erynandscott

Fall Fun

2011-10-02T02:35:00.000-07:00

I had been looking forward to this weekend for about 2 weeks. It's the weekend of the pumpkin festival at a local farm. Ever since the weather turned to fall, I've been looking for fall colors, fall festivities, witches, spider webs, and Halloween fun. Halloween isn't really celebrated here, and we don't have any decorations in the house. I'm not willing to spend any money on the decor, but I do wish I had packed some Halloween fun in our shipment. So here's my ode to fall. Notice, I provided the witch.

My Kind of Funny

2011-09-26T03:44:00.000-07:00

These are some sculptures advertising for a plumbing store. They sure got my attention. (I'm 35 weeks here)

Missing American Pest Control

2011-09-26T03:29:00.000-07:00

Hopefully you can appreciate the size of Ralph V. Ralph, because I want to vomit when I look at this and V, because it's the 5th huge spider of the same variety I've had to get rid of. That doesn't mean that I don't kill multiple spiders of smaller size every day, but these are the mongo ones that haunt me in my dreams. The first Ralph tried to attack me in my room when I was laying in bed. I saw him out of the corner of my eye gaining ground from the doorway in his frontal assault at record speed.

Ralph V was kept under surveillance, by my soldier Tayen, who was instructed to sit at the table and do her homework while keeping an eye open for movement until Scott got home.

Seriously Swiss, if you're not going to kill the pests at least invest in some screens so I can open the doors without getting mauled by nastiness!

A Pathetic Celebration

2011-09-26T03:13:00.000-07:00

For his birthday this year, Scott had to go out of town to Zurich. We planned on celebrating the next day. I planned to have awesome steak fajitas, with all the fixings; salsa, refried beans, guacamole, chips and cheese dip. For dessert I thought a cheesecake with fresh strawberry sauce would be great. Well, I'm still getting used to cooking on the stove, instead of the grill, and I don't have my usual kitchen tools. We haven't gotten our shipment yet so we're still operating with bare essentials, and I don't really know my way around the local stores yet to decorate for the occasion. I did manage to find some candles and balloons. One thing after another went wrong. The seasoning I used on the beef wasn't so great and the salsa was yuck along with the cheese dip (not American brands). The balloons were too tough for me to blow up so the girls had Scott blow them up with his eyes closed. I burned the first batch of strawberry sauce and I didn't have any matches to light Scott's candles. So here's a picture of Scott blowing out some pretend fire, presentless, and once again, making things fun in spite of a total disaster. Happy B Day Huz. You can't say I didn't try!

Funfschilling is Happiness

2011-09-26T02:52:00.001-07:00

Eating out in Switzerland is way beyond expensive so when a friend told me about a restaurant in Germany called Funfschilling, I was all over it. We've been twice and haven't been disappointed. This restaurant is located on a farm, and they have the most amazing, fresh-squeezed, apple juice. There's a little produce store next door, a play area out in front for the kids and super yummy food. Everything we've tried has been amazing. I leave happy every time we go.

Augusta Raurica

2011-09-19T09:04:00.000-07:00

Scott had to go out of town to Paris for the weekend, and there was a Roman Fest that I wanted to go to with the girls. I was so proud of myself for taking public transportation; the tram and then a bus to Augusta Raurica. It's a sight of Roman ruins, and they put on a festival to recreate Roman life. My favorite display was the dentistry exhibit. They created their own dentures from shaped cow teeth and they used gold wire to wrap around the other teeth to hold them in place. Genius!

First Day of School

2011-09-19T08:18:00.000-07:00

School started a few weeks ago, and I'm relieved to report that the girls love it! Most of their subjects are taught in English, but they are taking German and French. They quickly made friends that they're excited about and Taye is doing unihocky (indoor hockey). It's helped her to get to know the other girls in her grade quickly. We usually stay and play for about an hour which is great because then I get to know the other parents.

Another Mountain to Climb

2011-09-18T13:27:00.000-07:00

We went to meet some friends, who we knew from California way back when, at one of their favorite spots. It's a town called Engelberg and the mountain is called Titlus. It's ok, go ahead and laugh. I still giggle every time I say the name.

After you take the gondola to the top there's a play area, more tobogganing and such pretty views. We rounded out our little get together by stopping in Luzern for dinner and taking in the evening view of the city lights reflecting on the water.

Unfortunately I don't have one picture of Alyssa and her family. What was I thinking!

First trip to Luzern

2011-09-15T02:51:00.000-07:00

Our first trip to Luzern was amazing. We crossed the Historic Chapel Bridge, bought one scoop of ice cream for 3,5o CHF (around $5), saw the Dying Lion monument, and visited the Glacier Museum.

This mirror maze was so much fun! We all were a little dizzy afterwards, but it was so hilarious watching the kids first run into the mirrors and then learn to walk with their hands out in front of them. Best part of the museum.

Explore the Digs and Taye's B day

2011-09-15T02:09:00.000-07:00

One of the great things about this place is the public transportation. The girls think the tram is awesome, although there's no air conditioning so for the first two weeks we were here, we were dealing with 90 degree weather and sweaty Europeans who could seriously lay out a rhino with their stinky BO.

At the Tinguely Fountain downtown.

One of our favorite things that we've done so far is going to Pilatus in Luzern. It was so beautiful, and there were a ton of fun activities at the top. Taye and Scott loved the ropes course, and we all had a blast tobogganing. I do have to add that Adley got stuck in a tunnel in the middle of the course and was pretty upset by the time Scott got to her. He got her moving again, but she's timid by nature so of course we couldn't let her leave on that note. They all went down a few more times and Scott took Ads.

This was also Tayen's actual birthday. We had a party for her in Utah, but wanted to do something special here. It was Tayen's choice to go back to Luzern and she had a whole list of things she wanted to do. We did all of them except eat donuts! We all really miss donuts.

Sprechen Sie Englisch?

2011-09-15T01:23:00.000-07:00

We made it to Switzerland! And with a whole year of missed blogging while we were in Utah, I don't think I can afford to wait much longer to fill in the holes of that past month. So prepare yourselves for an onslaught of pictures, unedited because right now, it just seems like too much work.

This is the car that we get to scoot around in. It's a VW Sharan, and it's fantastic! I'm totally loving the sliding minivan doors in the back because Switz's roads and parking spots are NARROW. Everything is just smaller here. Scott drove for the first week we were here 'cause I was just too chicken. It's a stick shift and we all found out just how rusty Scott is with a manual transmission. Crazy Driver!

For the first few days that we were here Scott tried his best to help all of us with jetlag. Oh baby, that was awful! I didn't really sleep on the flight over. I had Lyvi on my lap and this huge belly and major edema so I was hammered by the time we got here. Let's not forget about Lyvi falling asleep and peeing on me on the flight! I was literally sitting in a puddle of pee until my pants absorbed it all. Luckily I'm like a girl scout and packed to be prepared. I had a change of clothes packed for everyone but Scott and a few antibacterial wipes. I did pack a pullup for Lyvs, but of course I thought she didn't need it.

After day 3 Scott gave up on me and jetlag. I was just too crabby to be entertained by his, 'Don't fall asleep' dance and I couldn't be distracted by any little iphone games. All of our furniture was rented and the mattresses are like medieval torture devices. My hips were killing me, I couldn't get comfortable so I was pretty much miserable. This is actual proof that I really am a princess or at least a descendant from royal stock. I'm laying on the original mattress, the foam crib mattress and two comforters. Still not enough! So a couple of days later we went to IKEA and bought 'a much softer but still harder than I'd like it' mattress.

Across the street from our apartment there's a great park for the girls. It was toasty so the little wader pool was filled with water for the kids. I had to include this photo 'cause you really can see what incredibly legs Lyvi has. She's so ripped.

In Switzerland it's customary for people to install their own overhead light fixture. So the only lights we had in the apartment for a couple of days were the kitchen light and the bathroom lights. This is our first dinner in Switz, pretty much eating in the dark. We did have a little light spilling over from the kitchen.

Getting Settled

2011-04-03T08:07:00.000-07:00

We're back with family again! Alec and Emi, my sister's family, my brother's, and all of Scott's family live within an hour drive. We rented a house, and it's perfect for us, the space, the yard and let's not forget my favorite part; the two car garage.

Because we arrived when summer was in full swing my sister made sure that she collected some poly wogs for my girls to play with/watch the transformation. I think Taye was puckering up for a prince.
There was a note left on our door saying that they needed more kids for the town float. Not being ones to pass up a chance to help our community, we jumped at the chance not quite realizing what we were getting into. I knew that the kids were supposed to walk with the float and wave, but two elements existed when, in combination, prove disastrous for Adley; walking and heat. In fact, this girl dislikes the two so much that after about 20 minutes of walking around at Disneyland last summer Ads asked if we could just go back to the hotel. Lucky for us there was room on top of the yellow submarine. Oh, one other surprise. They were going to pull the float with an ATV, and at the last minute found out that that wouldn't be allowed. So guess which superhero pulled the float for 2 miles (along with one of our other superhero neighbors)? Yep, Scott. So then my job was to push Lyvi in the stroller and spray all of the kids with squirt bottles. Gotta love a small town!

Cabin Fever

2011-03-18T15:22:00.000-07:00

Right after arriving in Utah we got word that the Clive's and most of the Hutchinsons were here as well. We all got together at the Clive's cabin in Sundance and had a great time hiking, eating and keeping Campbell from falling through the railing to the rushing river below. All in all there were 5 adults and 9 kids. Great times!

Leaving Chicago

2011-02-24T14:15:00.000-08:00

Scott is all sorts of toughness when it comes to getting it done. He made this mean scowl after he dried his tears, got a hug, and I pulled out the camera.

Sweet Lyvi thought she would help wipe of the window screens with her hands and her face.

Saying goodbye to our home of two crazy years.

Saying goodbye to our buddies. They brought little bags for the girls to keep them occupied in the car. They loved the treats! The activities lasted about 30 minutes and then the 16 movies helped kill the rest of the 22 hour drive.

#1 reason why this chair needs to be a) thrown out or b) recovered. Scott sat in it when he was super sweaty, and he was wearing his #40 warm up shirt from football. Sick!!!

Scott couldn't believe how luxurious the truck was. He and Alec drove the nastiest moving van from Cali to Chicago so Scott really felt like he was moving in style. He prepared for the role by growing out some chops a few days earlier. There definitely was some reluctance to return the moving van once we arrived in Utah.

As for me, I enjoyed my copilot status. I think this was the longest amount of alone time Scott and I had since we moved to Chicago. You can bet I took full advantage of my captive audience. I think Scott was trying to shut me up when he started suggesting we put on a movie. What, can't stand hearing a recap of the past 2 years? Come on, honey, I listened to hours of recruiting stories, LEAD dilemmas, New Venture Challenge rehearsals and personality profiling.

Taye's Last Game

2011-02-22T09:37:00.000-08:00

Taye's last soccer game in Chicago was her very best. She scored a goal, and I think it surprised her most of all. The picture of her smiling is right after she kicked the ball in the goal. This was a great group of girls who were so happy and playful and so nice. They did a little award ceremony after the game where the girls had to shake it down the aisle to get their trophies.

Enjoying the Digs

2011-02-22T08:41:00.000-08:00

Scott's parents came out in June for Scott's graduation. We did all the fun touristy things with a twist. We thought it would be fun to take Dave and Karen on a little Segway adventure along the Lake. Karen was the brave one, and volunteered to be first for her instruction. I was laughing so hard I was crying while I was watching her. She was so nervous and kept saying "Don't let me fall, don't let me fall!" The helmets all said 'Nutcase' on them which Karen thought was fitting.
So the way these things work is you lean forward to make them accelerate and then you sit back on your heels to make them stop. Scott decided to get a little fancy and ended up chasing his segway across the lawn after it bucked him off. I got another great shot of Scott's Nacho Libre wedgie, but I'm not going to post it for fear of retaliation. He kept sitting back and then standing up really quickly, you know, like all the gentlemen in church that stand up for the rest hymn but don't bother to pull their pants down out of their crack. Such a fun day!

Lyvi's Turn

2011-02-18T00:04:00.000-08:00

This is pretty much how we all feel about having our arms around this guy.

Again with the Everyday

2011-02-17T23:39:00.000-08:00

I think these pictures say it all, but I'll just comment in case it's really not clear. How great it was to have buddies that Taye and Ads loved. These pictures are pretty much what life was like for my girls. We'd hang out everyday with Georgia and Athena, go to parks and run into friends from school. I'm getting a bit nostalgic. It makes me happy to see the girls so connected and happy with their friends. Sniff . . .sniff.

Garden Party

2011-02-17T22:46:00.001-08:00

Before we left Chicago, I wanted to throw a little party for the girls, meaning my girls and Georgia and Athena. I thought they’d have fun planning it and helping with the refreshments. So we dubbed our party a Garden Party, and planned all sorts of games, which turned out to be surprisingly fun. I got a bucket and filled it with torn newspaper scraps then swished a bunch of gummy worms around, slapped on a blindfold and set the timer. Basically the object was to get as many gummy worms as you could in the allotted amount of time.

We bowled inside with soda cans and shot at a target with our ever-handy Nerf gun. The girls all helped make the butterfly cupcakes the night before which was not an easy feat.

Really the best part of the party was the water balloon fight at the end. The back of our building has a little yard area, which is mostly concrete. All the parents got in on the action. The boys in the building next door heard the squeals and decided to crash the good time with some super soakers of their own, and it made me chuckle to see how annoyed the girls were to have boys at their party.

Georgia, Athena and the rest of their family were such a huge part of my life in Chicago. Not only did we walk together to school on a daily basis, but I'd have the girls over for dinner at least once a week, and then we'd often do a movie night on Friday nights. I genuinely enjoyed having these girls around. My girls loved them, and they broke up the monotony of killing time which I so frequently did while in Chicago.

Scott's Trick

2011-02-01T07:05:00.000-08:00

Scott is crafty and calculating. He can get the girls to do just about anything happily and willingly, and afterward, they want to do it again. This applies to the daily drudgery of cleaning up the house (he turns it into a race) or skiing in freezing temperatures, getting into the car without resistance, eating all of their veggies, and any other less desirable task. He applies his cunning gift to getting his very favorite thing; having someone to cuddle while he takes a nap. I captured this trickery one afternoon when I walked in our bedroom to find him snuggling Lyvi. He's sleeping, and she's wide awake. How did he get her to stay put? Magic. He played Lyvi's favorite movie on his Ipod and hooked up the headphones so that he could enjoy the quiet. Let's not forget about the pillow he's using to prop up his hand and the Ipod. Who thinks of this?! Reason number 4, 587 why he's the best Dad ever.

Three Beauties

2010-09-29T20:02:00.000-07:00

I'm still trying to get caught up from the summer, but I took this the other day and had to post it. These girls are turning into amazing people who have such different personalities.

Playing Hookie

2010-09-17T08:13:00.000-07:00

Back in May, I woke up to the realization that it was going to be a gorgeous day. So I asked Taye and Ads if they really wanted to go to school today or did the beach sound better? Surprisingly, it took a little convincing, but the beach won out, and here we are. This is also part of my campaign to be 'fun mom' instead of 'get 'er done, mom'. We stayed for about an hour and a half until all the sketchy south side teens started joining our party. Once I felt completely out-numbered we high-tailed it to the car, unscathed.

Taye's Fieldtrip

2010-09-05T21:38:00.000-07:00

Taye had been asking me since the beginning of school to go with her to one of her class field trips so this happened to be the one. We were headed to a nature museum about 45 minutes away. So we all pile on the bus, and just as we are about to turn onto Lakeshore, the bus driver starts calling to a guy on the side of the road. We are at a stoplight so our driver acts fast. He starts haggling with the guy and fruit and monies are exchanged, and then we're off again. I shot a look back at Taye's teacher and she just rolled her eyes. That's Chicago for ya. The picture below is our slightly unprofessional driver and his fruit is on the dashboard. And don't you worry, he ate the fruit while driving these 34 children and 2 adults. Isn't there some sort of law against eating and driving a school bus?!

My perfect angel filling out her worksheet.

Taye and her class looking at various wildlife.

Taye and Me on the 'nature walk' which really ended up being about 50 yards of trees.

Chicago's Cotton Walk - May

2010-08-01T19:24:00.000-07:00

I had to throw in this pic of Lyvs. Such a cutie p' tutie.

This May in Chicago was nothing like last year. It was warm, and I think that's the reason that all of the cotton trees were shedding. It was shocking, and a little suffocating.

The Weekend

2010-05-17T21:01:00.001-07:00

We had the girls' ballet recital this weekend. It was fun to see them up on stage, but I think the best part was the ice cream at Mickey Dees. Just to sit there in the car talking and playing together allowed me to have another one of those moments where I think to myself, "I love this family." Everyone is so different, and adds their unique, fun personalities.

Taye and Ads have been having a lot of fun together lately. Hearing them play together like friends is such a huge payoff for all the lectures about 'sisters are bestfriends' and 'how would you feel if they did that to you' and 'let's be gentle with each other.' Are they really getting it? Looks like it, or maybe it's just the result of familial isolation. Either way, I'm like'n it.

As all three girls and I were cuddling in Taye's twin bed tonight, we were giggling at the cute way Lyvi speaks, specifically about laybabugs - ladybugs. Then there's hoses - horses, and fogs - frogs. Little ones add so much dimension to a family.

At 3 o'clock today

2010-05-12T21:34:00.000-07:00

You never know what you're going to get when you venture out of your apartment on the South Side of Chicago at 3 in the afternoon. Today, it was a lesson in faith, gratitude and the decision to be happy.

You all know that I love Fannie, our crossing guard. When we moved here, she was the first 'local' to reach out and introduce herself. She called my girls, "Angel", and really, for a while, she was the only adult who knew me and talked to me, sometimes the only adult I would talk to for the entire day.

Yesterday Fannie told me that her Father was ill, and close to death. He was in a rest home, and she was hoping to make it out to see him before he passed. Well, today Fannie gave me the sad news that passed away this morning before she was able to see him. As she was talking to me she kept talking about her grandfather so I asked if he died as well. She said he was her grandfather, too. This took me a minute. I said, "What do you mean, Fannie?" Turns out this man was her step-grand father who has abused her mother and at the age of 13, her mother gave birth to Fannie, but only after Fannie's mother had been forced to marry another man to hide this shameful family secret. Fannie never knew her history until about four years ago when the truth was revealed to her. She visited her father/grandfather, and she held no malice towards him. She was tearing up today talking about his passing.

I'm still processing all of this. I was really surprised at Fannie's compassion for a man who caused her Mother irreparable harm, and she just told me, "I want God to forgive me for the things that I've done, and girl, I've done some things! How can I not forgive this man if I want God to forgive me? God is good."

I've watched Fannie and her faith over the past two years, and I've seen her get some money in a time of need from one of her friends serving a life sentence in prison who just happened to get an inheritance. I've seen a member of her parish give her a car after her daughter was in an accident that totaled her car. I've seen Fannie struggle with severely arthritic knees to come work her intersection and call it a blessing to get out and see the people that she protects. The woman has faith, and she can see her blessings.

I'm so grateful for the simpler struggles that I face. I'm grateful that I have always been encouraged to make decisions that are good for my physical body as well as my spirit, and I'm grateful to be surrounded by people that make similar choices. I'm so grateful that I don't have a father/grandfather, and aunties/cousins and a mom/sister. But I do envy Fannie's faith, maybe one day, but for now I'll settle for gratitude, and I'll choose to be happy.

My Buddy

2010-05-12T21:08:00.000-07:00

I'm so lucky I have this girl. She is such great company and always requires me to be alert and responsive. Like the other day when she decided that she wanted to have a bath. I was in the family room, and all of a sudden I hear the bath water running in my bathroom. I walk in and catch Lyvs noody patoody, trying to climb in. I shut that down, got her dressed, and 15 minutes later she's back in the girl's bathroom running the water and getting naked.

She's figured out how to hang on the child door-knob locks just right so it pops them off, and then out she comes. So for about 2 weeks I had to hold the door closed while she was having her time outs or needed to stay in bed for a nap. I finally wised up and and turned her door knob around. I lock her in from the outside now. I know, smart mommy. The thing is, she knows if she gets out of bed I'm going to lock the door for about 2 minutes, and then she'll promise to stay in bed, and then she'll go to sleep. Such drama!

This girl loves wearing a diaper. She's fully capable of the potty thing, but fights the panties. They're Tinkerbell panties! What little girl won't give up diapers for Tinkerbell?

This kid scales the drawers like a chimp. She uses the drawer fronts to climb up onto the counter and get goodies. Oh, let's not forget about the time I walked into the kitchen, and there was a puddle on the ground. At first I thought Lyvs had an accident, but then I look over at her and she's sitting up to the bar area and, she has the sprayer from the sink in her hands.

Or there's just the random drinks she'll let fall out of her mouth just to be funny. Really Lyvi, not that funny! Her idea of asking for something nicely is repeating 'please' three times with an upward inflection at the end of each word.

She loves Taye Taye Addie (that's how we talk about the two of them at once), is always happy when I wake her up from her nap to retrieve Taye Taye Addie from school, loves to walk, no run the five blocks home from the girl's school, asks us to sing 'yes sir, yes sir' (Baa Baa Black Sheep) before every rest, and is an all around riot to have around. I think Taye said it best when she talked about dealing with the frustration Lyvi causes, "Mom, I get so annoyed about Lyvi getting into my things, and then I just look at her and she's so cute. It's so easy to forgive her." Yes, she has us all in the palm of her hand. And there's no place I'd rather be.

Way too late to be blogging

2010-04-29T23:14:00.000-07:00

It's late, and I can't sleep. I've been lying here staring at the L-shaped ceiling of my bedroom thinking . . . and listening. I've been listening to city sounds every night for the past two years. These were annoyances at first, but now they're comfortingly familiar. The pipes in my bathroom creak every night at 11:35p for 20 minutes. My upstairs neighbor, Keisha, has her shower before she goes to bed. Then the rhythmic steps above me begin. I imagine it's the dance we all do when we're putting our clothes away, brushing our teeth and getting pjs on. Between 10p and 2a I hear periodic laughter and conversation in the alleyway outside my bedroom between people who I suspect are college students coming and going. All the while the background chorus of two or maybe three out of sync police sirens remind me of where I am, and how grateful I should be that we have almost made it through this experience unscathed.

I'll eventually drift off to sleep tonight, but it's going to be an early morning because it's Friday, trash day. I'm going to wake up to the sounds of brakes hissing as they are released and beeping as the garbage truck announces its warning in reverse. I have a sneaking suspicion that it's this intruder that made dent #5 in my car.

But for now I'll just enjoy the streetlights that flood through my windows from almost every side of the apartment. This city fights the darkness, just about as much as I welcome it. It means another day is over, and I can just lie here and enjoy the quiet, well, the not so quiet.

I think I'm going to miss the noise. I'm going to miss the view of the tree tops from my apartment and the view of the neighborhood down below. I'm going to miss seeing Fannie, the crossing guard, everyday. I'm going to miss walking to the produce store, and I'm going to miss the energy of the people around me who are going places on foot with a purpose.

I'm such a sap about change. I feel so sad about the two years of my girls' lives that I'm going to leave here. I guess because if you leave a place then in a way the time you lived there is lost. You can't revisit it over and over again. Moving marks the passage of time; just another reminder of how illusive time really is.

But when all is said and done, it's time to go, and this is just another reminder for me to live in the moment, because that's all it is, just a moment.

My Quandary

2010-04-18T13:39:00.000-07:00

I have this friend who is good. She is diligent and thoughtful, faithful and committed, and she happened to marry someone who is non of those things. About a year ago the husband moved out citing all sorts of reasons with the intent to hurt, blame, manipulate and distract the attention away from himself. Over the past year more and more has been learned about this fellow and the truth has revealed him as duplicitous, shallow and immoral. If I shared the details of his behavior the picture would be vibrantly painted and you would start to share in my disgust, but I'll refrain. I did think this would be a great idea although the description would be a little different.

or this . . .

But this is really about me, not him.

So he shows up at church today with his new girlfriend, mind you, he's not divorced nor was he when he began this relationship. So herein lies my quandary. I'm not avoidant by nature, in fact, I can be down right combative when it comes to injustice or people being unkind to my friends. So naturally all I want to do is go over to him and tell him he's a fraud for attending a church that in front of a judge, he denied having anything to do with. There were several zingers I had ready to go so I start searching internally. What do I do? This is not the forum to rip him a new one. I turn to a friend and ask, what do I do? She said to be Christlike, and I thought, what is that? How would Christ behave? Would he pull out the whip like he did in the temple and start the scolding? Would he smile and say "It's good to see you?" Would he just say, "Hi" and allow this loser to have his own process? Aaaahhhh! It's anguish for me.

Other people that know this guy just said, "Hi." and pretended that nothing was awry. Is that how I should be? I know what it's like to have someone injure you to your core and have no one else stand up and say something. When is it o.k. to say that someone's behavior is not o.k.? This guy is pathological.

So this is what I came up with. If I was in a position to have to talk to him, I was just going to say that I'm way too disappointed in him to pretend with small talk, and then keep moving. It was the most honest thing I could come up with without either completely obliterating him or ignoring his offenses.

I'm under no illusion that this guys cares what I think of him, but I also want to honor the truth. Can I still honor the truth if I pretend it doesn't exist? I'm not willing to ignore the fact that he's deeply injured this person that I care about.

And this little statement below is soooo not true for me. I regret NOT saying things all the time. I HATE feeling at a loss for words or biting my tongue. I don't see how that has ever worked for me. I could list at least 3 instances right now that I regret not saying something.

To Scott's relief, it ended up being moot because we left without having an interaction, but I'm still smoldering. Any thoughts? What's the RIGHT thing to do?

12 for 12 - April

2010-04-13T22:47:00.000-07:00

So here's my attempt to catalog the 12th of April. I have to confess that most of these pictures were taken after school. Taye stayed home sick today so the pic of her reading, the fish, Lyvs on the piano and the Night Fury block enclosure were before school let out, but let's face it, I really don't do much outside of my apartment when the girls are in school. I did watch Kate that day, but didn't get a pic that I really liked so this is what you're stuck with;

1. Ads and Athena posing in the garden
2. A clean fish bowl for goldfish won at a school festival
3. The girls in front of my favorite doors in Hyde Park at St Thomas Apostle Parish
4. Lyvs playing with the keyboard
5. The Night Fury block enclosure topped with his favorite treat, fish.
6. The apostle St. Thomas
7. Scott catching Taye for a hug as she was running past him at the park
8. Ads and Tee, way too big for a car that they played in for way too long
9. Taye just before she took off to catch Georgi
10.Taye and Georgi posing in the garden
11.Taye reading A Child Is Born (her fascination with the reproductive process is still going strong.) Her latest question that had Scott stumped was "How do you get the sperm out?" He told her he was going to talk to me about a good way of explaining it . . . good stall. Any suggestions?
12. Walking the girls home from school. Lyvs is running ahead so of course Ads jumps in the stroller for a free ride.

Tooth #1 for girl #2

2010-04-07T21:53:00.000-07:00

Ads had been wiggling this tooth for about 6 months. So when the day came that this tooth was hanging on by a few strands of gum tissue she decided it was time to pull it. Holy cow this was trauma! Scott tried over and over to yank it, but Ads kept grunting; the predetermined sign that it was hurting. I took a few turns and then she decided to do it herself with dental floss and a pencil. In the end Scott gripped the tooth and after mouthing the words to me, "I'm gonna get it," he popped that sucker out with a quick tug. My little Ads isn't one for pain, or discomfort or blood, in fact, all of these cause her to panic, but after a few minutes of dabbing the blood and staring in the mirror she decided everything was going to be ok. She had lost her tooth and decided to celebrate. And then we went out for ice cream.

9 of 12

2010-03-14T15:34:00.000-07:00

My girlfriend, Amy, started this monthly photo journal event called 12 for 12. On the 12th day of each month she posts 12 pictures that sum up the events of her day. As you can see I fell short by three. Other things that I could have included are the five loads of laundry that I did, putting that sweet little baby boy to sleep by rocking him in the rocker, and a picture of all of the girls eating popcorn while watching their movie. Oh well, better luck next month. Here's a description of the day from left to right, top to bottom:

p.s. this was a Friday, my favorite day of the week!

1. Lyvi playing in the morning in the playroom with stickers on Adley's painting
2. Lyvi and me cuddling before her nap.
3. The girls and Fannie, our crossing guard, that we love to see each day.
4. The first time Scott has been home before midnight in two weeks. He's getting some cuddle time in with Lyvs and Tye (a friend's baby).
5. Signs of spring
6. A treasure Taye found in the dirt on the walk home from school.
7. The girls (Georgia and Tee) picking out a movie during their evening playdate.
8. Scott asleep with baby Tye.
9. Lyvi picking at some peeling skin on her toe.

It just occurred to me that maybe I should have put these in chronological order, but they wouldn't have balanced out very nicely. Anyway, it's a start, right?

February Highlights

2010-03-08T07:54:00.000-08:00

Maybe this picture looks familiar to some of you. It's the Booth vs. Kellogg annual basketball game on the Bulls court. Booth won, which was great because given their loss last year, and the fact that this would be the last chance Scott had to display his athletic prowess on the Bulls' court, a lot was riding on this game.

These ladies made up Scott's personal cheering section. The funny thing is that I wasn't the one that made the sign. It didn't even occur to me. All of the girls here (except me obviously) are classmates of Scott. They are all either married or engaged, but hmm, maybe I should think twice about this.

My mom came to visit. It was just what we needed, well, mostly me, but the girls had a great time too. We went all over the city. We went to Garfield Conservatory, Xoco for hot chocolate, Cafe Society for their amazing chocolate cake, The Hyde Park Art Center for a little art session, watched movies, celebrated Taye's half birthday in with her class, cooked, walked and read stories.

Oh, and it snowed quite a bit, but I really think it's over. It's been in the 40's for the last couple of days, the birds are chirping outside and snow has almost completely melted. I'm doing my crazy happy dance, probably prematurely, but I don't care. As far as I'm concerned the worst of the winter is over, and next comes spring, sun and warmth, and a big move. p.s. Before anyone leaves a comment about how picturesque this little urban set-up of mine is, consider pushing a stroller through it for 5 blocks to pick up the girls from school.

January Highlights

2010-02-08T11:27:00.001-08:00

The thought of returning to Chicago after a tropical vaca in Utah for the Holidays filled me with uncombatable anxiety and dread, for good reason. Last year about this time I was documenting the surreal sheets of jagged icicles looming on the edge of buildings, (view here) and I nearly lost my precious pointer finger in the process. I have been pleasantly surprised by the tolerable temperatures, ranging from mid 20's to mid 30's. It must be my cush California upbringing that has made me so preoccupied with external temperature. Every morning I check weather.com to see what kind of day it's going to be, because sadly my happiness is measured in degrees, Fahrenheit.
As I leave my apartment I get ready for the barrage of attackers. If the suffocating cloud of bus exhaust hasn't knocked me on my tush coming out the front door I wait for my foe, Mr. Winter, to come skidding down my throat and into my lungs where he freezes soft tissue until I scream, "I hate you, Winter!" and cover my mouth with my scarf. Apparently Old Man Winter is sick of my loathing and has decided to give it a rest this year. So I've been able to focus on the good parts of life, and look what we've been able to do!

We celebrated Addie's 5.5 birthday because kids with summer birthdays count too. This is Ms. Fragner, Adley's inspiration. I kid you not, Adley LOVES everything about this woman, from her long bangs that fall into her face throughout the day, to her adorable outfits; leggings and tunics, full skirts, lovely necklaces, painted nails, and calm teaching style, I hear about it ALL!
We love going to the Peggy Notebaert Museum, and particularly the butterfly exhibit. The challenge is to get the butterflies to land on you and here Adley has won the prize. (credit must be given to pink sweater for without its luring pinkness, it is believed that said butterflies would have missed their landing.)

And then there's Georgia. She and her sister Athena (not pictured but Adley's age and class) live the stairwell over and have made this year so much fun. I love this girl. Truly one of the most tolerant, helpful, good-natured 10-year-olds I have ever met, and she just happens to be the #1 thing/person I'm going to miss when we move.

Of course there's been way too much TV/Movie viewing resulting in Lyvi's TV coma.

And, as usual, Scott is the only adult in the house keeping up his figure and setting a good example for our children of how to treat their bodies as temples. What you don't see is me, behind the camera, stuffing my face full of yet another batch of my oatmeal, coconut, chocolate chip cookies. I finally get why Midwestern women are called BMW's; Big Midwestern Women. Because if the boredom of mundane household chores doesn't get you, the gloomy Chicago winter kills any desire for physical activity and healthful eating. I'm craving all things fried and covered with chocolate, and yes, I just bought my first 24 pack of Oatmeal Creme Pies. Oh Cafe Borrone! University Cafe! Pasta Trattoria! Cascal! If only I could taste your flavorful combinations wrapped in a low fat package! For now I'll just settle with my monthly revisit to California cuisine in my Sunset Magazine. Farewell flat stomach, hello muffin top.

Sibliss

2010-01-30T22:49:00.000-08:00

We took these pictures this last summer. This was so much fun. It was the end of the day so the lighting wasn't very good, but we sure have a great time when we all get together. This first picture is such a familiar interaction. Shelby is talking to Eric, I think she was asking him if he's happy to be there. She's a prober. Eric was probably telling her he's fine, and just leave him alone about it. Alec and I are being goofy; trying to stay on task. I LOVE these people.

Guess Who's Two!

2010-01-30T22:00:00.000-08:00

The Little Princess Nightmare

2009-11-21T20:13:00.000-08:00

Scott had a guys' night out tonight so I was thinking we would do a girls' movie night in at our place. As I'm scrolling down the limited netflix 'watch instantly' list I stumble upon The Little Princess, which I remember loving when I was little. It was on TV one Saturday afternoon, and I remember laying on our maroon-colored carpet in the family room with a throw pillow from the couch under my head and a cozy orange and cream colored afghan tucked around me that my Mom knitted; obviously a vivid memory. I think I was about eight.

I prepped my girls for the movie by telling them that the Dad in the movie is thought to be dead, but he's really not. It has a really happy ending. Mid way through the movie I help Taye avert a total breakdown during the part that they tell Sarah that her Dad has died. I think, "Great, we're home free and they're loving this!" We make it through most of the movie, and they're enthralled. Then we get to the end where Sarah finally finds her Dad, and Sarah's crying and trying to get her Dad to hold her back. Well . . . that did it. Both girls start crying and telling me they miss Scott, and ask if they can call him. I'm telling them that the Dad is holding her and everything is happy again. It didn't matter. After a phone call to Dad, lots of cuddles and soft tickles and reassurance, they are now tucked in their beds . . . and Adley's arms are tightly wrapped around Scott's sweatshirt.

Good Times

2009-11-16T20:19:00.000-08:00

Oh yeah! That's Scott and Troy getting in character for their 'Tootsie Roll' dance. It was such a fun night watching all of the short films and skits at the Golden Gargoyles.

Hands on hips. Do you see it? Little Miss Lyvi is ready for her ballet to start. We watched Taye today, and I can tell that Lyv is ready to go.

I'm not sure I'm really ready for this. We heard from a friend Taye's age that her mom lets her make muffins all by herself. So of course Taye asked if she could learn. I have not relinquished control of the kitchen in the least; I still get the girls drinks because I can't stand the spills. Lame, I know, but it's just easier that way. So letting her tackle the mixing and egg cracking and cup filling and can opening has been challenging for ME, Taye's doing great. No burns yet, and her pride runneth over.

We went to the circus on a whim for an impromptu family night out. The girls loved it, especially Tayen. Addie was a little grumpy from being tired, but the show left an impact. She told me today that she was going to be a lion when she grows up. "What?" I say. "You can't turn into a lion, Ads, that's a whole different species."

"Yes, I can," she tells me. " That guy at the circus turned into a white tiger!" Yikes, I guess I'm going to have some explaining to do.

I'll leave you with this uplifting observation;

Ads: "Mom, I'm so happy for Cinderella"

Me: "How come?"

Ads: "Because when we went to Disneyland

this summer she told me that she

doesn't have to work anymore."

Apparently the prince saved her from her hard labor. Yet another fallacy I'll have to undo.

Day at the Museum

2009-11-12T12:49:00.001-08:00

The girls didn't have school on Wednesday so I took them to one of the museums around here. This first picture is dedicated to my sister, who has a whiny panc. Shel, see that piece of meat right in the middle pointing to the right? That's your pesky bugger. If I could, I would have slapped it around for you.

Taye's favorite part was watching a baby chick peck its way out of its egg. The whole process takes about 10 hours, and we shared about an hour of it. Addie's favorite part was sitting on the cow! She was so completely disinterested in most of the museum, I often ask myself why I even bother taking her places. She is completely happy playing 'teacher'. She's the teacher and she has all of her make- believe students sitting around her obeying her every command.

Lyvi Giggles

2009-11-09T17:12:00.000-08:00

Usually it's Addie that gets Lyvi rolling, but I happen to be the cause of these scrumptious giggles. She's so fun, and has sooooo much attitude. We were in church yesterday and Taye said something sassy to Addie so Lyvi turned around and clocked Taye with her backpack. She picks up on all of the subtle tone changes, and if ANYONE bumps her and doesn't immediately say, "Sorry," Lyvi will reach out and give a quick little pinch.

She loves puppies . . . bedtime routine consist of answering her, "Mo puppies," (more puppies) cry, and she ends up with a crib full of stuffed pups. We have finally weened her from her binky, but she still likes to hold it as she goes to sleep. So it's conas (corners of her blanky (beah), mo' puppies and mo' binkies, and then off to dreamland she goes.

Her bedroom is right next to Taye and Ads so they end up answering her morning yells. I'm not kidding about the yells. Lyvi screams, "No!" over and over. I'm not sure what she's saying, "No" to, that pesky angel that watched over her while she slept? Perhaps. Or maybe she's just completely rejecting her morning imprisonment. Either way, it doesn't really matter to me because I stay cozy in bed while Taye and Ads get her out of her crib and start the day's games. I love having older children!

Long Live the Cheetos

2009-11-09T15:19:00.000-08:00

Tayen's soccer team, The Cheetos, just finished their season with a super exciting game. I have to say, she maintains a great focus on the field, much better than I did at her age. I think when I was her age, I spent a minimal amount of time actually kicking the ball and the rest of the time was spent doing cartwheels, twirls, high-kicks and picking the dandelions. I grew out of that, but all I wanted to do was dance.

Scott was a volunteer assistant coach, and really enjoyed seeing Taye get into a sport. I got a little bit of a rush seeing my little girl get aggressive and go after the ball. I started having flashes of grandeur as I envisioned her promising athletic career that lies ahead of her . . .volleyball beach bum, sassy pro soccer player, olympian swimmer. I think she's been lucky enough to inherit Scott's athletic prowess (and he's working hard to foster the never say die attitude).

Yummy Salad From Giada

2009-11-08T20:54:00.000-08:00

If anyone out there is looking for a great new salad with a totally nifty presentation try Giada's spinach salad in a parmesan frico cup. I made this tonight and loved it. Even my ranch-dressing-loving-husband liked it. I believe his exact words were, "I would have had more if there had been some left." A true Scotty compliment. I wrote in my changes in red below. Enjoy!

Ingredients

For the Parmesan Frico Cups:

1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan

For the Citrus Vinaigrette:

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest (didn't add this)
1/2 teaspoon orange zest (didn't add this)
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the Spinach Salad:

6 ounces baby spinach leaves (about 6 cups) (I used butter lettuce)
1 orange, cut into segments (I left this out, but will all next time)
1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
I added cucumbers, tomatoes and red peppers to give it a little more depth.

Directions

Special equipment: a silpat mat, a muffin tin, and a small drinking glass

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

For the Parmesan Frico Cups:

Place a silpat mat on a baking sheet. Place 6 (1/4-cup) mounds of Parmesan cheese on the mat and gently tap down until each mound is flat and 4 1/2 to 5 inches in diameter. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until golden and bubbly. Working quickly, use a thin spatula to transfer the Parmesan Frico to a muffin tin. Gently place a small drinking glass on top of the Parmesan Frico to mold it into the shape 1 of the muffin cups. Let cool until firm, about 5 minutes. Continue with the remaining Parmesan cheese.

For the Citrus Vinaigrette:

Combine all the ingredients in a jar or a tight-sealing plastic container. Shake to blend.

For the Spinach Salad:

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients. Drizzle with vinaigrette and toss to combine. Divide the salad among the Parmesan Frico Cups and serve immediately.

Halloween 2009

2009-11-02T21:19:00.000-08:00

Unfortunately Halloween was pretty rushed this year. We had a few fun events, but rushing around trying to get everything in left me feeling like I didn't really get to enjoy it. Lyvi's costume was originally a puppy, but she wouldn't keep it on so we switched to a princess dress at the last minute. Of course you can't even see it because the weather was freezing so jackets were a must! It was a whole week of cold rain and Halloween wasn't much nicer.

Tayen was a vampire and Ads was a gypsy. Ezmerelda to be exact. No great pictures, but I can feel myself turning a corner and starting to get the itch for some slightly more inspired images.

View From the Top

2009-10-15T11:44:00.000-07:00

We played tourists for a day and went to the top of the Hancock building. What a view!

Just an Update

2009-10-15T11:30:00.000-07:00

Nothing really remarkable has been happening lately. The girls are doing ballet and Taye is going to be in the Nutcracker this year. She actually spends a lot of time at rehearsals, but she loves it. I think Adley enjoys dance just as much if not more than Taye. I love seeing how the girls' interests are developing, and I want to foster their passions. Taye is just crazy over animals so I've got to find a way to let her enjoy them without actually owning any.

Just an afternoon at The Point.

Pockets and Puppies

2009-10-06T07:49:00.000-07:00

This is a standard position for Lyv when she's wearing a sweater or coat with pockets. She usually has a puppy tucked under her arm, but it could be a sippy cup or a book. It's getting a little difficult to help her down the stairs with her hands in her pockets, and then said tucked item usually slips out a few times. She's growing up and soooo determined.

Just another one of Lyv's quirky likes. She loves to sit on the foot part of her stroller, and she's pretty good about keeping her feet up and out of the way.

City Girl

2009-10-05T20:04:00.000-07:00

I took these in September the weekend we moved back to Chicago. We had been playing downtown and Lyv soaked her clothes in the fountain at Millennium Park. It was warm and a little muggy and perfect diaper weather. And, of course, there's Daddy lovin all over her!

Calling All Gentiles and Thieves

2009-10-03T14:36:00.000-07:00

Below are two very important flyers hung in Hyde Park for the community to be aware of. This place has quite a few quirky, lovable, traits, but one of the most entertaining is the literature.

I think if I were a man, the promise of a $25 gift card to Barnes and Noble would truly motivate me to have my privates swabbed! After all, it is in the name of science.

The rise of counterfeit currency? Was that on CNN? How did I miss that?

The Three Amigas

2009-10-03T13:55:00.001-07:00

I don't know what it is, but the older my girls get the harder it is to get genuine smiles out of them. All, that is, but Addie. This girl looks for the camera and instinctively knows how to hold her head and how to move. We're actually a little worried about it. The love talk about Will continues, as well as the focus on hair, makeup, and clothes, and the girl likes things to come easily or it's not worth her time.

We already know we're in TROUBLE. We've starting setting her up in situations that will be hard on her to help keep her focus on the right things, but I get undermined every time I turn around. We were at Costco the other day and a woman turned to Adley and said, "You are so cute! So which one should I buy?" and then she held up two cheeses and had Adley choose between the two. Maybe she didn't see what she was doing, but Adley boasted a smile that said, "I know I'm cute and that gives me power."

So here's a lesson to anyone that cares. Don't comment on how attractive people are, especially children. Comment on how hard they're working or how helpful they're being. In the words of Juno, 'do me a solid' and help a mom out.

Alright, rant over, my little amigas are growing up! I'm not sure if you can see it, but Lyvi chipped part of her front tooth due to an unfortunately sibling-carrying-her-up-the-stairs incident.

Girls in the Grove

2009-09-15T20:04:00.001-07:00

I am going to be playing catch-up for a while mainly because there were so many cool things that we did this summer, and I'm hoping to have things cataloged so I can eventually get this all into a scrap book.

This was a little photo shoot that we did by Seven Peaks in Provo. I didn't get any pictures of the wasps that attacked us because we were a little too close to the nest, and I didn't document the poo-coated ground from the herd of deer that called this cute orchard their home. I did get these photos, though. Proof that the deer were there if nothing else.

Evening in the Canyon

2009-09-11T19:29:00.000-07:00

Up to Provo Canyon we go. A great evening with my sibs and their families. The pictures tell it all.

Geronimohhhhhhh!

2009-09-11T19:00:00.000-07:00

Can I just tell you how happy I was that my camera rapid fire worked for this shot. From left to right it's Taye, Darling, Alexa, Mallory and Grandpa. I know Darling would flip out having this on a blog, but she never checks my blog, so all the sibs, keep it on the down low.

How fun are they!?! Unlike me, who is totally consumed in self awareness of how unfun I am, Darling and Grandpa exude funness. (I like my made up words.) Karen (Darling) is all about a good time, and she is constantly coming up with new ideas for the kids. The great thing is that she genuinely enjoys doing these things. So does Dave. He spent hours playing ping pong with the girls during their sleepovers. K and D really put in the time to get to know the girls and become close to them. I'm so lucky.

Good Giles Times

2009-09-11T18:25:00.000-07:00

Have you finished counting all of the girls? That's right, 13 girls and 1 boy. Imagine the princess parties we have and oh, what a lucky prince he is. There's one more baby on the way (not mine of course) and we're taking bets. This is the Giles' side of fam, and my girls LOVE playing with these cousins. Obviously not the best photo shoot.

For the 4th of July we went to Sugarhouse park and watched the fireworks along with the rest of the Sugarhouse neighborhood. This was one of the rare weekends that Scott was in town.

The whole Giles clan minus one - Steve.

Summer Time

2009-08-25T21:34:00.001-07:00

I've got to do a bit of catch up, basically the whole summer is missing. We have had a ton of fun, and we have just been going going going. This is where I'm starting. What screams summer fun more than a garden hose? Well, for Lyvi it's bare bum and garden hose, but hey, I'd do it too if I looked like that.

Scott stayed in Chicago this summer so on his sparse weekend visits the girls couldn't get enough.

2009-07-06T21:37:00.000-07:00

Brooke, one of my college roommates was in town, and we finally met up after 10 years! It was amazing to see her and reminisce about all those crazy times. She's just the same, I just wish we had more time.

Look How Fun I Am!

2009-07-06T21:25:00.000-07:00

Shelby and I have a saying, or more like a name for ourselves when we're doing something that we don't really want to do, but we know the kids will love it. It's Fun Mom. So we decided to be Fun Moms, and get our kids up at 5:30 in the morning all in the effort to get them down to Provo for the launching of the hot air balloons. We actually made it and a good friend of ours, Bro Felix, brought along donuts and juice. He's the man! and pretty much a Saint to be willing to hang out with, count 'em, 8 ladies. We are so FUN!!!!

The Fun Never Ends

2009-07-06T21:10:00.000-07:00

We are still living it up at our summer hotspot in Utah. We've gone to Liberty Park, the Tracy Aviary and of course lots of pools. The kids are loving the fact that they can just run outside whenever they want. Addie did tell me today that she misses our apartment in Chicago. What is she thinking!?! I assured her that it will still be there when we go back.

Playtime

2009-06-29T00:16:00.000-07:00

It's been non-stop fun since we've been here. We've done tons of things with Scott's family, but I didn't have the camera ready. I did get some shots of Uncle Mike telling bedtime stories. I think this one is about a snapping turtle while he was fishing. The kids are enthralled.

Then we enjoyed the horse parade with all but one of the cousins on my side.

Then there was the sleepover with all of the cousins. I don't think I can take very many of these this summer, but Brin sure made it fun for the girls. Brin is all about the baking.

Let the Summer Begin!

2009-06-28T23:53:00.000-07:00

I dropped Scott and the girls off at the airport, and picked my brother, Alec, up at the same time. We were finally leaving Chicago and heading out to Utah for the summer. Of course Chicago had crazy weather that day and the flight was delayed for about 3 hours and A and I were inching our way in the car through a torrential rainstorm.

Here we go! Road trip.

We stopped for gas at some random gas station in Nebraska. We had to fight off the swarms of moths and beetles at 4 in the morning. SICK!

We drove all night, and I have a feeling we didn't miss much. Here's the sunset and a fabulous barn. Alec and I had a blast, and I pretty much talked his ear off. I haven't gone that long without children for months, and can I just say that driving long distances without kids is so easy!

Did Someone Say Watermelon?

2009-05-27T13:43:00.000-07:00

About a week ago we went to a little picnic with some people from Scott's school. We were the only ones who brought children, but everyone was really great in their efforts to include the girls in the events. There were lots of homespun games, and of course the girls wanted to be right in the mix. Here are some action shots of the girls in the watermelon eating contest. They are always up for any kind of race.

The Nut Talk

2009-05-27T10:08:00.000-07:00

"Mom, what are nuts?" Tayen asks curiously.

"What do you mean?" I ask, knowing full well what she wants to know.

"Well, this boy at school said that he was going to chop off this other boy's nuts."

"Oh," I said, and then I went into the explanation of the male anatomy, and the other slang terms used for testes. So Addie decides to jump in, and they both start talking about how boys stand up when the go potty and how they have holes in their panties so they don't have to take off any clothing when they pee.

So I tell Scott the story when he gets home, and he cringes. Not because he can't deal with the anatomy, but because he knows we are entering into a whole other arena of parenting. YIKES.

p.s. Should I tell the girls that boys don't wear 'panties'?

My Little Flailer

2009-05-24T19:14:00.000-07:00

Tayen loves to have fun. She loves wrestling and jumping and tickling, but she also loves to throw her body around, and she still hasn't quite gotten control of her limbs. You'll notice that I posted about a similar situation here. This time Taye is the bleeder. She kneed herself in the nose while being tickled by Scott. You can see that the pain quickly gives way to fascination as the blood starts to drip down her nose.

She's checking it out in the mirror.

Saying Goodbye

2009-05-24T19:04:00.000-07:00

This is such a transient time of life for us right now. Candice and Katrina have been my staples this year and both families are moving away. I threw a little goodbye/baby coming party for Candice on Friday. I was joking with her saying that she has really nice friends, and I should have thrown a party for her earlier in the year just to meet them. I had a great time getting to know them better and there are even some spicy ones in the bunch. Let's hope they're still around next year.

During the Ladies' Party Scott and the girls threw their own party in our bedroom; baked potatoes, mac and cheese and edamames. Sweet!

Finally . . . meet Will.

2009-05-20T22:04:00.000-07:00

For dinner tonight we picked up a little something at Noodles, etc. and headed over to the park across the street. Luckily for Adley one of her favorites was there. Will, as in 'I'm going to marry Will or Brennan'. It's actually a really close race between the two boys, so much so that Adley was asking me the other day if you can have a husband and a boyfriend. As appealing as that might be sometimes, I did set her straight about needing to actually choose one at some point.

Will is a super sweet little boy who is always really excited to see Adley. We heard him yelling her name once we got to the park, and of course he had something incredibly important to show her. So off she went, and played with him until he needed to leave. While his sitter was talking with a friend, they were able to steal another few moments together, and I captured these.

As Will was walking away the sitter caught a glimpse of his dirty hands, and she lovingly points out, "Will, nobody wants no dirty boyfriend." So true! I definitely don't want no dirty boyfriend! Of course this was after she threatened to give him a whupp'n if he didn't come over and stand by her until she was ready to leave. Anyway, I'm so happy to be able to document the other man.

Just a side note; Scott saw these photos, and he is really hoping that the bars aren't an indication of relationships to come. I didn't even think about that.

Just An Average Day

2009-05-16T22:30:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to post about the piggy tail milestone Lyvi reached this past week. That's right, her hair is now long enough for little pig tails, and check out her little ringlets. The other two photos were taken when we were walking home from school. Scott makes everything fun.

Lyvi Lou

2009-05-16T22:21:00.000-07:00

Lyvi won't look at me when I've got the camera in front of my face. Clicking, whistling and yelling don't work anymore. They only way I can get her to lift her eyes is to give her to cap, but of course the obvious problem; putting the cap on the camera. I did find a new phrase that gets her attention, "Hey Lyvi, want some candy?"

Nature Walk

2009-05-15T10:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was gorgeous. We met Scott down on campus after the girls' drama class, and just enjoyed the outdoors in a little park. I'm not quite sure, but I think spring is over. The tulips are loosing their petals, and other beautiful flowers are starting to take over. There are tons of lilac bushes so the air is fragrant, and that reminds me of you know where. It's green again, and I love the color green!

Mother's Day

2009-05-11T17:20:00.000-07:00

This was taken last summer. Just me and my girlies. That was such a great time. It's hard to believe that was almost a year ago. I have learned so much about my own version of motherhood since we have been in Chicago. I didn't realize how much the distractions back in Cali helped me to be an even-keeled, happy mom. Those distractions were mainly my fun loving family, but also great friends and lots of freedom to pursue the things that interested me. Oh, and did I mention a little spending cash, great weather, a yard for the kids and lots of time with Scott?

So take that all away, and you have my life in Chicago. Just me and my girls. So what have I taught them about turning lemons into lemonade? Coping with transition? Enjoying one another? These are all of the things I really struggled with this year, but in spite of these challenges, I have done a lot of really great things with the girls.

I've discovered that the best time to really find out what Taye thinks about her life is right before she falls asleep while we're cuddling in bed. I have turned Adley into the fastest spit (speed?) player south of age 5. And Lyvi has learned to love nap time and bed time with the help of lots of consistency and patience.

I'm sure I'll remember this time with fondness, but the truth is, I can't wait for this to be over. I can't wait to hang with my fam this summer. I can't wait for Scott to be done with school! I have to say that I love my girls, and the lessons they've taught me this past year have been priceless. Three things come to mind; smile and keep on going, this time will only happen once, and you really do need two pieces of bubble gum to get the perfect bubble.

City Living

2009-05-02T20:20:00.000-07:00

I've been missing Cali these days, well honestly, the whole time I've been here. Don't get me wrong, I am so happy that the subzero nightmare is over for now, but the weather has been overcast and/or stormy. We spend a lot of time in our apartment, and I'm always trying to figure out new angles to document our life here. I thought these were pretty creative. I like that you can see the street and the cars parked outside our apartment in the reflection. I particularly like that I've documented this crappy, rusted out pickup truck with the hard shell camper. It is always parked outside our apartment, and I've never see the person that drives it. It's always just a little too far forward or back, meaning that it takes up a parking spot and a half.
Anyway, my baby sure is adorable. The second photo makes me a little dizzy.

Hey, look what we did.

2009-05-02T20:10:00.000-07:00

That's right! We drove 3 hours to get there, but it was so worth it. Brandon Flowers is super intense, and a great entertainer. We're totally hooked.

Touch

2009-04-29T19:40:00.000-07:00

When we were at the park I was marveling at how curious Lyvi is. She was walking around touching everything from the little metal nail poking out of the ground to the delicate petals of the daffodils. She is so wonderfully interested in every little detail.

Botanical Garden

2009-04-29T18:52:00.000-07:00

The girls and I stayed in Kentucky the week after Easter, and we were on the move everyday. One day we visited a park under a bridge in Cincinnati.

Another day we visited Churchill Downs, you know, the Kentucky Derby.

A great natural history museum at the Union Terminal in Cincinnati.

A botanical garden.

The Ohio River

Easter in Kentucky

2009-04-28T21:06:00.000-07:00

Easter in Kentucky was fantastic! We enjoyed a fabulous easter egg hunt on a property with a lake/pond in the backyard and met this mama goose. Darling flew in, and Auntie Laura and Uncle Steve went way out of their way to make this a holiday to remember. The last two pictures were taken Easter morning. It was finally sunny so we went for a walk and ended up laying on a neighbor's front lawn. Wow, that sun felt great.

Tub Time

2009-04-10T11:15:00.000-07:00

Lyvien has been sick since Tuesday, and finally, after a few doses of antibiotics, she's finally acting like herself again. I love this baby!

The Silver Magnet

2009-04-09T16:43:00.000-07:00

I had just parked my car on the street (there's no garage to protect cars here), not more than 30 minutes earlier. I ran out my front door, glanced at my car and then continued on to the market around the corner. As I'm walking back home I did a double take and see this huge scrape on the back bumper. This is the 3rd incident since we have been here in Chicago. The first, a very responsible shuttle bus driver side swiped our car, the second, a favorite friend of ours got a little too close backing out of his driveway, and now this. Seriously, is there some sort of accident magnet that was mysteriously activated once we left California? If so, someone please tell me how to turn it off!

Sweet California Breeze

2009-04-08T19:51:00.000-07:00

We just enjoyed a fabulous visit with our good friends Elle and Cathy. It was such a fun few days. We saw Monsters VS. Aliens in 3D, went to the Field Museum (loved the Pirates' exhibit), spent way too much of Cathy's money in American Girls, and jumped on the beds in the downtown Marriott. So much fun!

Holy Handlebars!

2009-04-08T19:32:00.000-07:00

So just a little update on Scott's activities lately; he's pretty much been focusing on shaping these handlebars. Doesn't he look like he just jumped out of a rig on route 66?

Then, of course, baby love from Lyvi.

The Best Pizza Ever!

2009-03-18T18:56:00.000-07:00

I have searched long and hard for a fantastic homemade pizza recipe that actually tastes as good as restaurant quality pizza, and I've finally found one that I love. Our friends Troy and Rebecca introduced used to this one, and now I make it about once a week. Listen to these toppings: pesto sauce, marinated artichoke hearts, sliced tomatoes, feta cheese and mozzarella. It's salty and tangy and I just love it. Surprisingly, the girls are into it too. Just looking at it makes me hungry.

Introducing . . . Brennan

2009-03-18T18:35:00.000-07:00

Adley was finally able to have her play date with Brennan. I have to say, I was not looking forward to this because of my anxiety about what to do with a boy, but he was really great. He and Adley were so comfortable with each other, and she was the perfect hostess. She even let him choose the movie, Monster's Inc. He did ask a couple of times for some 'boy toys', but the little lioness figurine with the baby cub in her mouth seemed to make him happy. We even went out to the park across the street and Addie and Brennan made cupcakes together in the sand. After he left, Adley told me, a couple of times, how much fun she had with him.

10 Minute Break

2009-03-11T10:33:00.000-07:00

The girls were driving me a little crazy one day, it was freezing outside, and we had nothing to do. My mom remembered about a workout video she brought, and the girls were all about it. Disappointed with how quickly it was over, they did it again. So actually the title of this post should be 'My 20 Minute Break'. And then, whaahooo, Dad's home!

Baby Talk

2009-03-11T10:21:00.000-07:00

This is the conversation Adley and I had on the way home from school today:

A: Mommy, I hope when Brennan and Will aren't with me they're thinking about being good Daddies. Because when I'm not with them I'm thinking about being a good Mommy. You know, taking my kids to gymnastics and stuff. . . How does the baby come out of your bum when you have pants on?

E: Well, you have to take your pants off.

A: Is it embarrassing having people see your bum?

E: It's not super fun, but the doctors are there to help you, so you don't need to worry.

A: Oh. I'm excited to be a mom, but the only thing I don't like is getting shots. Do you still have to get shots when you're a grown up?

E: Yep. Sometimes.

A: I'm only going to have two girls, not three, because when your husband is sick it's hard to take care of them when he's not helping you.

E: That's a good plan. (with a smile)

Scott has been sick since Sunday, but this conversation is NOT a reflection of my complaints.

Another chance at a one of a kind.

2009-03-05T20:06:00.000-08:00

Sunday Laundry Shirt Dress GIVEAWAY!!!!

Yummy Hubby

2009-03-04T12:04:00.000-08:00

I don't typically post things about Scott, but I was looking through some photos that I took in the fall, and I found myself pausing on this one. I think he's yummy. I could continue with all the things I love about him, but sorry, I gotta save it for our pillow talk.

I would like to comment on his hat, though. Can you see that it says 'breadwinner'? That started off as a joke a few years ago when he bought the hat, because we had been discussing issues such as head of the household, seating arrangements at the dinner table, and man chores. I will share with you a few reasons why I'm proud to be with Scott, he doesn't ever try to pull rank (not that that would get him very far), he doesn't care where he sits at our dinner table (although usually it's in the most strategic position to satisfy all three girls demanding his attention), and he usually acquiesces to completing what I deem as man's work (taking the garbage out, getting rid of the mice that we catch in the traps, and getting the girls up for school in the morning). Thanks Babe!

Love it!

2009-03-03T08:21:00.000-08:00

Grosgrain: Anthropoli-fication Boyer Cream Cardi GIVEAWAY!!!!

Seriously!!!

2009-03-03T07:36:00.000-08:00

This was Lake Michigan yesterday. I had my mom sit in the car with the girls while I ran out to the lake and shot these photos. The girls were teasing me about how pink my nose was. Brutal.

Butterfly Wonderment

2009-03-02T21:05:00.000-08:00

We had a super fun day today at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

The butterfly exhibit was by far the best part. There were these little ground dwelling birds called Button Quails, and I want one or two or three. Sooo cute.

This was really funny. Addie started yelling, "Mama, help me, help me!" A butterfly had landed on Lyvi's leg, and it totally made Addie uncomfortable. I say, 'uncomfortable' because Addie was talking Lyvi through it saying, "It's ok Lyvi, I know you're embarassed, but it's ok. It won't bite you." It was a random thing for her to say, and really it was for her own comfort. Lyv had no idea what was going on.

Ball Boy

2009-03-02T20:43:00.000-08:00

We went to a Bulls Game the other day, and lucky for us (and even luckier for Scott) Scott played in a scrimmage against Northwestern on the Bulls Court. They were winning 10 to 2 when he rotated out, but it was all down hill from there.

Guess who's here!

2009-02-23T19:17:00.000-08:00

Coco, my Mom, is here right now. The girls are in heaven and so am I. The girls cannot get enough! They have to sit on either side of her at dinner, they take turns sleeping with her in the full-sized bed, Lyvi grunts at my Mom constantly to be held, and somewhere in all of that I'm trying to get in a little quiet time to talk with her.

I knew the girls would be all over her, but I've been really surprised by Lyvien's reaction. She spent a few weeks with my Mom over the Christmas vacation, but Lyv hasn't seen her for a couple of months. The second my mom walked in the front door, Lyvi reached out for her, and she has been stuck to her ever since.

When I grow up.

2009-02-20T20:17:00.000-08:00

Adley talks about getting married at least once a day. Her top runner for a husband is this boy named, Brennan. He's in her class at school, and I regularly get updates on whether or not he played with her that day. Other news about Brennan includes topics such as attendance, health, funny comments, or general agreement with her plans to marry when they are older.

Out of the blue, well I guess it's not so much for Addie, she asks me if Brennan believes in God. Of course I respond that I have no idea. She says, "Tomorrow I'm going to ask Brennan if he believes in God, and if he doesn't, I'm not going to marry him." Ah, the list of desirable qualities in a mate begins.

The veil that Addie is wearing was a gift from one of Scott's GSB classmates. They needed a little girl for a short commercial they were filming (cohort assignment), and I never got around to posting it. I got pulled into the video primarily because I had another veil, and they needed a grown up version of Adley. Really, my sister-in-law, Emily, (click on her name) is a closer fit, but I'm all they had.

Here's the commercial.

Lyvi

2009-02-15T13:56:00.000-08:00

Sirens

2009-02-15T12:30:00.000-08:00

I woke up Sunday morning to the sounds of sirens outside. That's really not that unusually here, in fact, every time I'm on the phone I always get comments about how loud the sirens are, but this morning was different. They just kept ringing, over and over, so I looked out the front window, and I saw several police cars with their light flashing. I can hear them blasting "remove your vehicles or they will be relocated" over their loud speakers. Relocated? That's such a gentle word for 'towed' or 'this is going to cost you a ton of money and a ton of time'. The day before we saw teeny, tiny signs stating that parking was prohibited today, but apparently most of the people didn't see the notice. We passed the tow trucks on our way to church. Poor people.

So a few hours later there are police cars lining the street in front of our apartment and foot officers blocking alleys and telling people to stay on the sidewalk. El Presidente has been in town this weekend, and he is going to drive down our street on his way home from some event. I didn't vote for the guy, but he is a celebrity so below are the pictures from the 15 car caravan. I guess I was expecting more . . . flags flying, a cheesy grin and a wave, or someone throwing patriotic pins out the window. Oh well, at least we get our street parking back. This is our street totally cleared of cars.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Hot Chocolate Runs Cold

2009-02-15T11:59:00.000-08:00

I watched a food review on this cafe called Hot Chocolate. It was supposed to have super yummy desserts so for V-day we decided to take the girlies for some treats. Yuck! My thought process is basically if I'm going to pay for someone else to prepare food for me, it better be way better than anything I can make. Such a bummer. We did enjoy this life-sized bootie. Are you wondering why her buttocks look so round? They're 3-D. You could have probably seen them better if I took a profile pic.

It was fun to be all together though.

Later that night Scott and I went to dinner with another couple. We went to Carnivale and it rocked!

The Older Ones

2009-02-12T13:29:00.000-08:00

These are just some pics of my girlies. I've been thinking about how my time with Adley is getting shorter and shorter. She's going to start kindergarten next year, and at her school, it's basically all day. She has been the easiest kid to hang out with. She's just fine going off into her own little world and talking to make believe friends. She's a cuddler, and she's calm. I'm really going to savor the last few months of this school year; my afternoons of alone time with Addie.

The Great Thaw

2009-02-09T20:33:00.001-08:00

That's right, baby, 58 degrees. Finally! We had an ice skating party scheduled but the ice was melting so fast it was basically a pond. The snow along the side of the streets . . . gone, the sheet of ice on the front landing of our apartment building . . . gone, the snow along the sidewalk with all the yellow dog pee . . . gone.

Lyvien Emily Giles; 1 year old

2009-02-08T21:26:00.000-08:00

It's a Rough House

2009-02-08T21:06:00.000-08:00

A favorite past time in our home is wrestling, but sometimes it goes a little too far. Taye stuck it to Scott's lip with her knee, but don't you worry, Scott got her back with some beard rash. It's just crazy fun at our house. We did have a talk with Taye about trying to control her body a little more. We were telling her that she's getting bigger now, and she can't throw her body around so much. She was really upset about this. She felt we were stifling her fun, and she wasn't able to be herself. My darling, carefree, reckless Tayen.

More Holiday Pictures

2009-02-03T12:24:00.000-08:00

This is little Bria. She is just a few weeks younger than Lyvien.

This is my brother, Eric. You can see how much he loves his little one.

Baby Tracks

Christmas Catch Up

2009-02-03T10:31:00.000-08:00

So now I'm finally getting around to posting some pictures from our Christmas vacation in Cali. My older brother, Eric, and his family drove down from Utah to spend the Holiday with us. I think it was the first time in 5 years that they had been in Cali as a family.

Lyvi isn't too thrilled about her new friend.

This was Christmas in the park in San Jose. They also boasted a life-size gingerbread house, but it was such a disappointment. The only part of the house that was actually gingerbread was the shingle siding. Overall it was a cool thing to do. There were rides, and a ton of Christmas displays. Very festive.

A New Definition of Cold

2009-01-16T10:34:00.000-08:00

Did you ever wonder what -3 feels like? I actually never had any interest in finding out. Living in Chicago has opened up a whole new basket of firsts for me. I really don't understand how the meteorologists determine temperature, the news has been saying that it's around -30 with the wind chill factor, but my car says that it's -3. This is the view of the apartments out our back door. I barely made it through this photo shoot without losing my trigger finger.

This is what our windows have looked like on the inside for about 2 weeks now.

The bench on our back porch.

The is one killer 4 foot icicle. Kind of looks like a pitchfork. Maybe hell really isn't hot. It's subzero!

Thankgiving

2008-12-06T20:54:00.000-08:00

We had a great Thanksgiving with Scott's sister, Laura and her family. Steve made the majority of the meal and the turkey was amazing. Our wonderful hosts not only fed us, but took us all around the area. We went to downtown Cincinnati, and frolicked at the parks along the Ohio River.

Of course what would frolicking be without some acrobatics?