from my family to yours...

snow
yes
even a small drift
can lift me up
to happiness

snow
yes
even a small patch
can make me fall
on my tush

:)

ps
i love the snow
whether i'm up or down
:)

for these things i am...

thankful
thankful
thankful
for more than i can list

but here's a few

a husband who makes me laugh everyday
digital cameras
(please may i never have to live without one)
paper & glue
(any paper, any glue)
tank tops with built in bras
(can't sleep without one...not comfortably at least:)
paint
good friends
(who laugh, accept & comment on the old blog:)
(any paint, any time)
george clooney awards
(did you see? 2nd time...go george!)
black & white
(perfect combination)

when a certain little boy says
'mama, i have a present for you
let's go to the park'
(irresistable!)
skwooshy pillows
(i hoard them!)
parents, grandparents & great grandparents
(to love us & save our bacon on a regular basis)
baby wipes
(can you even imagine life without them?
no, don't even try...this is a happy blog...)
people who help other people
( aspire...)
road trips
(more please!)
converse
(classic. middle school memories. good ones.)
i am completely & unconditionally loved
(thank you, God)

my little girlie waking up with a huge grin
(everyday that happens! too cute:)
the office
(always lives up to expectations!)
a place to write, gush, blab, rant & just be me
(thanks my bloggy friends:)
& of course
kids in fall leaves...
(even crying kids)

what are you thankful for?
:)

bookmark it...

here's a new one to add to your list of blogs not to miss...
jmbmommy.blogspot.com

this is my dear friend jbmommy
(not her real name)
we have been friends since the 8th grade
(7th for her)
with a small bit of time in there that we just refer to as
'when we weren't friends'
but that could never last!

she was the one who made the bag of
'word of the day' papers
& every day we would draw one from the bag
& a group of us would find out the word
then as we walked the hallowed (sp?) halls of oaklea middle school
we would see each other & say something like
'that is a very INTERESTING shirt you are wearing'
& we would all scream
ala peewee herman
(this was obviously before his 'other performances' were revealed
though once you love peewee you just do
disgusting displays or not.
i forgive him
i just don't want to hear about it ever happening again...
you hear me peewee?)

so jessica...
yes jessica
she is just too cool
funny
sweet
& not afraid to tell you how she feels
in the most lovely way
so that you go away thinking
'i had never thought of turtles rights that way before
but now i must go buy a turtle
& join every turtle cause there is'
(turtle rights is actually not one of her causes
it was just a fake example
because i am not a political blog...
though if you are interested in turtle rights
i'm sure there is something out there for you
they do desreve our respect
shell or no shell)

anyhoo
her most recent post rocks.
it's about going on the road to producing &
excelling acedemically
(with spelling like that i obviously needed a little more acedemics)
& careerwise
& then realizing that maybe a break from that isn't a bad idea
especially when two sweet boys are involved
i loved it most because
i was never on that track
i always knew i was going to be a stay at home mom
& wanted to be
so i love a different perspective
& i think she is so brave
& just wonderful!
check her out
this post is serious & sweet
but there are bound to be some funny rants mixed in too
(get cracking jb....
love you!)

:)

gripe fest '06...come join the fun...

things to do today

5:30am walk/run with tina

5:32 wonder why i ever agreed to walk/run with tina

6:02 remember why...cause it feels so good when you're done

6:13 stretch & sit-ups & listen to brian's morning songs

6:40 shower...sometimes alone, sometimes with a pint sized audience
'takin' a shower mommy?'

7:30 start cleaning the house because the tyree's are coming over

7:42 wonder why we invited the tyrees over
maybe we could just meet at target
target is always clean
you never find a 3 day old sippy cup of milk sitting around at target

8:04 return to the real world & continue cleaning

9:00 trudge down the driveway with kiddos
weighted down by diaper bag, blankie, stuffed cow named 'grandpa calvin'
wonder when i became a sherpa

9:12 quick stop at albertson's to but cold & cough medicine for merra & i

9:30 drop the kids off in child care
apologize to teachers for forgetting burp rag, milk & diapers
what the heck is in the diaper bag?

10:00 meeting with rachael & jeannie
talking about adult things with adult people
dare to dream...

11:02 get kiddos from child care

11:05 chase Q around church lobby
'want to stay with clara'

11;13 wrangle Q into car with the ever popular 'bribe & threat method'

11:19 drive through starbucks to get a gift card for coach ramie

11:38 go to soccer
strap miss m into bjorn & zoom around with Q
last day of this session
Q loves it...every night 'God bless coach ramie'

12:22 buckle in two on the edge of nap time kiddos into the car

12:27 drive through any place with a value menu

i am getting tired just typing this...
let's just say
the day is full...

things i want to do today & for the rest of the week...
dig a hole & crawl into it
with some hot chocolate
an US magazine
& john mayer, serenading me
(he's not in the hole with me
just sitting on the edge dangling his feet)
(it's a deep hole...)


please come to gripe fest with me!
i don't want to go alone!
what if i don't know anyone?
what if i can't find the bathroom?
we can buy t-shirts!
come on....

what going on with you...

:)

funny thing is
one look at this little sweetie
& none of it even matters
& i'll gladly drive a car full of 2 year olds
& 8 month olds to kansas & back...
(well, at least to vancover...
washington, not canada)

zap!

thought the computer got me didn't you?
after i pushed publish on that last post
it just reached right out & zapped me...
these machines can be very touchy
they don't like to be insulted
even when they deserve it
(did i say that?)
anyhooo
much
much
much computer drama
still going on in fact
someday
when the moon is full
& we are all sitting around a campfire
i will tell you the scarey tales
of
emily & the computer of doom...

but for now i will say...
thank you to the mac store for renting computers
& thank you to joe p for hiring brian & i
to do a slide show for you & for paying for the rental of said computer
so that we can actually do the slide show...
& the biggest thanks of all
to my dearest coolest awesomest brian
for setting up the rented computer
sending me upstairs to catch up on the blogging world
making my blog our home page
& keeping mr. Q downstairs with the promise of 'monster, inc' & candy
you are a dream...

:)

that's it?!!!?
gone for two & a half weeks
& all you get is a measley 2 paragraphs
(if my little bits & peices of sentences even qualify as paragrahs)
take heart young friend
while my computer was layed up in the mac hospital
i have been blogging in my head
many
many
prize winning blogs
& some will make it to you...
maybe today
maybe tomorrow
maybe some day
& definitely for the rest of my life....

stay tuned
it can only get better...

:)

(save)

my computer is not on my good list
not even on my kind of good list
not even on my would be nice & say hi if i was in the same aisle of the grocery store with it but probably wouldn’t yell hello across the parking lot list

no idea what’s wrong
that is not my department
i’m in the blog & play with photoshop department
the manager of the fix it department says it will take a few hours
& he is not willing to give up sleep
so that i can blog with out the screen freezing every 20 minutes
selfish!:)
actually he’s going to look at it tonight
so maybe
maybe
i can learn to love my emac again…

i am accepting it now
the fact that maybe
if i don’t save every 2 minutes
i will lose blogs & pictures & other important things
(save)

i have been through the 5 stages of computer grief
denial:
‘this is not happening…my computer did not just freeze
the mouse simply decided to take a nap’
anger:
‘what the…..AGAIN?!’
followed by many words
that shouldn’t be read by your innocent eyes
bargaining:
(does anger come before or after bargaining? can’t remember…)
‘okay..if i only have safari & photoshop & email running will you please not crash?
okay if only have safari & email running will you please not crash?
safari?
pushing the on button?’
& finally acceptance:
‘i have come to take it as gift every time you freeze
because it means i can clean up small parts of our room
while you warm up again & again you crappy piece of crap…’
oops am i back to anger again?
so soon?
(save)

& that
in a nutshell
(the saying doesn’t specify the size of the nutshell…)
is why my blogging has been
sparse
(save)

but believe me
when we are back on
we are back on…
(save)

:)
(save)

wowza!

you know how sometimes you see someone so much
that you don't really SEE them?
when i saw this picture i thought
'goodness...that is one handsome man i've got'
(& the little girlie on his lap just adds to the love...)
sigh...

:)

ladies & gentlemen...the incredible marathon blogger...

too much in brain…
must purge…

sister shower…
the shower for kate was very fun
a great mix of people
(shout out to grandma, angie, rachael
& any non posters out there)
& just a lovely little time to love on kate
& laugh & give her some presents
i refrained from doing the
‘what you will say on your wedding night’ list
(instructions:
write down interesting things
that the bride to be says as she’s opening gifts
then read later
such amusing things as
‘it’s so cute’
& ‘where did you find that?’
cause giggles
throw in a
‘you should get your own web site’
(thank you monica)
& you’ve got a pee your pants good time…)
ryan’s grandma was there
so i held off
i don’t think my grandma woud have minded
(would you grandma?)
but you don’t want to show all of your crazy to the new family…
until it’s legal…
also ryan’s grandma made the cutest
aprons for kate & ryan
& i’m secretly hoping for one someday
& i don’t think she would make one for
‘that girl with the inappropriate shower game’
(why i think my sister’s grandma in law would make me an apron
is another subject entirely)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
las vegas…
i know i mentioned it before
but i think this is as close to my dream job
as i’m going to get
at this time in my life
seriously
the show was so great!
i love to see all of the new stuff
& my brain is just in it’s element
with all of the colors
& patterns
& designs
& cute
& cool
dancing around in it…
bliss
:)

& i’m getting paid to play with paper
if i’m dreaming let me sleep a little longer…

the site is looking really good
when it is up
you will be the first to know…

plus i saw my friend eileen
i truly thought i might never see her again
due to circumstances beyond anyone’s control.
but God had other plans…
she is just the greatest girl
we met when i worked at the scrapbook store
but we were bonded for life when we discovered
(i am not kidding)
that she dated b in high school!
is that kooky or what?
& if there is a picture here you will see
we can surmise that b has a thing for
brunette
crafty
witty
intelligent
fun
cute girls
you could tell that all from a picture can’t you?
anyway...
so so so
happy
to see her again!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

on the move…
yes we have a crawler
i think that is what you call it
when they are up on all fours
& moving their arms & legs
& they end up across the room from where you left them
she’s not going to win any baby olympics quite yet
but just give her time
her brother placed in hammer throw
& 100 meter dash
when he was her age:)
so she’s got a good coach…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

movies...

b & i went to see invincible
a few weeks ago
i am a total sucker for sports movies
ever since hoosiers
is it the predictability?
is it the fact that i wish i was an athlete?
is it the slow motion action shots?
the sweat?
the muscle?
the cheering?
the losing & coming back again?
yes it is all of the above
add in marky mark wahlburg in denim bell bottoms
& pouring down rain mud football
& i’m there…

high school musical…
i mentioned a song from this a few weeks ago
so let’s just add the whole darn soundtrack now.
darling erin let me borrow her dvd
& she may never see it again...
let’s put it in SAT terms, shall we?
emily ruth is to high school musical
as mr Q is to the incredibles
in other words
i wake up & say
‘can i have chokit milk & watch high school musical?’

akleelah & the bee
ummm am i in a feel good movie mode or what?
this is good
a bit unpredictable
but in a predictable way
you know?
& the kids in it are too cute
in a too cool kind of way…
right.

a cinderella story
(note:
this may seem like
a crazy amount of teeny tweeny movies
for a 32 year old to be watching…
blame it in the netflix, yeah, yeah…)
hillary duff
chad michael something or other
(love him in freaky friday
which i own…
come on someone top me!)
a young girl’s father marries a crazy mean lady
he dies
&…
oh you know…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
tiny tots…

miss Jessica
aka jbmommy
introduced me to this most excellent place
there is nothing better on a rainy day
than to take a little Q man
to a giant room full of plastic toys
& cars
& slides
& say
‘go for it’
& go for it he did…so much fun
playing with sammy...
while Jessica
& i hung out
wearing matching babies
(born 12 hours apart)
& talking to a woman
who had an 11 pound 8 ounce baby
no joke
she said she thinks she was off on the conception date
he may have been in a month too long...
yes
when the baby walks out & says
‘hello, i’ll be your son’
he’s been in a tad too long…
the mother was quite adorable though
so i’ll give her a little grace
(see where being cute gets you?)
we will be joining this group
& i will rename it
‘mommies little sanity club’

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

the office…
this is the perfect show
this show is the son of seinfeld in our house
never thought jerry, elaine, george & kramer
would even have a close second…
but michael, dwight, pam & jim (sigh)
congratulations
'world’s best show' mugs for all….

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
today my cool
cute
nice
funny
smart
kind
strong
two year old wrestling
third grade teaching
seven month old tossing
(not too high)
wood working
husband came home with a hot chocolate for me

love that.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
oprah & gayle’s road trip
i have the bug
get me in a car
throw in some nacho cheese doritos
an i pod
a map of any state
& a half tank of gas
(i like to live on the edge
as an 18 year old angie,
a little blue hundai
the LA freeway
& an empty gas tank will attest)
& i’m off…

i’m going to do a road trip memories blog someday…
get your stories ready…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

what’s swimming around in your cute little brain?

:)

sheesh!

okay! okay!
so i am a shopper
& a baby girl clothes hoarder
& a buy girl clothes even though you are pregnant with a boy shopper
but you guys way overestimated me!
i feel silly even writing how many of each item
miss m actually has
because it sounds so piddily in comparison to the guesses


but oh well
here are the real numbers
dresses 23 (highest guess 50! five oh
as in oh my gosh do you do anything but buy dresses?)
shoes 12 (highest guess 23, that would be 46 individual shoes)
cardigans 14 (highest 16, close close)
hoodies 8 (highest 15)
jeans 7 (highest 13)
the person closest without going over is.....
no one
but the person closest WITH going over is.....
kel!
nice going kel
i will send you a little fun pack
next week!
& i will save a few of those little dresses
for you
someday you may need them:)

oh & on that note
my dear friend emily h
whose husband's entire side has had baby boys
for the past 2 generations or something
does that make sense?
is that possible?
maybe that's not right
anyway
she has 2 boys
& now she's having a girl!
3 boys would have been just great
& tons of fun of course
but emily with a girl will be so beyond cute!
a little farmer girl!
i love it!
congrats em!
can't wait to buy you some red & pink stuff...


hey thanks for your guesses
maybe i'll do another contest sometime
guess how many storage containers we have without lids
or something exciting like that...
just you wait & see

:)

oh & one more thing
(promise)
las vegas was awesome
rephrase...
the scrapbook show was awesome
vegas was...
vegas
i think my airplane snacks say it all...
actually, i was thinking of changing my blog to this:
'otherwise known as plane cheesey'
what do you think?
(more scrapbbok stuff coming soon...)
:)

dream a little dream of me...

tomorrow i am off to las vegas
as a part of what may very well be
the closest i ever get to my dream job

right now i am working for my friend, tricia
as the creative director
(or something like that, no official name yet...)
for her business...
cocoa daisy
it is a kit club for scrapbookers.
so you can go on the site
(goes live very soon
& don't worry i'll link you up...)
& order a kit that we have put together
handpicking products from lots of different companies
but that all go together really well.

i get to help her choose a theme
& pick out stuff
& then i get to design pages
& projects for the site to show
the design team has 7 other people on it
so there will be a wide variety of examples...

this is my almost perfect job because
1. i get to play with paper & glue & other fun stuff
2. i get paid for it
3. i don't have anything to do with paying bills
4. i get to play with the newest scrapbook stuff
5. finacial matters have nothing to do with me
6. i can work on my own time

the only thing that would make it more perfect
is if there was a store front
& i got to design displays with unlimited budget
& time
& a babysitter paid for
& george c. serving me drinks, while john m. sings
(they're back!)
yes.
show me that job
& i am there.

anyway
we are going to lv for 3 days
for a scrapbook trade show
memory trends it is called.
so we will get to see all of the newest stuff
hello heaven?
is that you?
i loved trade shows when i was a buyer & when i was a rep
they are just fun
lots of excitement in the air

& vegas..
watch out
hundreds of scrapbookers on the loose
you'll be able to see the camera flashes from space
(just like the laser at the luxor)

& you know what they say...
what happens in vegas stays in vegas
unless you are ascrapbooker
then it's photographed, journaled about
& decorated with tastful embellishments...

:)

norm, have you seen the super glue?

each & every single day
i think of new things i want to post…
i love blogging
i’ve never been this consistant in journaling
for some reason
this works for me
(read: it involves interaction with others:)
plus my kids will have yet one more thing to look at
when they grow up
a lovely chronical of their life
in addition to scrapbooks that leave out
giant chunks of their life
(by the way, i have made peace with this fact
i want to enjoy scrapbooking
not feel guilty
so i just do what i can do…)
so thanks to you dear readers
(commenters & non-commenters alike)
i love hearing (& not hearing) from each of you:)

anyway…
on with the show…

Saturday morning we went to the pumpkin patch
this was a brilliant idea on my behalf…
our october is pretty filled up
what with fun wedding stuff
plus the fact that we love UofO football
(go ducks!)


so we headed off to the farm…
sadly the farmers were not in sync with me!
no wagon ride to the pumpkin patch
plus the patch
(& i quote)
‘isn’t really ready yet’
um hello?
halloween is a month away
do they need to go buy pumpkins
& super glue them to last years stems or something?
(how kind & generous of spirit am i?)

anyway
none of that mattered
first off Q had no idea what he was missing
he didn’t remember that a hay ride was even possible
for all he knows
pumpkins grow in big pile in front of Albertsons

second
isn’t the point of this all just to be together?
& together we were!
feeding animals
cutting the u-pick flowers
playing on the play structure
& choosing our favorite pumpkins


i loaded everything into the cutest little cart
because i knew it would make a great picture
& it did
even thought the wheels hardly turned
& there was really no steering to speak of
& it made me want to cuss
but boy did our stuff look cute in it:)

this time of the year is so wonderful
around here…
it is my favorite
& by favorite i mean the change part
especially the change from summer to fall
& winter to spring

i love that in oregon we get every season
some wetter than others
but there is a distinct change every 3 months or so…
& getting cozied up in sweaters?
come on!
what is better than that?
(a close second is
putting them away for shorts in may…)


so we are ready to carve!
the funny thing is
this is our first of 3 trips
to pumpkin patches that we have planned!
it is probably good that the wagon wasn’t running
who could handle that much excitement in one season?

:)

free stuff? did you say free stuff?!?

saturday night was all about adult entertainment
no not that kind
you’ll have to go to a different blog
if that’s what you’re looking for…

so for b & i that meant
kiddos to grammy & pop’s house
(what a ginormous, hugio blessing that is)
& us back to our house
for a couple of hours of doing whatever the heck we wanted
in a house not filled with the sounds of
‘mama?
need shokit milk!
mama?
i NEED shokit milk & juice’
(sorry buddy, one beverage at a time here
what do we look like a college bar?
no double fisting!)

so off b went to the wood shop
seriously
every husband needs to find that place for themselves
where they can just have fun
no pressure
& accomplish something
(this is a big one for b)
he just loves it in there
(& oh boy how happy
it would make my grandpa to know that:)

& i headed off to miss m’s closet
i know it sounds weird & mysterious doesn’t it?
like what could i possibly WANT to do in there?
is there a portal to another land?
where i sit on the beach & scrapbook
while george clooney brings me giant glasses of ice water
(never let it get below half full, georgey)
& john mayer sings gentley in the background
(be a dear & bring a glass for john too would you, george?)…
ahhh….

back here on earth
i love to organize
those of you who have been to my house can stop laughing
right now.
i didn’t say i was tidy
or even a little bit of a clean freak
but i love folding things
& making them look oh so lovely on the shelf
just waiting for a photographer from real simple to arrive…
still waiting.

anyway
poor miss m
her closet needed a do over
thus far the only time i have a moment to do some organizing is
when she is asleep
& strangley enough
she sleeps in her room
where her closet is located
(weird right?)
so i went in there & got busy
(again, not that kind of blog)

now you may think
‘how long could that little job take?
the child in question is only 6 months old
i’m sure emily was back in her geoge clooney portal in mere moments’
(maybe this IS that kind of blog…)

you would be wrong.

how many dresses does a baby
(who can’t even sit up on her own
by the way)
need?

that, my friend is for you to answer
& who-so-ever guesses closest gets a prize
delivered to their home
& a trip through the closet portal…

so post your guesses here in the comment section
& if you don't want to comment publicly
(the pressure of choosing a screen name is quite paralizing, i know...)
email me & i'll post your answer for all to see

extra credit:
how many pairs of shoes does a girl who doesn’t even crawl yet need?
(though she just started that
getting up on her knees & rocking thing yesterday!
brian keeps saying
‘push her down! remember what happened with the other one?’)
how many cardigan sweaters?
hoodies?
pairs of jeans?
(wow, you are going to be rolling in the prizes)

i'll give you a week to ponder this
so next thursday
(a little more than i week i guess)
i will announce the winner

i will even post pictures!
i know.
you can hardly wait…

:)

ps i just want to add that i didn't buy all of these clothes
not that i am not a champion shopper...
but after having Q
i realized that they really only wear each thing a few times
therefore most of the ones i did buy were from garage sales:)
the rest are from various friends who are mom's of girlies
(thanks angie, rachael, wendi & susan g.)
also from grammy (thanks!)
& last but not least from auntie kate
who, when i called to tell her that i was having a girl said
'i'm going shopping tonight'
& she did:)
thanks kate:)

peek a boo...

guess who's six months old...
(give or take 4 days:)


age...
half
.5
6/12

love...
whole
full
complete


:)

there's a scrapbook page in there somewhere...
(isn't there always?:)

happy happy...things that make me so very happy...

...portland...
this weekend
just me & my girl
got to rona’s house
new john mayer cd on the bed
(early christmas present she says:)
what a cool mother-in-law!
love her…

saw kate’s wedding dress
oh so beautiful
i had that moment
when you first see the bride
& everything just stands still
it is so perfect
it is just so her.
beautiful.

funny funny bachelorette party
kate was at the helm of that one
monica is marrying a boy named jack
so everything she had to do was jack related
‘split a jack & coke with a stranger’
‘find 2 people to do jumping jacks with’
‘have a cracker jack eating contest with someone’
‘have someone act out ‘jack & jill’ with you while reciting it’
(the guy she did this one with was very good
he even fell down & broke his crown!)
it was great
& monica was totally game:)

fun hanging out with my friend emily
(she’s emily anna:)
when we were in high school
people would call us ‘the emilys’
& we would say
‘emily & emily, we are each individual human beings’
that is exactly the kind of smarty pants girls we were
& as it turns out
still are…
:)

miss m got to spend time with her grandma alone
i think that might be a rare occurrence
just because we usually go up there all four together
so i was so glad that they got to hang out
& rona got to know her 3rd granddaughter:)

10:30 service at southlake
(i love that church)
&
a stop at my favorite scrapbook store
on the way home
to complete a lovely weekend
girlie all the way:)
~~~~~~~~~

...20 minute makeover...
my new thing…
i put both kids down for a nap
set the timer for 20 minutes
then clean up all i can in that amount of time
when the timer goes off i’m done
& free to do what i want
any old time:)
it has been so good for me
i can now blog & surf with no guilt
cause i already did my 20 minute clean up
i love this
it fits me just right:)

...grey’s anatomy...
a tv show that makes you
laugh
cry
want to download music

all in one episode?
that is my kind of show…

...Q...
‘i want to see my liver’
after asking ‘what?’ 12 times
i finally realize he wants to drive over
& see ‘his’ RIVER again
i am half disappointed, half relieved
‘my two year old KNOWS what his liver is?!?’
(i always knew he was advanced)
‘my two year old wants to SEE his liver?!?’


...sharpies...
brian brings home
new colors
every time
a rainbow to choose from
a charmed life i do lead…

...prison break...
i
like
that
show
A
LOT.

...oregon/oklahoma game...
don’t care if it’s fake win
a win is a win
(that’s what fake winners always say:)
& it was so fun & crazy
we were hugging everyone around us
plus
toby keith was there
& i saw him
he’s a country singer
& a oklahoma fan
poor toby keith

...hershey’s caramel kisses...
trouble
big trouble

...the jiggles...
a song
(not a description of my tummy
well, actually it is a description of my tummy
but not what i am about to talk about here
& everybody said 'phew!')
by bradley whitford (of 'the west wing' & 'studio 60')
& jane kasmerick (of 'malcom in the middle')
they are married
& this song is great
if you have itunes & a child
this is a must have.
it'll be in your head for days
& yet you won't care...

...clean closet...
equals
happy mommy:)

what’s making you oh so happy today?

:)

cuttin' for the very first time....

i’ve been a weird al fan
(don’t even think i’m going to attempt his last name:)
since ‘like a surgeon’

if you can recite all of the words to
‘eat it’
this is for you…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xEzGIuY7kw

thanks to Jessica
my dear hilarious friend
who is herself
whiter than sour cream:)


:)

there's a pattern here somewhere...

we laugh
& talk
for hours
about
nothing
& everything

cheerleader barbie
& plus size nancy drew
post quarter life crisis
nothing unsaid
nothing held back
everything real
everything love

questions
& comments
feel happy
feel history
feel better
feel cuter

husbands
& kids
true love
true challenge
true life

heritage
& future
mom’s daughters
daughter’s moms

margaritas
& cute cake
2 bar stools
6 years past 26
& $20 each
equals
everlasting friendship
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

i love you, gwenie
(with a heart over the i)

:)

the hills are alive….

i love music
& thanks to me
my children will have quite a variety of it
in their musical memory…
ABBA to veggie tales:)

& may i also say that ipods rock?
we were given one by a kind benefactor
who can’t resist new, fun electronics
(love you dad!)
he bought a nano
& we inherited the little white machine of tunes…
for a mixed tape lover like me
this is heaven
& no hitting rewind
then play
then rewind
then play
then fast forward
nope
i hit one button
& i’m back to the beginning of dancing queen just like that
& if i want to listen to knarls barkley
over & over & over
i can.
this is love…

so here are my favorites right now…
(i want to emphasize RIGHT NOW
(that is why i capitalized it:)
these are not my favorites of all time
(so don't go freaking out that there's no mj or whatever:)
just on my playlist at the moment
best songs of all time?
that is another day….)


‘we’re all in this together’
high school musical

this song is stuck in my head all day
& i love it
i haven’t seen the movie yet
but it’s in my queue at netfilx…
can’t wait:)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

waterfalls
tlc

great lyrics
great message
great beat
try to,listen to this without
just MOVING
it is absolutely addicting
& after you’ve listened to it 20,000 times
you just feel so cool…
rolling down the street…
radio blasting…
two carseats in the back seat…
whaaat?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

daughters
john mayer

i loved this song before i had a daughter
now?
forget it…
can’t even make it through without a hankie…

ps i will listen to anything john mayer wants to sing..
phone book?
grocery list?
crime & punishment?
bring it on.

pps anyone heard his newest album?
want it…
waiting:)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

i guess that’s why they call it the blues
elton john

always a forbidden song in my mind
(the ‘rolling like thunder,
under the covers’ line)
but i love it
& i’ll sing it loud too
watch out…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

such great heights
the postal service

‘i’m thinking it’s a sign
that the freckles
in our eyes are mirror images
& when we kiss they’re perfectly aligned’

come on…
one of the best first lines ever
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

mmmbop
hansen

not a recognizable sentence in the whole song
but i can’t take it off my
‘em’s listening to…’ playlist
it’s just too good
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

forever
ben harper

‘give me your forever
please your forever
& not a day less will do
from you’

wish wish wish
i had known this song when we got married
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ain’t no other man
christina aguilera

‘do your thing honey!’
never heard anything like her voice
& this song is just the cutest thing
in a bad-ass way:)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

mama mia
abba

this is just a crazy song
& a crazy band
& just one of the best things ever

‘mama mia
here i go again…’
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

sexyback
justin timberlake

since i heard ‘rock your body’
a few years ago (4 to be precise)
i have just loved him…
downloaded this today
but i can already tell it’s going to get heavy rotation
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
sweet potatoe pie
ray charles & james taylor

i don't even know what to write
a few years ago at the grammy's john mayer
introduced james taylor
'& now, the blueprint'
i love jt
& this duet is just awesome

& as my dear friend theresa said one time
'when i was growing up it went
air
water
james taylor'
yes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

just like heaven
the cure

high school
ahhh high school
some songs take you back…
yep that would be this song

‘i’ll run away with you…’
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

so go ahead tell me
what’s got you singing in the shower?

:)

i'll be more light hearted...tomorrow...:)

‘We often fantasize about the perfect day- something exotic & far away. But when it comes to those we miss, we desperately want one more familiar meal, even one more argument. What does this teach us? That the ordinary is precious. That the normal day is a treasure.’ Mitch Albom

this was in the parade section of the sunday paper
an article written by the guy who wrote tuesdays with morrie
it was about what you would do
if you had one more day
with someone who died

& of course it made me think of my mom
but beyond that
it made me think of my kids
& that every day does not have to be disneyland
or even the enchanted forest:)

that every little thing we do can be a little treasured memory
(hopefully the mommy mess ups become little forgotten memories:)
this is practically my friend ali’s scrapbooking mantra
she does pages all about ordinary days
& simple things.
one time she did a layout about
what everyone in her house was doing
on a random day at 10am…
what an awesome little slice of life
that her family will love to look back on…

& you don’t have to be a scrapbooker to do it
thanks to that sweet little magazine
that i love to mention
wondertime
i have started a little memory jar
whenever Q says something great,
fall over laughing hilarious,
or just does something i never want to forget
i write it on a random piece of paper
date it
& put it on a jar above the fridge.
no frills
just throw it in there.
no pressure.
but later on
maybe even in a few months
taking those out
& reading them is going to be so fun
a little snapshot of who he was at that time…
(& miss m will have her own soon, too:)

i want to remember
& i want them to remember…

:)

oh & just in case you’re wondering…
we would go for a jog
(slowly because i’m just starting up again)
get starbucks
(i’d take her to the drive through one
that she would have no doubt been a regular at;)
eat a cookie
shop at nordstrom
watch tootsie
go to zenon for salad & dessert
& introduce her to her grandbabies…
a very good day.

:)

pouring...

we had rough midmorning…
by this i mean to say between the hours of 10:30 & 12:30
i wanted to be anywhere but with my dear sweet children
i would have gladly pitched a tent
in the sock section at fred meyer the day after thanksgiving…
at least someone maybe would have acknowledged my existence
even if was just to kick me on their way to a pack of tube socks

many things happened
which i will not recount here
because some day i would like you to read this blog again
& not because you are interested in hours of SAHM complaining:)

anyway…
on the way home from
breaking up countless
‘that’s mine!’s at play group
& not going to soccer
& not having lunch with my sister
i was feeling pretty icko
&
it started to rain
& it rained
& rained
it rained so hard

every time it rains like that
i think of lloyd dobbler in ‘say anything’
after she gives him the pen
he’s sitting in his car
& it’s pouring rain
& he says
‘the rain is a baptism…
the new me…
power lloyd!’

& though, to the disappointment of many
i am not going to start referring to myself as ‘power lloyd’
i did let those drops
help me
& i felt better
& when we got home
we ran from the car
through the rain
laughing all the way
& when we got inside we were drenched
& we laughed some more…

& we started over again
& this part of the day?
not so rough…

:)

it only comes once a year...

our play group has 7 mama birthdays in august & september
& because i love our play group
& each mama
(even the ones whose birthdays aren't in august & september)
i’m going to wish them a happy birthday…
(only the ones whose birthdays are in august & september at this time...:)

in order of birthday appearance…

emily h…
let’s just say it
she’s a wonder woman
canning, baking, keeping a house running
tearing apart their deck
all with 2 active little boys & one baby on the way…
& one time in the middle of february (is that right breanna?)
she called the gents & brian & i
& asked us if we wanted to come over for dinner
because she had an extra turkey
when we got there she had prepared
an entire thanksgiving dinner
down to mashed potatoes
(don’t even think that they were out of a box…)
let’s all say it again
wonder woman.

emily g…
out of all 7 girls on this list
i am the only one i wished a happy birthday to
on the actual birthday day
hmmmm….
self centered much?
:)

nozomi r…
sweetest girl in the world
hands down
she makes an effort to talk to everyone in a room
& every time i look over she’s just having the greatest conversation
with whoever it is that is lucky enough
to get her at that particular moment…
& she always says
‘Q is the neatest boy’
& i am pretty sure she says that to everyone about their kids too.
but not in a smarmy
kiss up way
she truly believes & knows
that he is the best Q g. who has ever existed:)
a real gem
she is
:)

erin f…
the day after Q broke his arm
& had surgery
we got home & she called
& said ‘what do you need?’
this is the essence of erin
she will do anything you ask of her
she has a true servants heart.
she is really really fun to just hang out with
& she reads every dang book on the book list
darn her…
:)


rachael p….
so there are a few people in life who you just
can’t do justice to in words
they are just irreplaceable
& fill up a part of you that needs it…
rachael is that person for me
we have been through a lot together
mostly awesome, fun, crazy laughing good times
our kids love each other
& we have been pregnant together twice
she is just too cool
i love her…
& i love how she often starts her emails with
‘howdy’
makes me remember my farm girl roots
:)

janna s…
this girl has the most incredible email décor
like even on a little
‘how ya doin’?’ email
little things dancing around
& colors galore!
you don’t need a dvd player or netflix
when you have janna to send you emails:)
she is a busy girl
& we hardly ever see her
but she’s a boatload of fun
& the garage sale queen:)
(i am a mere princess in comparison;)

emily w…
oh you know about emily…
she’s the third emily to join playgroup….
she’s the one with the blog that throws my blog on the floor
& wrestles it until it says ‘you rule the blog world, oh great one’…
she’s the one who has the amazing frye boots
which she wore to a wedding reception with a cammo mini skirt…
she’s the one who had her birthday party at El Vaquero last night
& ordered every amazingly described appetizer on the menu,
but loved the mac & cheese the best…
she’s the one who has an awesome (faux?) fur coat…
she’s the one who makes me laugh…
& tells me tales of her life BE (before eugene)…
she’s the one who insanely loves her son,
even as she’s calling him a deranged tree monkey…
she’s the one who’s my newest friend
& i’m hoping will be an old one…
:)


so there they are
happy birthday to them…
(or as Q always makes sure…
first you have to put something on your head
napkin, cup, sock, anything will do
then & only then can you sing happy birthday)
:)

by the way
to anyone who lives in or is visiting eugene
El Vaquero is excellent
it’s across from joe federigos
on 6th street
so so yummy…