

Up On The Roof

2011-09-17T09:33:00.000-06:00

I Love Summer Clearance!

2011-09-14T14:45:00.000-06:00

I've had my eye on this linen t-shirt dress for months and today it showed up on Lands End Canvas on clearance.

Add in a free shipping code I found on-line and a few dollars from rewards points and it's mine-all-mine!

The linen seems thick enough that I can put a turtleneck and leggings on underneath and wear it all winter, too.

Here is what I will be hoping goes on sale after fall.

I love the buttons down the back with just a little bit of shirt peeking out!

No matter how old I get, shopping at the end of summer will always be "back-to-school shopping" for me.

Speaking of the end of summer. It is so gorgeous here right now.

Tia and I took an early evening bike ride last night and then played at the park. We saw a bunch of her friends from school there, as well as one of her bunkies from Girl Scout camp. You could tell they had a camp bond...it was so cute! She told me Tia had THE BEST SENDERS. So those of you who sent her care packages at camp got your props. She loved that Tia shared goodies from her packages with them.

Also, the 2 girls and I had a contest who could hold a chin up the longest. I won. Yea for old people!

Then we went home and Clark made his famous pasta with parsley and garlic.

I learned from one of Clark's Bon Appetit mags (Gwynnie P. was on the cover or I never would have even thought to pick it up!) that curly parsley, like we use, is the lesser of parsleys....FLAT parsley is the fancy one.

WHO. KNEW.

(foodies are so funny...they really think about a lot of stuff that would never ever occur to me!)

I Did This Today!!

2011-09-13T14:54:00.000-06:00

Okay, it is WAY harder than it looks to sit like this. You just try it. Go ahead.

Wellllll?

It's HARD, huh?

Plus I had my hands up in prayer all pretty like, no just RESTING on my knees. Sheesh!

9/11

2011-09-11T17:58:00.000-06:00

Nothing like the anniversary of a national tragedy to put life into perspective, huh?

Tia and I took Holly on a leash-free walk today, in City Creek Canyon. We parked up by the capitol building.

Then descended into Memory Grove

When I thought of going on this walk today, I was really only thinking about a nice off-leash experience for Holly and a good walk for Tia and I. It ended up being such a perfect place to be today. Tia really has no knowledge of 9/11, so we talked in some pretty broad strokes. I did want her to know why the flags were half mast.

Holly loved the water...playing in it, drinking it, but thankfully not pooping in it as she has been known to do.

This is my favorite thing on this trail.

Seriously, how awesome is this?

I still can't believe it has been 10 years since 9/11.

I know many people who have been affected much more personally than we have. I send my heart out to them.

xoxo

2011-09-08T18:23:00.000-06:00

Clark snapped us as we headed to Tia's first real concert last night.

Rock on, Bay-Bay!

(The outfit one chooses to wear to one's first concert is VERY IMPORTANT fyi)

Me, Right Now

2011-09-08T14:33:00.000-06:00

Scat is animal poop, right? And I feel scat-tered. I think that means my brain is full of poo poo.

In other words, I am full of it. (Normally I would have used the sh*t word there, but I am a Girl Scout leader now so I am trying to clean it up a little bit)

I am:
tired
overwhelmed
cranky
worried
sad

This morning the "wind removing pose" (of all poses) induced a wee anxiety attack. I don't know what it was about squeezing my leg so hard that I cut off the circulation at my hip that made me feel that way?? Anyone??

I am tired because it has been a busy week AND ITS NOT OVER. Also, Tia and I were up late last night, partying like rock stars at the Selena Gomez concert.

I am overwhelmed because I suck at my law class and I have a paper due one week from today that I haven't even started...because it is too overwhelming to start. Don't get me started on the final because from the looks of our take-home midterm I am SCREWED.

I am cranky because I am tired and overwhelmed. And screwed.

And, well, I could be a professional worrier. For instance, last night in the midst of our super fun concert experience I started worrying about Tia. You see, she wouldn't even LOOK at the cute boy band who opened for Selena...because they were BOYS. She couldn't even enjoy their music. So then I started thinking that maybe she is going to grow up to be a lesbian, which is FINE, seriously. (As long as she is a lipstick). And then I started thinking that maybe because she is so anti-male right now that the swing she takes in the other direction will be SIGNIFICANT and we'll be stuck with a boy-crazy 13 year old.

Do you see what it is like in my head right now?

Let's not forget sad. We have a very sweet neighbor who Clark liked to talk to about all things cars. He went up to visit him the other day and found he was recently diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer and had about 2 weeks to live. Last night as I laid in bed hoping that Tia and her partner will adopt, Clark said "the firetruck and ambulance just pulled up to his house"....and I was just crushed. First, the memories of my dad's last weeks/days hit me square in the heart. The ambulance ride he took to hospice when he couldn't be at home anymore. The ambulance had to drive super slowly because every little pebble in the road sent my dad's pain levels through the roof. I thought of our neighbor and the pain he was in and about his wife, who had just retired and their plans to move closer to the sun, and how all that can just be taken away on one visit to the doctor.

And now I'm crying again.

See???? Scattered.

This too shall pass. I'm thinking maybe on Sunday after a long night's sleep, a creamy sweet cup of coffee, and the Sunday paper.

Thanks for listening. xoxo

A First Time For Everything

2011-09-06T19:03:00.001-06:00

Back about 6 months ago Tia said "Mommy! You should be my Girl Scout leader next year" and I was all "Yea! Let's do it!". Cut to today. Our first meeting. I am kind of a wreck! What the hell? I don't know what I am doing. I am more nervous about showing these girls a fun and meaningful time than I am before any work or school presentation.

We turned the basement into a Club House...check it.

We have pledges to make

Name tags to decorate

And snacks to consume.

PS...it went GREAT!!
Amazing amazing amazing incredible group of moms and kids.

Happy Birfday, Ry Ry

2011-09-04T16:14:00.000-06:00

Since Ry doesn't have his two front teeth at present, I'm guessing his th's are MIA.

Check out the big 7 year old with his Grammie Connie and the awesome cake she baked him. Rumor is it had Nutella between the cake layers.

We miss this boy...it's been too long.

Happy Birthday Ryan Scott!

xoxo

How To Torture Your Bird Dog Part II

2011-09-04T16:07:00.000-06:00

In Part I, we took her to a room full of birds behind glass and asked her to sit still and have her photo taken!

In Part II we cleaned our own birds' cage RIGHT IN FRONT OF HER.

I wish I could show this much restraint around Nutella.

xoxo

Me, For The Defense

2011-09-01T09:54:00.000-06:00

Funny I am in a law class right now. Funny its not helping me deal with the little litigant at home. Everything this week has been HARD. I have been quiet. I have to preserve my energy for my pint sized opponent. She has advantages over me: boundless energy, unswaying belief in her views, the ability to ignore anyone else's views, and unbridled access to her water works. This morning after being worn down to the point of exhaustion (all before 8am) I took the easy road and said "do whatever you want". Another example of my exemplary parenting! woohoo!

Soft

2011-08-27T16:16:00.000-06:00

I love the tangled hair, sleepy eyes and warm skin of our girl on weekend mornings.

I love getting to take it slow in the mornings.

I love this girl!

Higher Education

2011-08-26T09:20:00.000-06:00

"Mama, I've decided I either want to go to Columbia in New York OR the Universary of Utah for college".

Happy Friday everyone. Because I do attend the Universary, I have some homework this weekend. grrrrrr.

xoxo

Unabashed Awesomeness

2011-08-24T07:45:00.000-06:00

This morning's outfit all laid out.

I will smile about this all day.

xoxo

First Day Of 2nd Grade

2011-08-22T09:47:00.000-06:00

I'm not so sure why she is in 3rd position here, but it works.

We drove to the bus stop and I asked if I could get out with her. She said "no, but have an excellent day! I love you the most!" and off she went!

She was soooo excited for today. She couldn't even drink her chocolate milk...too many butterflies this morning.

And it's a whole new era for us...I get to be at the bus stop to pick her up today! wooohoooo!

xoxo

Eve Of School

2011-08-21T10:45:00.000-06:00

We had a fun back-to-school gathering at a park on Saturday. People brought picnic lunches and we had rootbeer floats....or, my new fave, strawberry ice cream with orange soda floats....and decorated our wheels and just hung out.

Today is laundry, and packing the backpack, and setting out the first-day outfit, and all that great stuff. I love all the ritual around back-to-school. Tia is way excited and I love that, too.

xoxo

Our Anniversary Numero Nueve

2011-08-18T11:25:00.000-06:00

This week Clark and I celebrated 9 years of marriage. It also marks our 9th year living in SLC.

These photos are all from our first year of dating, in 2001. I love how happy and relaxed we look.

And in LURVE.

I can honestly say that I am more in love with Clark now than I was when we got married. It's a different kind of in love, though, and I think its just as sweet as that initial butterflies-in-your-tummy (and nethers!) love. Not that I don't get butterflies anymore, because I do, oh yes I do! But the sense of peace and security that I feel in our relationship is like nothing I ever expected.

In the past years we have both left long term jobs and moved across states, bought and sold homes, remodeled said homes, and started new jobs. One of us had a baby come out of her tiny little vagina, and one of us called me bawling the first time he had to drop that baby off at day care. We lost one puppy dog and gained another, we've lost and gained friends and members of our families. We've travelled, we've parented, we've nested, we've parented, we've weathered health stuff and financial stuff, and....parented. And we've been HAPPY. We love each other and we love our little girl and our puppy and our house and our families and our home (except for the green carpeting).

Life is good and I am grateful.

Happy Anniversary, honey.

Let's get really old and cranky together.

xoxo

Holly Models Swimwear

2011-08-17T19:46:00.000-06:00

Ohmygawd I am so embarrassed right now.

This is so humiliating. Breathe. Breathe.

Oh god don't show my butt.

They showed my butt.

(Adieu to my fave Athleta bikini. It lasted 2 whole summers in public pool chlorine. Not bad, right?)

Kitchen Remodel-Ta Freaking Da!

2011-08-15T21:32:00.000-06:00

***To feel the full effects of excitedness that we feel, visit the before post***

Without further ado....and with apologies for bad lighting/bad photography/lack of styling/etc.

The calendar is on the fridge, the orange strip on the right is a magnet board to hold school notices and reminders and all that paper parents keep track of! ~~Our~~ Clark's cookbooks are on the shelf.

My mom treated me to the mexican pottery thingy (I think it's supposed to hold holy water or at the very least a plant?) we're using for pens when we were in Tucson. I found the mexican feather art and the box that is holding more papers at Emilie Jayne in SLC.

We bought the wood tonite for the shelf Clark is making to hang above the sink. It will hold spices, the olive oil can and salt cellar as well as measuring cups.

I had to get a little closer on the dishwasher (the precious).

I'll say it again. I LOVE MY CONTRACTOR!!

xoxo

The Hills Are Alive

2011-08-14T11:04:00.000-06:00

Tia and I ventured to Sundance Resort last night for a production of Sound of Music. We packed ourselves a little picnic and found a perfect perch for the two of us!

You know the scene when Maria is in her bedroom and the kids come in because they are scared of a thunderstorm? At the exact beginning of that scene a huge storm blew in THAT FAST. All of a sudden we were getting poured on. Everyone put on their jackets and covered their heads with their blankets. It was pretty hysterical, and definitely memorable.

Also memorable was the old guy sitting next to us who tooted the entire show.

And I Don't Go To Yoga EVERY Morning....

2011-08-11T10:57:00.000-06:00

So. Freaking. Flattered!

Hey Amanda!

Mmmmmmwwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!!

xoxo

Kitchen Remodel-Sew Lucky

2011-08-10T19:12:00.001-06:00

We needed to replace the curtains that hang in the huge entrance between the kitchen and the freezing-cold-in-the-winter-blazing-hot-in-the-summer playroom. We picked out some fabric at Ikea for five bucks a yard and Clark and his helper Tia sewed it up!

I am totally digging Clark's hunky arm in this photo!

Here is the finished product with the morning sun coming from the playroom.

So yea. Do you hate me? He cooks, shops, cleans, remodels AND SEWS! It's kind of barfy, huh?

We are lucky girls!

xoxo

Feathering Our Nest

2011-08-09T16:23:00.000-06:00

We are pleased to introduce the newest members of our family, Tre and Foil.

Tre+Foil

=Trefoil Ranch, Tia's camp.

Foil is in front, looking at you. His beak is more red, his feathers more fancy. Tre, the girl, is demuring (as she should) and her beak is more orange. Tia wanted a couple so that we can have babies. Isn't that GREAT??

They are so sweet and so fun to have around. I love their singing and chattering. At night they are covered as soon as its dark and they are instantly quiet and cuddled together. They are uncovered in the morning and start singing right away. Tia rings a little bell for them, which they seem to like. Holly has only tried to "get a closer look" one time. Still, Holly is not allowed to roam the house when we are out.

Tia saved her money to purchase her new pets and is taking ownership for their care, cleaning, and feeding. This is another great thing that came out of camp for Tia (thus making the birds' names oh so appropriate): she isn't scared of animal poop anymore.

xoxo

Weekend In Tucson

2011-08-08T09:59:00.000-06:00

Tucson was aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

It was

mmmmmmmmmmmmm

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

yummmmmmmmmmmmmmm

yesssssssssssssssssssssss!

ssiiiiiiighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

hahahahahahaha

Being home is good, too. We missed Clark and Holly AND the newest members of our flock (HINT), whom I will introduce tomorrow.

Thank you Mama and Steve and Heidi Girl for a fabulous visit!

xoxoxo

Letter From The Camper

2011-08-04T11:20:00.000-06:00

I wish I could say this arrived in one of the self-addressed and stamped envelopes I sent in Tia's suitcase. She did put it in the envelope, but didn't mail it, so it came home in her (gross) bag. The other 3 envelopes were also sealed, but as I excitedly opened each one realized there was nothing inside...just that she had taken the time to seal each one :)

She wrote us one letter, and wrote her bestie Maya one letter.

I asked her what she did during quiet time and she said "write letters".

Yesterday we picked up the photos she shot on 2 disposable cameras she took. She took tons of photos of her beloved counselors and horses, as well as some shots of things that "just looked pretty on our hikes."

The Camper and I are headed to Tucson tomorrow for a weekend with Nana and Steve. Besides seeing them, and Heidi the puppy, and eating Mexican food, and drinking coffee and wine with my mom......Tucson has an H&M! In an air conditioned mall!! We are SO THERE.

xoxo

Kitchen Remodel-The Home Stretch!

2011-08-03T19:54:00.000-06:00

We are starting to reassemble....appliances are going back in, drawers are being lined, outlets covered.

EXCITING!!

Something Else She Learned At Camp

2011-08-02T07:28:00.000-06:00

Q: How do you make Lady Gaga mad?

A: Poke Her Face!!

Happy Tuesday

xoxo

Amanda Took Pictures Of Me

2011-07-31T11:22:00.000-06:00

Thank you, Miss Amanda!

Check out Amanda's fabulousness by clicking on that there button to the right.

She's Home!

2011-07-30T19:43:00.001-06:00

Okay, so weren't first in line...but close. So close.

We had just enough time to take a pretty picture or two.

Once parked, the camp director said to head up to the fire circle and find our girl...the campers were all gathered there singing songs. I spotted Tia right away and when she saw us she came running towards us (cue the music....crescendo.....)

I pick her up to spin her around...and I am DISSED. We are no longer aloud to pick her up in public.

We got sweet hugs and then her first words:

"Why can't I stay 2 weeks?"

I really wished I had Clark's power washer in the trunk. Girlfriend was FILTHY.

I felt like I needed a shower just from unpacking her bag. GOOD STUFF.

Two huge changes in Tia we noticed right away:

1. She tripped and fell on the way to the car. She popped right back up. No drama. We were on our way to the bathroom and when we got inside she wet a paper towel and cleaned her bleeding knee HERSELF (before this would have required sedation and perhaps some cattle roping).

2. We stopped for lunch and she got an entree and dessert. After she finished her entree, rather than ask for a clean fork to touch the other variety of food, she cleaned the fork off with her mouth and continued eating. This will drastically reduce our utensil usage.

I think both of the above speak to her comfort zone being stretched a bit.

She LOVED the horses and even mucked the stalls. She learned to trot and her favorite horse was J.J. Guess what Tia wants for Christmas.

Sooooo happy to have our girl home. I am trying to control myself with the ~~snuggling~~ smothering.

I really am trying. hard.

xoxo

PS and lest you think Clark and I didn't enjoy our time alone together I woke up with a raging UTI.

AWESOME.

No sun or swimming.

AWESOME.

But actually, considering where we were a couple of years ago.....

AWESOME!!