Dyeries

It's no secret now

2009-11-23T07:15:00.000-05:00

We have lived in and loved our little home for over four years. We moved in with one baby and have had two more. I didn't think we could go this long as a family of five in 900 square feet. We have done quite well considering, but the time has come to seek living elsewhere. Therefore, we have put our home up for sale.
Eeek! Now you know, but you don't know where we are going to move to, because we don't know yet either.
It may seem a little rash to many- selling a home without a sure place to go- but we know what we need, we know that the time is right and we know it will work out. We are excited, in a stressful sort of way.
We us luck, and let us know if you're interested ;)

Growing all ways

2009-11-21T18:39:00.004-05:00

Isn't she big!!!

Lately, it is so hard to believe how fast Hannah is growing, and she's not just growing fast in size. She is a critical thinking little being with many talents and abilities. She is so different but in a good way, of course. I am so proud of her. I just have a hard time letting go of the little Hannah.

I know it just happens. It's happening to everyone I know with kids, actually We're all waking up and our little kids are all grown up and we don't know where the time went. We start talking to them differently, treating them differently, thinking of them differently. Soon, they don't cuddle with us the same, show affection to us the same, look at us the same (you know, like we are the center of the universe). But we hope, pray, yearn to believe that they will always remember (subconsciously maybe) the bond we share with them, and that they will love and share with us so that we can always reconnect at different times, in small and great ways.

Wow. I just rushed her off to college in my reverie.
I'm glad she is still of such few years.

I love you, Hannah. I am in awe.
~•~

Me, right now

2009-11-19T07:24:00.007-05:00

I don't do these that often, but I thought I'd try this one.
I should have done it on my birthday, as there are 35 questions. But since I am still 35, here goes...

1. Where is your cell phone?
Hmm... I'll have to ask Hannah. She's really into calling Dan and her grandma lately.

2. Your hair?
Just the way I want it, except for the dead ends.

3. Your mother?
selfless, creative, steadfast

4. Your father?
selfless, fun, generous

5. Your favorite food?
food

6. Your dream last night?
I dreamt I was up all night with sick kids. Wait...
(In order to dream, you have to be able to sleep, right?)

7. Your favorite drink?
milk when I'm pregnant, water otherwise

8. Your dream/goal?
To move out West, finish having children, establish a clientele for my photography business, enjoy watching my kids grow up and travel.

9. The room you are in?
living/play/dining room and office, and yes, I am in only one room

10. Hobbies?
knitting/crocheting, creating anything if I can

11. What is your fear?
Losing one of my children

12. Where were you last night?
Home watching "UP" with Dan

13. Something you are not?
Bored

14. Muffins?
Lemon poppyseed

25. Wish list items?
A Canon 5D MarkII camera. It's becoming an unnecessary need. Anyone want to contribute to the fund???

26. Where did you grow up?
West Jordan Utah, and the greater Seattle area

17. Last thing you did?
Finish a hat for Claire

18. Something you need to do?
Cut my nails. Typing is getting annoying.

19. Your TV?
Baby Da Vinci for Jane the sicky

20. Your pets?
None yet, but Hannah thinks we're getting a dog the second we get a yard

21. Your friends?
Like family

22. Your life?
Full and amazing

23. Your mood?
Content and focused. Are those moods?

24. Missing someone?
friends, family

25. Vehicle?
Dodge Grand Caravan

26. Something you’re not wearing?
a child

27. Your favorite store?
Target, I guess

28. Your favorite color?
most

29. The time you last laughed?
A second ago while watching Hannah stretch

30. The time you last cried?
A few days ago when I was tired and frustrated. It was an "I don't love New York" day

31. Your best friend?
forever

32. One place you go over and over?
Trader Joe's

33. Guilty pleasure?
Turkey Hill chocolate peanut butter ice cream, or anything with that flavor combination

34. Favorite place to eat?
Pahal Zan, Israeli food

35. What's on your to-do list?
• Make dental appointment for Dan
• Filter through the girls' dresser drawers
• Work on presents
• YW calling
• VT
• budget
• file
• and now, cut my nails

And just because it's a recent picture of me:

The magic of Mary Poppins

2009-11-18T18:19:00.002-05:00

Today, the medicine was cleaning up the toys, blankets, etc., and the spoonful of sugar to help it go down was an impersonation of Mary Poppins.

So, the place was a mess from hours of play. I tried all of my tactics to get them to clean up but nothing was working. Then, for some reason, I said, "Spit, spot!" and started talking in a very British accent. The crowd went wild and responded exceptionally well to the nanny-like demands.
Brilliant!

Media overload

2009-11-10T15:09:00.010-05:00

We have known for some time that Jane is of the entertaining variety, but her utterances lately are evidence of media overload from our many road trips and indoor activities, which means she has probably been subjected to too many CD mixes and DVD's.

One night, after I had finished singing bedtime songs to the girls, I got up to leave and I heard Jane singing her own song.
I couldn't understand the lyrics or tune at first, but then, I heard it,

No amount of coffee,
No amount of crime,
No amount of whiskey,
No amount of wine,
No, no, no, no, no,
Nothing else will do,
I gotta have you,
I gotta have you.

We hear the song (Gotta Have You, The Weepies) often while traveling, mostly because we hardly ever change the 6-disc changer, but I didn't realize she knew it so well. It sounds really funny being sung by a three-year old, especially one with such a cute little voice as hers.

Then, last week, we were waiting in the car to be able to park on our street again and I sat in the back of the car behind Jane to feed Claire. Then Jane started singing a Cake song,

I NEED! you here with me not way overinabucketseat
I NEED! you here with me not way overinabucketseat
and repeat.

She really did want me next to her and that seemed to be her way of telling me.

She has also been using more quotes from movies than usual to communicate with us.
The other day, I asked her where her shoes were and she said,
"I don't know! something amazing!" ???
(The Incredibles)

Or sometimes she'll laugh at someone/something and say,
"Ah, that's funny, Bullseye!"
(Toy Story 2)

Just yesterday, Jane and Hannah started actually acting out one of their Dora shows. Jane never holds back on theatrics so it can be pretty entertaining to watch.

Her life is a musical, drama, action/adventure, fairy tale, comedy and sometimes even a foreign film.
Maybe we should pull the plug on all entertainment for a while, stop cold turkey, cease and desist.
But then she might cease to exist...

and who could handle that?!

~•~

Be Claireful!

2009-11-09T08:26:00.003-05:00

Claire is on the move!
As of last week, she is officially crawling. Not only that, she is pulling herself up to stand. She is into everything, and she is loving it.
Now, we are on the look-out!

The Weekend- Wrapping up with Grandma and Grandpa in The Park

2009-11-08T16:14:00.007-05:00

Still working on last weekend :)

Grandma and Grandpa concluded their weekend here with a trip to Central Park.

Thanks for all the fun! We miss you already!
More of the park

Likin' the scriptures

2009-11-07T23:42:00.002-05:00

I saw Claire gnawing on something. I reached into her mouth and pulled out this.

She cried. She wanted the torn piece of scripture back.
She was literally feasting on The Word.

The Weekend- Colors

2009-11-05T14:27:00.002-05:00

The Fall colors were simply beautiful. Changing leaves hovered over our heads, and fallen leaves crunched under our feet. Above or below, they made our journey so much more enjoyable.

The colors of these were not enhanced. This last wall of ivy made me gasp upon discovery.
To see more colors of New England, go here.

The Weekend- Newport

2009-11-04T16:10:00.003-05:00

I love Newport. I wish we had had more time to just walk around and explore. I guess I have an excuse to go back.
Here is just a little glimpse of the town.

To see doors of Newport, go here

The Weekend- Mansions

2009-11-04T15:40:00.003-05:00

Friday morning, we headed down to Newport from Portsmouth to tour some once-upon-a-time American extravagance in the local mansions, or "cottages" as they were once called.

This is The Breakers mansion, the largest in Newport. I couldn't get back far enough to get it all in frame.
It was owned by the Vanderbilt family near the turn of the century and was turned over to the Preservation Society in 1948. It was from a fairy tale and very very large- it has 70 rooms.
Unfortunately, we couldn't take pictures inside, but apparently, Jane thought it looked a lot like Mr. Warbucks' home because she started singing, "Let's, go to, the movies!" I can attest that this interior is much grander and more ornate than the said Warbucks'. Again, it was extravagant. Extravagant and excessive.

We also visited The Elms and Rosecliff mansions. If you would like to hold your wedding, prom or just a really nice party, you can rent space at Rosecliff, a la carte. Don't forget to invite me!

The Weekend- Mystic

2009-11-03T21:09:00.002-05:00

We left for Rhode Island last Thursday to do some Fall peeping with Dan's parents, who had just flown in that morning.
On the way, we stopped in Mystic, Connecticut, a port town just south of the RI border. The town was small, charming and loaded with boats.
We enjoyed the brisk walk through downtown and found Jane trying to add some second-hand layers from a trunk. Then we found her admiring a wedding dress through glass.

That's Jane.

The highlight of the evening came to us by way of food. Some local fishermen recommended a restaurant with great clam chowder a couple of miles of out town. I was expecting good but I didn't expect the most heavenly of lobster bisques. I simply couldn't get enough. Everything else we had was phenomenal as well. If you are in, near or happen to be passing by Mystic, go to The Fisherman Restaurant in Noank, Connecticut. Eat the bisque, and die happy.

Our Happy Halloween

2009-10-31T21:57:00.004-04:00

We drove home from Rhode Island today, and the girls slept ALL THE WAY! They were well rested and ready for an evening of trick-or-treating by the time we got home.

I don't know who was more excited about their costumes, me or them. I was just glad the costumes were finished and that Jane agreed to wear her Boots hat. I couldn't, or didn't have time to, figure out how to keep her monkey hair up.

The girls got a lot of attention tonight, as did most little kids. One girl saw us from her home a few houses down and started screaming, "Dora! Dora! Dora!" She left her door and came running to Hannah but she got called back to her post as the resident candy distributor. The girls were celebrities.

Introducing, Dora the Explorer, Boots the Monkey and Swiper the Fox.

"How's this, Mom?"
Perfect.

We went to Burns Street in the Gardens as usual, and as usual, it was festive and fabulous!

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Dora sighting

2009-10-29T21:11:00.001-04:00

2009-10-28T16:02:00.001-04:00

Blogging to resume as soon as I can find my way out of these weeds known as "costume construction".

Family pictures are in!

2009-10-21T14:48:00.007-04:00

We hired Jonathan Canlas when we were in Utah last month (his photo above). I was so excited for him to immortalize us! We have been waiting oh so patiently to see them and they are finally ready.

You can go to his blog to see some of the images. Then, there's a link to view them all, just enter an email address. You know I like pictures when I give everyone my OK to look at some of me :)

~•~

Birthday wishes come true

2009-10-20T09:23:00.005-04:00

I've realized how much simpler my birthday wishes have become with each passing year.
All I really asked for this year was time, and Dan took every opportunity between Friday and Monday to give me "Minna time": Time to spend with friends in NH, time to shop, time to relax...
He even took Friday and Monday off to make it all happen.

Yesterday (my actual birthday), I shopped all morning, not all for myself, but it was so nice to get things done without kids. He played the role of mother and chef. He worked on this labor-of-love for most of the afternoon.

Sour Cream-Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting and Chocolate-Peanut Butter Ganache
Yep. Same as last year. He really enjoyed making it, which helped me to not feel so guilty about the time he spent in the kitchen.

Before we dived into the cake, we went out to dinner. What was supposed to be date night ended up being a family outing- sitters are hard to come by these days. It was nice to have the girls with us to celebrate, though. Coincidentally, our table at the Jackson Diner (A.K.A. best Indian food ever) was #35. If you haven't guessed, that's my new age.

Anyway, it was a great birthday/weekend. Thanks to Dan and all of your birthday wishes!

PS- You are all invited over for some cake.

The weekend

2009-10-19T22:08:00.003-04:00

We made a quick, somewhat last minute trip up to New Hampshire last weekend to spend time with friends and to get a Fall fix.
It was beautiful. Everywhere we looked, there were fiery hues adorning and falling from the trees.
The kids would have been completely content playing with their friends in the vast back and front yard of the Bates home, but we took them to a farm on Saturday to add a little seasonal variety to their play.
They loved playing in and on the hay maze. I would have run around right along with them had I not had Claire on me. It looked fun.

They also enjoyed the goats, tractors, cider donuts and pumpkin patch. Claire almost got picked and taken home by several interested buyers.

Of course, the weekend wouldn't have been complete without visiting Parker's Maple Barn and Pickity Place. Mmmm!
When in Rome...

There are more images of our trip here.
It was a great little visit and well worth the travel!

Related? Definitely.

2009-10-15T08:09:00.000-04:00

Dan and I gasped when we saw the picture in this great post, because we immediately saw Hannah in Dan's mom. We thought it would be fun to do our own comparison.

We've always thought Hannah and Noelle looked alike. Now we know who the connecting link is!

Costume update

2009-10-14T10:09:00.001-04:00

This is a "not that anyone cares" post.

DORA is almost complete. I just gave the wig a haircut, and it is so perfect. I clapped for joy when I saw it on Hannah. It's pretty funny.

I was going to just go with some old yellow socks I happened to have, sans ruffle, but my mom called, and she has made some socks with ruffles for us.
Let me repeat that: she MADE SOCKS!!! Sewed them, ruffled them, dyed them and now she's sending them our way. She already made the orange shorts (I challenge you to find orange shorts and yellow socks in any store out there).
If anyone didn't know how cool my mom was, now you know. I already think she's the coolest and I think it's unbelievable that she made socks. She must like us a lot!

BOOTS needs a lot of work. I think I've got it all figured out in my head. We'll see if it can materialize.

SWIPER will indeed be played by Claire, although we're keeping it simple.

You'll have to wait to see how cute she really looks with her mask on.

Run Against Your Mother Day

2009-10-13T10:41:00.004-04:00

It looked like rain today, so the girls started singing a little ditty they learned yesterday. It goes like this:
"Rain, rain, go away. Run against your mother day."
Bounce around and repeat.

I thought every day was "run against your mother day".

•••••••

This morning, as Dan was feeding the girls, I, from the comforts of my bed, heard Jane yell,
"Everyone!!! Stop the noise for a minute! I'm eating my Cheerios!"

Who doesn't need quiet Cheerio time?

Golden Oldie

2009-10-11T07:45:00.002-04:00

We have been cleaning up our photo library lately, and it's been fun to go back and look and pictures of us, like this one.

I have always loved this picture of Hannah, maybe because it's one of the last pictures of her before we cut her hair for the first time.

Nearly three years later...

Her hair is just as messy :)

Our entry into the Freezer Challenge

2009-10-09T18:54:00.003-04:00

Dear Cousin Andrew Rail,
We want to enter your Freezer Challenge. Our entry is below:

When you are done watching, why don't you come over for some fries?

The girls today

2009-10-07T22:14:00.004-04:00

It was a windy day. A gusty, blustery, windy day.
Jane had to take her umbrella with her on our walk to Hannah's school. On the foot bridge, the wind reached it's max and it literally swept Jane and her open umbrella backwards. Passers by were actually quite concerned for her, that her little body might just get blown away (???).
Anyway, as I helped her across the breadth of the wind tunnel, she kept saying,
"I can't fly away! I can't fly away!"
I think she really thought she might.

•••••••

When Dan told Hannah this afternoon that he had to get on an airplane to fly to SLC for work, she coyly and indirectly asked if she could go along by saying,
"Can little people go with you?"
We took Dan to the airport and Hannah had a hard time letting go of him, literally.
After the car doors were closed and we finally started to drive away, Hannah said to me,
"I know!!!" (lightbulb) "If I stay with Daddy all the time, then I won't have to miss him!"

•••••••

Claire has passed her 6 month marker, but I thought I'd give an update.
Here it is :

She is so stinkin' cute!

But that's not news :)

She is quite average in her numbers:
50th percentile for head and weight
75th percentile for length

She is making plans to crawl, I know it. She can go from point A to point B in every other which way, so I know she has the desire to move. Soon, too soon...

•••••••

Ah, my three favorite little people.

2009-10-04T06:39:00.004-04:00

I am convinced dessert was invented to coerce children into eating their dinner.
Even then, Jane will often skip the meal. No eat, no treat.

However, I will never deny her a lollipop after getting a flu shot.

~•~