The Dog Days

Traditionally associated with madness and lethargy?
The dog days are here.

Anyone want to listen to the Whatever After series over and over and over for hours on end? Come to our house. That's what we've been up to. Hour after hour. Hours. Hours upon hours.

Carolena knows how to turn on the computer and pull up Hoopla and get the story started. Some days she wakes up before any of us and comes into the kitchen and starts listening.

The kids only want to be home. Listening to Whatever After. They've heard every single book in the series numerous times. They sabotage me when we leave the house by standing too close to me in the grocery store and whining until we come back home and press "play."

The ennui. The ennui!
And now the madness has set in.
The dogs days are here.

Headlines Don't Sell Papes. Newsies Sell Papes.

Reading: Theft by Finding by David Sedaris. Good Lord, I love David Sedaris. He seems like he would be friends with my sister and thus be forced to run into me at baptisms and bar mitzvahs. He would probably try to linger in the dining room doorway waiting for me to choose a dinner chair and then take the seat furthest from mine. He would avoid my eye and try to look very engaged in conversation with the person next to him. I would move though. You know I would. I would get up for more wine and then pull up a spare chair right next to David, squeezing out the bewildered guest who was innocently describing to him her latest oral surgery in detail. Later as they were driving home Hugh would laugh about David's inability to escape Kelly's weird younger sister.

Drinking: COFFEE. My caffeine intake is delightfully out of control. My migraines are in control (aaaaahhhhlelluia!) and thus the coffee floweth like... well... like coffee bean flavored hot water. We bought a new coffee pot that is programmed to automatically brew every morning. It is heavenly, like having a little robot in our kitchen that makes me coffee. In fact... it is LITERALLY a little robot in our kitchen that makes me coffee. I love it. I've gotten into that strange place in which I stay up too late and then sleep poorly and wake up and drink too much coffee. So then by the afternoon I drink more caffeine and thus the cycle continues. Not complaining though. Just how it is at the moment.

Eating: welllllll. This past spring was rather stressful to say the least and I may or may not have gained like 20 lbs. I finally pulled it together these past few weeks and am back on healthy foods. Unfortunately, I'm discovering that losing weight this time around isn't as simple as back when I was breast-feeding. Bummer. But, nonetheless, I'll just keep plugging along.

Carolena and Nils are really into audio books as of late. I mean really into them. Like, hour upon hour upon hour of listening to stories. We didn't leave the house for all of Monday and all of Tuesday because they were so engrossed. There aren't pictures or animation - just someone reading the books. I spent Monday crafting and cleaning and yesterday doing pretty much the same. By today I was about to lose my mind and forced them out to run errands with me. All they wanted to do was come home and eat lunch and listen to more of the book they were on. It's awesome. And weird. And awesome... but also weird.

Olive, Queen of the Cats

I remember now why I quit blogging... because writing a post is near impossible if it is not five in the morning. I do miss those early mornings. All was so still and quiet and right with the world when I had a hot cup of coffee and a few moments to just write.

Oh, I'm sorry! Perhaps you don't know that the New Jan Brady was eaten. Yeah, she quit working out, and traded vegetables for ice cream and beer. Needless to say, she sleeps in now. 

Now it is almost 8 pm. Kids are tucked into bed and the kitchen is clean. Chris is watering the lawn. I want to write but I'm tired.

Our cat, Max, died recently which has left Olive as the sole pet. Max was the dominant cat and since his death, we have seen much more of Olive. She was never allowed (by Max) to spend the night in the master bed so she has been giddy about her new status. I've spent the last few nights being awakened every hour to a little clawed paw tapping me on the shoulder. I awake, open my eyes, and spot Olive's wide eyes shining back at me. I think she is just excited to still be in the bed and making sure I know it. I'll pet her (or make a grumpy noise and pull the sheets over my head which is always a mistake as she is persistent) and then she settles back down, resetting her internal alarm clock for one hour later. And I spend the night tossing and turning and greet the next day exhausted.

This morning Nils discovered a roll of banner paper. And then I discovered Nils with a handful of Sharpies in various colors and banner paper spread across the kitchen. He looked up innocently from his work and declared, "I'm making a water slide for my stuffed animals." Oh, that guy. So I let him continue on crafting. I hope his stuffed animals have a great time.

The summer is moving right along. Yesterday included a trip to the library and lunch with some of our favorite people. We went to the dollar movie this morning and have plans for seeing great friends tomorrow. For now, I'm tired. And Olive is already in our bed.

The Rodeo Ballet

Yesterday afternoon I received a complimentary ticket to an exclusive performance. I gladly accepted and showed up in our living room at the appointed time.

Ah, the rodeo ballet. A performance for the ages.

Nils had previously worked as a stagehand constructing scenery by placing blankets and assorted toys around the room. Carolena put on a Nutcracker Pandora station, lending the performance a certain yueltide je ne sais quoi. The costuming was second to none.

I turned in my ticket and took a seat.

There was jumping. There was Rody riding. There was twirling.

In fact, there was excessive twirling until a certain ballerina complained of a headache and nausea and had to retire to the audience. The announcer assured me she would remain available for autographs despite her inability to finish the performance.

Dear readers, if you ever get the chance to attend such a daring and graceful performance, take it! 

It is worth every penny.

Early Mornings, Coffee, School Buses, Vintage Hats, Did I Mention Coffee?

I'm trying to get back into an early-to-rise routine around here, so I guess that means revisiting my blog as well.

Starting to blog again after such a long hiatus feels awkward and forced. Umm... hi?

Currently...
Reading: Avenue of Mysteries by John Irving. His writing is so fabulous. Why are his characters always so loveable?
Drinking: Coffee. Coffee. More coffee. I told you I'm trying to get back into my routine of early mornings. Plus, I don't really drink alcohol so coffee seems like a just fine vice to me.
Eating: Oh Lordy, the eating around here. Yesterday afternoon I wondered why my stomach hurt until I remembered I had Target popcorn, two Diet Cokes, and a pack of Rolos for lunch. At the end of the day I congratulated myself on such a good day of eating... and then I remembered lunch. *oops*

C started real school this week and is thriving. She has left and come home in a great mood everyday. She is clearly tired but so wired from all of the excitement that thus far all has been well. There is nothing cuter in this world than seeing her bound onto the school bus and wave from the front seat. Nils snuggles in my arms and we wave back and blow kisses. Oh my goodness. C can barely see out the window and we just see her eyes and arm waving. You can't imagine how adorable the whole scene is. And, oh my gosh, don't get me started on how amazing the school bus is. A bus comes and picks my kid up and brings her to school and then takes her home? For free? And I don't have to be ready to leave and stuff Nils into a carseat twice a day?! AAAMAZING. Also, we lucked out and live across the street from the bus stop. We can see/hear the bus coming from our house. Oh yeah!

Nils and I are having fun having some rarely-before-seen time alone together. Yesterday after our fancy Target lunch I asked him if he was ready to go home and he replied, "No! Goodwill!" Atta boy. We're going to get along juuussst fine. I found a fabulous vintage hat at Goodwill and Nils bought it for me. THIS hat - but in RED! It was a total of 86 cents. A fabulous red vintage hat? Sounds perfect for Pentecost! Vintage hats are my weakness.

While Nils and I are thrilled to be together and are having some adventures of our own, we definitely both miss Carolena. Nils will frequently call me "Lena" or "best friend" when he's talking (they call each other "best friend") and then get a surprised embarrassed look on his face and correct himself to "Mommy." Poor guy.

I really miss C too. I love having some special time to be with Nils but it has been harder than I expected to see so little of Carolena lately. I really and truly like being with her and miss her. She gets home from school at 4 and goes to bed at 7 so time with her is at a premium. I'm trying to have time with her, let Nils have some time alone with her to play, and we have dinner and bedtime routines. So far C has wanted to pile in my bed with books everyday when she gets home from school. Sounds great to me!

I really slacked off on waking up early this summer. I am planning to get back into my early morning groove now that school is in session, but I'm honestly having a hard time remembering how much I loved it. Here's hoping.

Friday Morning Ramblings

It will come as a surprise to no one that I've been cleaning out our house. As per the usual. Where does all of this stuff come from?!

The good news is that I want to only have interesting things (as opposed to boring old Target crap) so when I arrived home with a stack of beautiful hand-sewn linens from my grandmother I put the old Target set I never use (because I've never liked it much) straight into my Goodwill pile.

The kids and I spent the afternoon yesterday cleaning out Carolena's room (again). That kid. Geeze, Louise. Suffice to say her bookshelf is now in her closet (she's been begging me to move it there) so that she can snuggle up next to it in a pile of big stuffed animals. She calls it her reading nook. I think if it lasts she'll need a light in there to actually read by, but I'm hoping to make her a much better reading nook in the future. We also made all of the stuffed animals go on the other side of the closet. The plan she and I came up with is that the two messiest things (books and stuffed animals) can just be shoved in there and the doors closed. Here's hoping.

We also went through her costumes and *gasp* she picked out a bunch for her younger cousin. What?! So, watch out Hols - we've got some fun coming your way. Glitz and tulle. It's right up your alley. Kelly should go through it first and tuck some fancy leotards away for Christmas gifts.

On the Nils' homefront he and I have been talking about diapers and underwear and all that jazz. It dawned on me that when Nils is out of diapers I'll be... done done done! Done with diapers. So, yeah. He doesn't seem ready yet but I remembered that there are things he'll need to work on now like pulling up and down his own pants. All this is to say, now I keep finding a naked little guy in the house who says to me, "Me need new diaper." Hm. A step in the right direction nonetheless?

Yesterday I kept thinking about how strange it is that my grandmother and her family lived during the Great Depression and had next to nothing. Her mother filled a rocking chair with worn out clothes. Here I am with a constant box going of things to get rid of because "too much stuff!" cluttering our house is the bane of my existence.

Laura Ingalls had a corn husk that she played with as a baby doll. We purge toys before birthdays and Christmas knowing that more are going to come into our home. I can't get over the weirdness (and wrongness?) of that.

Some best friends are coming to visit this morning. We see them about twice a year so the occasion called for a loaf of brioche. I need to pull the dough from the fridge and let it rest so I can bake it. What's better than brioche?! Well, caramel rolls made from brioche but as I didn't go to boot camp this morning I think its probably best I not add more butter to brioche.

Our next door neighbors moved yesterday and in the next few weeks we're watching for "a family of three with a kid around Nils' age" to move in. We're pretty anxious and excited to see what they're like. Carolena (on her own accord) told me she thinks when they move in we should bring them "something like a cake or muffins or something like that." I agree.

Futureman, call me every five minutes. You know who you are.

Feeling Hot Hot Hot!

Man, we are good at summer around here. Other states might be good at winter with all of their snow and fires crackling in the fireplaces and whatnot, but man, when it comes to summer: we win.

The kids and I wore ourselves out at the pool yesterday. We spent the morning getting lunch packed and suits on and getting out the door. C went to swim lessons (and had a blast) and I was "that mom" who pretended to be sixteen and took off my coverup and lounged in the sunshine reading my book. It was glorious. Other moms sweltered in the heat and humidity chasing their kids and trying to find shade and all that jazz. I decided to embrace it and it was pretty heavenly. A book, a bathing suit, a ton of sun screen, a drink. I got half an hour all to myself to just lounge by the pool. Hmmm... maybe C needs more swim lessons...

After lessons we picked up N and headed back out to the pool. One of my bff's (Megan) and her kiddos met us there and we picnicked and played for hours. Hours!

When we got home Nils walked straight into his room, closed his door, and went to sleep (that guy) while C and I snuggled into my bed to chat and giggle. An hour later I woke up to find C and I had dozed off as well. Heaven.

We ate popsicles for snack. Homemade chicken nuggets for dinner while we watched The Parent Trap (Lindsey Lohan version - love it). Then we had to all spend time pretending a lizard had climbed in our mouths (Nils' idea). Bedtime and books.

Today, let's do it again. And we need to go to the grocery store... because tomorrow we're going to visit our friends who (wait for it...) run summer camp! Woo!

Yeah, we know how to do summer.

Summery Summary

I can tell you with one hundred percent certainty that there is nothing in this world cuter than a happy little Nils wet from a pool, wearing a puppy hooded towel, and eating a zebra cake.

Nothing. Nadda.

You'll have to take my word for it because our pool doesn't allow people to take photos.

We've been spending our mornings at the pool as C is in the midst of swim lessons. It's been a joy this year. It took three years of misery, but finally this year has been great. Evidently 1015 is a perfect start time for us. We can have a leisurely morning and get there with enough time to check a protesting Nils into the kid's club. C swims. I chat with other moms or lounge around reading. Then we pick Nils back up, change him into his suit, and head back out to the pool for some more fun. A picnic lunch in the shade and we're ready to head home for naps.

Like how easy that all just sounds? I left out the part where dropping off Nils takes a lifetime because we have to crowbar him off of my leg. And the part where it takes an eternity to get everyone and all of our stuff into the car and then out of the car and then into the car and so on. And changing diapers in the midst of everything. And sunscreen. And stopping for various things like reading signs and checking out bugs and getting stamps from the front door at the pool. Oh, and neither kid can swim. It's a circus. A wonderful crazy circus. Swim lessons are thirty minutes long. Getting ready, getting there, swim lessons, a short swim, lunch... it takes our whole day.

*

Carolena wanted to introduce two of her girlfriends (one of whom has two sisters) so we hosted a luau this weekend. It was a genius idea as the parents totally would be friends as well (duh, why didn't I think to introduce them?). As per the usual party planning was put into motion and C and I enjoyed making decorations and hitting up the dollar store.

We had a house full of little girls and they all had a blast... that is... until 830 when they all simultaneously started melting down and we realized the party was over.

*

Luau decorations are staying up as they just scream summertime. Plus, they will fit right in with where were going with Carolena's birthday theme. C is getting giddy as we made invitations yesterday. I won't ruin the surprise, but excitement around here is at an all-time high.

Happenings of Late

What have we been up to? Oh, besides going to the beach, and whittling, and crafting, and playing, and general running amok merriment?

Well, C has actually been enjoying her new dress

And we've spent time at our library getting books and playing and picnicking and feeding ducklings. In the words of Nils "baby ducks soooo cute! Me want to pet them!!"
Yes, Nils. Exactly.

Recently we introduced Carolena to the game 20 Questions. It went swimmingly. She and Chris had narrowed my item down to a movie character (it was Buzz Lightyear) when C asked, "Iiisss it someone who turns into a bad guy when you get him wet? {pause} Cause I'm talkin' bout GREMLINS!"

That kid so belongs to me and Chris.

We've also spent some time enjoying tea parties. Nothing like a tea pot full of sparkling coconut flavored water with some cut apple and a zebra cake to really hit the spot

Uh oh, I've just been alerted that "the bad guys" have "captured" C & N and "chained them up and the hot lava is coming!" Looks like it's time for She-Ra to go save them.

Beer Boxes, Gorgeous Models, and Jake the Pirate

Conversation overheard yesterday:
Carolena examines a full case of beer on our kitchen table and exclaims, "Whaatt?! Nils, this rocket ship space helmet is full of coke bottles!" to which Nils stares in disbelief and replies, "whaaattt?!"

Does that mean our children have never seen a full beer box before?

huh?
wwwhhhhaaattt??


****

In other news... remember how Carolena has spent her entire life referring to me as
such glamorous people as Ursula and Miss Hannigan? As in... pretty much since as soon as she could talk. Her roles for me are pretty consistent and when she calls out, "Mommy! There's you!" I know not to get my hopes up. I am fully aware of how she sees me.

This morning Nils and I were sitting at the kitchen table together reading a magazine while I drank coffee and he had breakfast. We were discussing things like the Golden Gate Bridge and Colorado (both places that he wants to go) and I flipped a page. Nils cried out "That YOU!" and pointed to this photo:

Oh Nils, sweet Nils. What do you want? A pony? I will get you a pony. A real firetruck? Yours. A trip to the Golden Gate Bridge? Colorado? The moon? All yours. I have spent the last years with a small child yelling "that you!" at the most hideous of photos. Nils, you have no idea how much this means to me. Name what you want. It's yours my Nils.

Hey, guess what else! When we went to Joanns last week Carolena actually requested that I sew her a dress and picked out the fabric. This was amazing in that she has never been very keen on any dress I have made for her. She has always been very appreciative and very gracious but then calmly not worn the dresses. So, when we walked around Joanns and she carefully selected Jake and the Neverland Pirates fabric and pink flamingos I was totally on board.

We came home and looked at my patterns and she chose a cute one with little cap sleeves, we talked through what the finished product might look like, and I got to work. This dress was Carolena's design and I was merely the (semi-skilled) laborer. I am sure that she will refer to it as her "Jake dress" and in my mind I will continue to call it what I dubbed it during construction "Murphy's dress" as in "anything that can go wrong..."

After more than my fair share of seam ripping, and a total overhaul of the back of the dress when it didn't fit, and more ripping when I accidentally sewed the pocket to part of the back of the dress (silent cussing ensued at that point)... I finally arrived at this:

That is pre-last ironing because, well, because that's when I took the photos. As you can see, the solution to "ah! the top is too tight!" was to reconstruct the back to be an open back with a ribbon tie on top. I actually prefer this new back to the original pattern. It seems much more summer-y to go with the style of the flamingo/Jake/summertime dress. Carolena and I make a really good team. As we looked at the almost-finished product and did a little brainstorming we together arrived at the idea of cutting out some small Captain Hooks and Jakes from the left over fabric and made small pillow-like guys to put in the pocket. C did all of the stuffing while I did the stitching and now the dress is complete with two of each so that C and N can play with them in church. Yes, really, that's the plan.

I love this dress. It is sooo Carolena. A little funky. A little girly. Very happy and colorful. Something trendy (Jake) but the trendy thing isn't girly. Oh, it's just so C. A big blue jean pocket from an old pair of jeans (I've had that in my sewing box for like 15+ years). Rickrack, piping, flamingos, pirates, mismatched sleeves. Here's hoping she actually wears this one!

Scenes of Summer

It feels like it's been summer around here for quite some time. Is it not the middle of July? Huh... weird. I could have sworn it was. I'm thrilled that it isn't as we are having a great time. Going to Disney World and then the beach twice really threw us into summer mode around here, and things are going swimmingly. It seems everywhere I turn there are things that make me smile. Sure, the house is a mess (which I'm swimming upstream trying to clean it), but at least the mess is largely due to people having fun and using their creativity. We've watched little to no tv as we have all been have been too busy reading and playing and painting and creating and imagining. Ah, bliss.

I love when the tv is off. I'm convinced my children are far better behaved when they are getting out energy and creativity rather than zoning out in front of a screen. So, behavior around here has been pretty great lately too.

I can't remember the last time we ate dinner in the kitchen. Why would we when we can eat outside on our deck? A tablecloth, a "summer time" meal, dessert most nights, and candles that get promptly blown out by the wind, yes, we love eating on the deck. The lizards scamper around and we dream about what our deck dweller rabbit might be up to. And then we walk back inside carrying all of our plates and utensils, toss them into the sink, and clean up is nearly finished!



Bathing suits have been constantly drying in showers and laundry room. Watermelon is staining our clothing. A pile of "to be tie-dyed" has started in the kitchen.

Summer is in full swing around here and it's pretty darn swell.

Fun Things

One of the fun things about seldom checking my email means when I do in fact check it I find interesting things like urgent reminders to renew my cars inspection tag (or whatever it is) right now!!! and to get my (unfortunately still over goal) rear end back into Weight Watchers before my online access expires and they start charging me again! Oh the horror! Why aren't the urgent emails waiting in my inbox things like Free latte right now!!? If THAT were the case I'd probably be better about paying attention to my email.

Chris rolls his eyes at me in open annoyance that I never know what's going on at church. "It was IN the EMAIL!" he says in exasperation. Yep. I'm sure that it was. But, as I like to remind him, I am taking the clergy family perks where they come. If I have to put up with him working smack dab in the middle of long weekends then I think it is my prerogative to ignore the email and instead roll over in bed and say, "hey, is there Sunday school tomorrow?" unless of course I'm teaching it...

We went to the beach again this weekend. It's the start to a great summer when we spend the first three days of it at the beach. I found three shark teeth, we saw a bazillion dolphin jumping out of the water, and we fed the seagulls from the ferry. We went to the strand and had lunch at Fisherman's Wharf aka the restaurant where Chris and I went on our first date. We had ice cream at La King's. I told the kids they could each have five dollars to pick out something on the Strand. C looked at necklaces and mermaids and all kinds of things and then settled on a squeaking rubber shark toy. Nils followed suit. Other highlights of the trip include (but are not limited to): Nils' constant quoting of the Country Bears "As soon as I find a ladder I'll be riiight up! mmm hmmm!," ukulele playing, C staying up late to play Ticket to Ride, and this gem...
As C and I went into separate stalls in a somewhat crowded bathroom at the Fisherman's Wharf she called out to me in a loud voice, "wow! I am SO going to clog this toilet!" What?! Of course the entire bathroom starting cracking up. I replied "TMI!" which got more laughter. Geeze.

Bees Will Buzz, Kids Will Blow Dandelion Fuzz

Yesterday was Carolena's first day of preschool.

September 2013

Oh. Wait. That can't be right.

Yesterday was Nils' first day.

September 2015

September 2015

September 2015

Errr... wasn't that yesterday?

Wait. Today was the last day.
Wow... so just like that C is done with preschool. What a gal. Those kids are so awesome. I'm so happy that they are growing and thriving and moving onward and upward.

May 2016

May 2016

May 2016

May 2016

May 2016

May 2016

First Day in the Fish Class, Last Day in the Fish Class

First Day Panda Class, First Day Puppy, First Day Ladybug, Last Day of Preschool

SUMMMERRR!

Egg-cellent

Yesterday I held an egg in my hand that was still warm from the chicken. That sounds kind of gross, but it wasn't. It was amazing and miraculous.

A couple who owns a farm (well, we call it a farm - it's not, it's a pecan orchard) invited us over yesterday so that Carolena could ride one of their horses. It was awesome. Carolena had a blast riding Duke and afterward politely asked if she could go again another day. We had fun with Duke, and Nils discovered that horses do not in fact say "neigh" but rather make a big huffing noise which he now duplicates if asked what a horse says. Adorable is an understatement.

We went to the chicken coop to check for eggs and found that in addition to the three eggs Carolena carefully tucked into her shirt to carry, there was a hen in the coop in the process of laying an egg! As Nils would say, "Whaaattt?!" The hen was in the coop making soft cooing kind of noises - but not in a way that made one think she was comfortable. In fact, quite the opposite. C gathered the eggs from the other boxes, and we all went back out of the coop. A minute or so later that hen came strutting out squawking and singing loudly. She was clearly very very proud of herself. So we commended her good work and went back into the coop - and that's when I got to hold the freshest egg ever. I was amazed.

We came home with fresh broccoli and tomatoes and a day that C and N will continue to talk about for the days to come.

Rainy Days and Sleep Deprivation

Oh you know, just drinking coffee and watching youtube videos on how to braid. Normal stuff going on around here.

Yes, I know how to braid. No, I don't know how to do fancy crazy Elsa fish tail wombat divine braids for my daughter whose hair hasn't been cut in a year (at her insistence. somethings aren't worth fighting). If it were up to her she would have her hair scraggly and unbrushed and "just down!" all of the time. Up to me? Fancy and well kept. I don't have long hair - I have to have fun with hers.

The kids just ran through the room screaming "Go Injas!" (aka ninjas). C is wearing a coonskin cap and Nils is carrying a stuffed animal beaver we named Tobias.

Last night I went to check on kids and dole out some kisses before heading off to bed. Carolena was snug in her bed sound asleep. When I went into Nils' room he was... nowhere to be found. This has happened before. I creep in quietly and walk up to his pillow expecting to kiss a sleeping little angel... only to find the bed completely empty. It is terrifying. Luckily, last night I stayed relatively calm as I searched the room for Nils. Not finding him, I went back to look around his bed again. That's when my foot stumbled upon a soft little head snoozing UNDER the bed. I carefully got him back into his bed and then had to crawl under it to find all of his lovies that he'd brought with him.

Later both kids got into our bed at separate times during the night. Chris ended up sleeping on the floor of Nils' room just to score some sleep for the rest of the house. My elders who tell me to "keep them young forever!" when they see us in the grocery store don't remember how little sleep parents actually get.

Nuggets from Nils

Life sure is fun isn't it? If something strikes you as hilarious laugh out loud. Laugh, shake your head back and forth, and call out "so bunny! so bunny, Mommy, so bunny!"

Make ample use of the phrase "me too!" Refuse to be left out of anything. Ever. Another handy phrase is to call out "that me!" when watching tv or reading a book. Always cry out "that me!" when pointing to the funniest bunniest character of all.

There is nothing more exciting to look forward to about Disney World than riding that big train. Every once in a while cry out "ride train Disney World!" and cheer.

You know what matters very very much? What you're wearing. Refuse to wear pants as often as someone tries to make you wear them. Shirt options include and are limited to: fire truck, Kermit, "stripey stripe club" (a striped shirt), and shark. Pants when worn must be plaid or madras to resemble "choo choo tracks." Whenever possible wear Night-Night as a cape or over your entire head and make ghost noises.

Go Away Bird!

Did you ever stop to think that maybe I'm not drinking too much coffee... maybe you're not drinking enough?!

Well, unless you're Kelly. If you're Kelly, well done on the coffee intake. Well done.

Speaking of my sis, we met her and two of her kiddos at the zoo yesterday. Now you are probably imagining all of us smiling as we stare at the majesty of the giraffes, laughing as we watch the flamingos, cheering "Go-Away Bird!" as we look upon Nils' favorite zoo animal. You would be wrong. Except for that last thing - Nils always has to cheer for his bird.

Instead, we ignored the elephants behind us (how?!) and scarfed down our lunches at 1030am. We then moved to an area outside of the bathrooms and sat on the ground eating pretzels. After that we sat in a stroller parking area and chatted some more. It was a weird and wonderful morning. We did manage to visit the current Washed Ashore exhibit. Mom, Dad, you guys should make some huge jellyfish out of beach trash for under your beach house. You would be so inspired by the exhibit. Do it! Do it!

My bro is currently planning a trip to Norway. Yes, really. Lucky. So I am living vicariously through him and researching places I would go. First stop: FRAM!

I Don't Make Monkeys, I Just Train Em!

I found something great in a big basket full of junk on our countertop. You know the basket, one of those "we'll deal with this later" kind of spots. Yesterday I was looking for something and found a piece of pink construction paper with this conversation sprawled across it in Sharpie:

Carolena (who was wearing a sparkly pink hat): "This is a singing hat AND a dancing hat. You can wear it when you dance and toss it off when you see someone handsome."
Me: "What does that mean?"
C: "A boy."
Me: "What makes him handsome?"
C: "Wearing a nice shirt... a jacket... handsome pants... you know, handsome."

It's 6:15 am and Nils is being introduced to Pee-Wee's Playhouse (thank you, Netflix!). Nils got up at 5 and soon thereafter told me he wants to go hang out with one of his teachers today. Uh, sorry kid. You're stuck with me again.

Speaking of being stuck with me, yesterday (I am ashamed to admit) I laughed at Carolena. I feel really bad about it... but... you can be the judge (don't tell me your verdict of my level of guilt). I was getting ready in the master bathroom and C&N were hanging out in my bedroom. I heard C say to N, "I'm drinking hot chocolate!" in a bragging voice. I thought perhaps Chris was making that in the kitchen and hoped he was making enough for both kids. Seconds later C came screaming into the bathroom with her tongue hanging out. She kept screaming (she's very dramatic) and pawing at her tongue. I gave her a cup of water and had her rinse and spit it out. She kept pawing and screaming. She finally told me what happened, "I was pretending to drink hot chocolate out of this cup... and when I took a pretend sip... it was full of cat hair!" And then I lost it laughing. oops.

Terrible mom moment: guilty as charged.

Magazine Life

Somehow, miraculously, yesterday's peace and potential resulted in this:

Now would be the time when Nils pops up out of nowhere chanting, "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!"
Yes, he does that all of the time. It's awesome and amazing and does in fact boost one's energy. I told you, we're raising an 80s villain. He also likes to sing "Go Mommy! Go Mommy!" for me... and himself which is the best "Go Nils! Go Nils!"

Seriously though, Casey! Casey! Casey!

You know how magazines are always acting like people can turn nothing into something just by digging around their house? For once, that worked for me. A few months ago my mom snagged some awesome Kindergarten cubbies from my old school and saved them for us. They were awesome, real wood, and huge. So we cut them in half and turned them into this:

They are so useful. I could have cleaned them up for their blog debut and made them look like a magazine. I could have lined up our shoes adorably across the bottom. I could have put my llbean tote in there just so. I could have a picture that is centered and includes the cool picture hanging above them and flowers on top. But that isn't real life. This is what those cubbies really look like everyday. Hm... perhaps I will paint and distress those too...

Yesterday I contemplated the leftover cubbies (from cutting them in half). I ended up popping the side off of one of them and attaching it to the back of the other to make it stable. Then, I found some leftover paint from my laundry room and got to work (yes, my laundry room is that happy color). What fun! Some sandpaper completed the look and then the kids helped me move kitchen stuff onto it. I love it!

Again, I could have gone with magazine quality... but that's what our island actually looks like this morning.

For years now I've had a picture on our fridge of a kitchen I tore out of a magazine. It is an island with a beautiful shelf built in underneath. Finally! Finally!

Chris has been lovingly teasing me about our house lately. Something about the spring makes me nest. I can't stop daydreaming and working and changing and rearranging. Hm... speaking of which... I have a shelf to go hang in the bathroom...

Don't Call it a Comeback, I've Been Here for Years

I read two books last week. TWO. Like... as in... finished two books. In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Voyage of the USS Jeannette was fascinating and insanely good. Then over Saturday and Sunday I picked up The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and read it cover to cover. Sucked in. I definitely recommend both books. So, now what to read?? So many books to read and reread. And so many more books on the shelves of Goodwill!

Spring Break was great - the kids and I spent the week with my parents, my sis, and her kids all at the beach. The kids ran amok. I consumed far too many calories. Nils summed up the week-long trip by screaming, "Nooo!!! Go back Moom's house! Beach!! Nooo!!" when we turned off of the highway and into Katy. Yep.

Luckily for Nils (and the rest of us) Moom showed up at our house yesterday. Chris gifted me with two tickets for me to go see Cabaret with mi madre so we're heading into the bayou city for that tomorrow night. Party! Party!

I'm tired. I've gained weight. My caffeine consumption is through the roof. You know when would be a good time to get control? Yesterday. Instead I ate donuts and McDonalds (I don't even like donuts!). Today: restart. Again.