My husband has a wonderful sister named Elizabeth, and she is a ballerina. This thrills my daughter to no end, and while we were visiting last month Elizabeth taught her how to do part of Swan Lake. Thanks Bit, you are turning into a fine woman (wow, isn't that what Norrington said too? about another Elizabeth? hee hee). Hope this is a great year for you!
Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Cool parenting idea and a giveaway
Sterling and I read this great book called Discovering your Child's Strengths. In it, it suggested keeping a strengths journal of your children. I had been keeping a journal of my kids but it was more like, "today you had your first haircut" or "this is something cute you said." It was nice, but it was a little fluffy...and when things seem meaningless or froo froo I find many excuses to avoid them. But having the main theme of the journal be strengths finding and talent spotting, both my husband and I are having more fun writing in the journals.
One of my favorite people in the world (though she probably doesn't know this) is Erin Mylroie. My first experience with Erin was last August when my husband's grandfather passed away in St. George UT. We were literally homeless and jobless and I was newly pregnant (hence kinda sick). We happened to be on the way to UT so I could live with my family for a few weeks while Sterling found a place to live or a job or something. Erin's husband is my Sterling's cousin on his mom's side. So basically she opened her home to six adults and three children who were barely related to her for an event that was not even close to related to her. Oh and this was with 30 hours of notice, maybe less. AND she already had plans for that weekend because we woke up to find that her friend fom Alpine had come in for the weekend. My mortification turned to amazement as she handled the oodles of people with grace and love. Oh and did I mention the super delicious food she shared with us? She shares them with the world on her blog. Every recipe I've tried of hers has been awesome! Check out her orange chicken posted in January.
She runs the blog Prudence Pennywise and I probably spend more time checking her blog than my own. Right now she is doing my favorite thing of the year, "Cookie Bookie Week". Plus, if you visit and leave a comment you will be entered into a gift certificate giveaway. So go click on her link on the right.
One of my favorite people in the world (though she probably doesn't know this) is Erin Mylroie. My first experience with Erin was last August when my husband's grandfather passed away in St. George UT. We were literally homeless and jobless and I was newly pregnant (hence kinda sick). We happened to be on the way to UT so I could live with my family for a few weeks while Sterling found a place to live or a job or something. Erin's husband is my Sterling's cousin on his mom's side. So basically she opened her home to six adults and three children who were barely related to her for an event that was not even close to related to her. Oh and this was with 30 hours of notice, maybe less. AND she already had plans for that weekend because we woke up to find that her friend fom Alpine had come in for the weekend. My mortification turned to amazement as she handled the oodles of people with grace and love. Oh and did I mention the super delicious food she shared with us? She shares them with the world on her blog. Every recipe I've tried of hers has been awesome! Check out her orange chicken posted in January.
She runs the blog Prudence Pennywise and I probably spend more time checking her blog than my own. Right now she is doing my favorite thing of the year, "Cookie Bookie Week". Plus, if you visit and leave a comment you will be entered into a gift certificate giveaway. So go click on her link on the right.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Summer is finally over!
Ohhhh the relief. Now it should start to cool down to a temperature that can sustain carbon-based life. Yesterday was the perfect start to the new season. Drizzly, cool, breezy. Not even that humid. Like I finally got to crawl into a giant AC unit. It being the first day of Fall, we dragged out our jackets and went splashing through the gutters.
Hasta La Vista Summer! Get away for another year!
We also had a fall kickoff dinner with maple-glazed pork chops, mashed potatoes (thanks Honey!), sauteed apples, and apple turnovers. And the ubiquitous Adrienne Mann family celebratory drink, Guarana! 
Elle learned "It's Autumntime" (hands separately) and she would play one hand while I played the other, so it was like a duet! Happy Autumn everyone :)
Monday, September 14, 2009
Charlotte milestones
.
Baby Charlotte is 6 months old this week. She started sitting up this week by herself. I decided she might as well practice eating solid food, it being a necessary skill for survival at some point in life.
She weighed in at 16 pounds before her first taste of non-mother provided nutrition. So that's 16 pounds of weight she can always blame on me!
Baby Charlotte is 6 months old this week. She started sitting up this week by herself. I decided she might as well practice eating solid food, it being a necessary skill for survival at some point in life.
She weighed in at 16 pounds before her first taste of non-mother provided nutrition. So that's 16 pounds of weight she can always blame on me!
Friday, September 4, 2009
Fun weekend!
My brilliant beautiful sister Amelia came to visit this last weekend. Sterling took a couple days off and we shopped and posed for a portrait she is painting. We found a super cool cream-colored dress for only 20 bucks at Dillards. Amelia is the greatest shopper ever! She should be on What Not to Wear.
I am embarrassed to admit we didn't get one picture of her and us together while she was here. But, she took some cute ones of us. She shops, she paints, she photographs...and I'm related to her!
I am embarrassed to admit we didn't get one picture of her and us together while she was here. But, she took some cute ones of us. She shops, she paints, she photographs...and I'm related to her!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Finally some pictures
Click to play but don't click on any ads. I know, I'm cheap, I don't have the subscription that makes it ad-free.
 |
 |
| Make a Smilebox slideshow |
Thursday, August 13, 2009
I hate Michael Jackson
His Thriller video is apparently the uber-coolest thing ever, but all I know is it traumatized my 5-year-old. We watched it last month around the time he died and I was thinking, oh, how silly and 80s. Meanwhile my daughter was thinking "I'm gonna die I'm gonna die I'm gonna die." For the last 6 weeks she has been having nightmares and absolutely refuses to stay on an empty level of the house. That means I can't leave her happily coloring or watching a video or playing piano downstairs. She freaks out and runs upstairs to complain about how bored she is, and of course Sterling follows her. So now I have two bored squirrely kids when all I wanted was to sneak in some peace.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
My son's obsession with dinosaurs
For anyone who has seen this month's Friend magazine, the cover a cute cartoonish picture of a pioneer family in a covered wagon. I was looking at with Sterling A. and he could point out the mother, father, boy, baby, and pulling the wagon, a Triceratops. That's what he thought it was. I had to laugh, it made my day.
We are learning about the potty these days. We have a little one someone gave us (EW second-hand kid toilet!) that he likes to use. He gets praise if he sits on it to hang out (he used to be afraid of toilets), and chocolate chips if he does anything. So far it's been liquid success at least once a day, and I am keeping him in diapers. We also have this interesting plug-in lightup toy thing (it's like a TV but with a scrolling picture) he likes to watch while he's sitting. And he doesn't like anyone in the bathroom with him. He says "Don't see me, mom." So I blog while he's in there and celebrate when he's done.
We are learning about the potty these days. We have a little one someone gave us (EW second-hand kid toilet!) that he likes to use. He gets praise if he sits on it to hang out (he used to be afraid of toilets), and chocolate chips if he does anything. So far it's been liquid success at least once a day, and I am keeping him in diapers. We also have this interesting plug-in lightup toy thing (it's like a TV but with a scrolling picture) he likes to watch while he's sitting. And he doesn't like anyone in the bathroom with him. He says "Don't see me, mom." So I blog while he's in there and celebrate when he's done.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Sterling Jr.'s Birthday
We celebrated my super-hyper-uber great husband's birthday this week. He turned 29. No really, he turned 29. Here is the cake I made from scratch. 
It was delicious but I'm not sure if it was worth the three feet of dishes that covered every inch of my counterspace. We truly live in a four-dimensional universe. These dishes had height, depth, length and DURATION. It took a couple of days to quell the uprising.
We also had a rockin party!
Sterling is such a great husband and father (eek, father of three soon). We were so excited to celebrate his life with us.
It was delicious but I'm not sure if it was worth the three feet of dishes that covered every inch of my counterspace. We truly live in a four-dimensional universe. These dishes had height, depth, length and DURATION. It took a couple of days to quell the uprising.
We also had a rockin party!
Sterling is such a great husband and father (eek, father of three soon). We were so excited to celebrate his life with us.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Christmas Tree Decorating
Our first Christmas we were so poor we were planning on not getting a tree. After sticking with the plan for most of December, I finally melted in a puddle of "I want it" tears (yeah, real mature) and my husband went running for cover to the local grocery store. I think this might have been our first big uh, disagreement. So he brought home a cute table tree and set it up in our apartment with little gold balls and purple lights (the only decorations left at the grocery store on December 20). I don't have a picture of it (we probably didn't have a camera), but we still have the tree. I was touched, and we named it Teeny Weeny after a local Chihuaha we would see on walks. Anyway, here are pictures of us decorating Teeny Weeny (the tree).
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
I had to laugh, this article is my life!
Why You Can't Get Anything Done
Real Life Support for Moms
By Melissa Stanton
www.lifesupportformoms.com
Have you ever asked yourself, "Do I Have ADHD?" It's a thought that crosses the minds of many stay-at-home moms. Why? Because they think about the number of chores they need to do but don't get to, or the projects they start but don't finish, or the tasks they actually do but don’t do well.
"I don't have a job. I'm home all day," you may tell yourself. As such, you think you should be able to complete a simple task like sorting through the bags of hand-me-downs your neighbor dropped off. But you can't get to it. Or you actually do start working through the clothes, but by day's end your bedroom is filled with piles of clothing, which your kids then find and jump in. Since you now have to sort all over again, you herd the clothes into a large pile for dealing with on another day.
When your husband sees the mess and asks, "Why did you start sorting the clothes if you weren't going to finish it?" or "What's so hard about sorting clothes?" you either get really angry or you can't answer, because you can't think of a good reason why you didn't finish the job. You hadn't left the house all day, except to drive the three-year-old to and from preschool, and later to meet your kindergartner at the bus stop. You haven't even made dinner, because you've been so busy sorting the clothes. What happened? What happened is that instead of accomplishing a big task, you've performed dozens of tiny, uninspiring, seemingly meaningless tasks and chores and errands, each of which took a little bit of time but, when added together, consumed the entire day.
For instance, imagine you’re at your computer, trying to pay bills online while your toddler is entertaining herself nearby with toys. About five minutes into the banking your child approaches you with a runny nose:
You get up from your chair to get a tissue.
You return to your child and wipe her nose.
You see that your child's shirt is messy, as are your fingers.
You remove the child's shirt.
You go to the kitchen sink to wash your hands.
The sink has dishes in it, so you rinse the dishes to put them in the dishwasher.
But the dishwasher is full of clean dishes. So you empty the dishwasher and then fill it with dishes from the sink.
You tell your child to play with her toys while you go upstairs and get her another shirt.
On the way, you toss the shirt into the laundry room.
Passing the bathroom, you realize you actually need to use the bathroom. You do, and you use up the toilet paper.
You go to the hall closet and get more toilet paper.
You return to the bathroom to replace the roll.
The bathroom trash is full, so you grab the bag and replace it with another.
You go to your child's room to find a new shirt.
While there, you see that a sippy cup, full of milk, is in her bed, and that she’s left a wet overnight diaper on the floor.
You put the diaper in the trash bag you're carrying. (Wow, that was efficient!)
You make your daughter's bed and gather the sippy cup.
On the way back downstairs you pass the laundry room and realize you should do a load of wash.
You open the washing machine to discover there's a wet load inside.
You start to put those wet clothes into the dryer but the dryer is full.
You pull the clean clothes out of the dryer and put them in a basket.
You put the wet clothes in the dryer.
You put the dirty clothes in the washing machine and start a wash.
Since you don't have time now to sort the clean clothes, you leave the basket of clean laundry on top of the dryer.
Back in the kitchen, you put the sippy cup into the dishwasher.
You try to shove the bathroom trash into the kitchen garbage but the pail is full.
You take the all the trash to the garbage cans in the garage.
You come back into the house and put another bag in the kitchen trash container.
You find your child.
Her nose is running again, she has gotten into the bills and papers you were working with, she needs a diaper change and it’s lunchtime.
How much time did it take to wipe that child's nose? Fifteen minutes? Twenty minutes? A half hour? Imagine variations on this scenario playing out dozens of times a day. Imagine that same scene, except with additional offspring in the house. You're not incompetent, and you don't have ADHD. You have children!
Real Life Support for Moms
By Melissa Stanton
www.lifesupportformoms.com
Have you ever asked yourself, "Do I Have ADHD?" It's a thought that crosses the minds of many stay-at-home moms. Why? Because they think about the number of chores they need to do but don't get to, or the projects they start but don't finish, or the tasks they actually do but don’t do well.
"I don't have a job. I'm home all day," you may tell yourself. As such, you think you should be able to complete a simple task like sorting through the bags of hand-me-downs your neighbor dropped off. But you can't get to it. Or you actually do start working through the clothes, but by day's end your bedroom is filled with piles of clothing, which your kids then find and jump in. Since you now have to sort all over again, you herd the clothes into a large pile for dealing with on another day.
When your husband sees the mess and asks, "Why did you start sorting the clothes if you weren't going to finish it?" or "What's so hard about sorting clothes?" you either get really angry or you can't answer, because you can't think of a good reason why you didn't finish the job. You hadn't left the house all day, except to drive the three-year-old to and from preschool, and later to meet your kindergartner at the bus stop. You haven't even made dinner, because you've been so busy sorting the clothes. What happened? What happened is that instead of accomplishing a big task, you've performed dozens of tiny, uninspiring, seemingly meaningless tasks and chores and errands, each of which took a little bit of time but, when added together, consumed the entire day.
For instance, imagine you’re at your computer, trying to pay bills online while your toddler is entertaining herself nearby with toys. About five minutes into the banking your child approaches you with a runny nose:
You get up from your chair to get a tissue.
You return to your child and wipe her nose.
You see that your child's shirt is messy, as are your fingers.
You remove the child's shirt.
You go to the kitchen sink to wash your hands.
The sink has dishes in it, so you rinse the dishes to put them in the dishwasher.
But the dishwasher is full of clean dishes. So you empty the dishwasher and then fill it with dishes from the sink.
You tell your child to play with her toys while you go upstairs and get her another shirt.
On the way, you toss the shirt into the laundry room.
Passing the bathroom, you realize you actually need to use the bathroom. You do, and you use up the toilet paper.
You go to the hall closet and get more toilet paper.
You return to the bathroom to replace the roll.
The bathroom trash is full, so you grab the bag and replace it with another.
You go to your child's room to find a new shirt.
While there, you see that a sippy cup, full of milk, is in her bed, and that she’s left a wet overnight diaper on the floor.
You put the diaper in the trash bag you're carrying. (Wow, that was efficient!)
You make your daughter's bed and gather the sippy cup.
On the way back downstairs you pass the laundry room and realize you should do a load of wash.
You open the washing machine to discover there's a wet load inside.
You start to put those wet clothes into the dryer but the dryer is full.
You pull the clean clothes out of the dryer and put them in a basket.
You put the wet clothes in the dryer.
You put the dirty clothes in the washing machine and start a wash.
Since you don't have time now to sort the clean clothes, you leave the basket of clean laundry on top of the dryer.
Back in the kitchen, you put the sippy cup into the dishwasher.
You try to shove the bathroom trash into the kitchen garbage but the pail is full.
You take the all the trash to the garbage cans in the garage.
You come back into the house and put another bag in the kitchen trash container.
You find your child.
Her nose is running again, she has gotten into the bills and papers you were working with, she needs a diaper change and it’s lunchtime.
How much time did it take to wipe that child's nose? Fifteen minutes? Twenty minutes? A half hour? Imagine variations on this scenario playing out dozens of times a day. Imagine that same scene, except with additional offspring in the house. You're not incompetent, and you don't have ADHD. You have children!
Monday, November 10, 2008
Bike pictures
It was a bright sunny day when we took these pictures of the maiden voyage of The Royal Carriage. So bright I couldn't open my eyes apparently.
Here are the kidlets in their sweet ride....
We have about 4 mini-parks within 2 miles of us, and this is perfect Houston weather for biking. You can go all the way to our church or even the Library if I'm ambitious. The bike is a Schwinn ladies' street bike with a comfortable seat (if you have the correct posture) and great brakes. I love it! Every mother of young kids should have a bike and towing thingie.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Halloween updates
Sterling was the Cat in the Hat
Eleanor as Sleeping Beauty
Sterling 3 wouldn't wear anything special and started freaking out when we changed his hair.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
My attempts at Southern hospitality (sigh)
Sterling had warned me it would be like this. He knows me better than I know myself. I wish I wasn’t such an introvert, but I just didn’t think it would be so hard to move thirty minutes away from all my friends to a new home. Why not just find a place closer to your friends? you may ask. We looked. Our simple requirements were: affordable, available immediately, dog-friendly yard. Unfortunately the places that met those requirements only revealed we had more than just three requirements. Requirements like, not reeking of nicotine. Not in a creepy neighborhood. Not full of trash. Praying and searching, we had to go farther a field than we had originally hoped. We ended up finding a neighborhood of townhouses in The Woodlands, TX, that was closer to Sterling’s new job than our old neighborhood was. Closer by fifteen minutes. With gas prices still as high as my dad’s lemon meringue, we thought that might be a wise decision. The area had two parks, two libraries, a Wal-Mart, and our favorite grocery store, HEB. And it was only four minutes away from church. I think secretly Sterling didn’t believe another neighborhood could have convenience similar to our previous location. The house itself met our original requirements and had some huge improvements over our former residence. Such as, all the plumbing works as intended, no extra rooms to get dusty for no reason, two big pantry areas with doors that little fingers can’t open. No more flour parties while mom is scrubbing the upstairs toilets!
So you’d think everything was great, right? Beautiful new home, gorgeous wooded location close to everything, marble standup shower and garden tub in the master bathroom. We had arrived! My introverted self could just wander blissfully around the house where all the doorknobs matched the light fixtures which matched the water faucets. But woman cannot live by brushed nickel alone. Woman cannot live alone. Woman certainly cannot live with only two kids as company day in and day out for months. I slowly realized that I needed a friend. And my daughter REALLY needed a friend. She always asked if she could go play with the little girls in the window (a group of kids ride around on their bikes and play after school). The trouble is, I didn’t know their families, and I’m pretty sure it would be extra difficult to make acquaintances because the first thing everyone asked us when we moved in was “Do you speak Spanish?” When I said no, the little kids pointed to Eleanor and said, “Does she speak Spanish?” I shook my head and they went back to their games.
It’s now been two months and I still haven’t really met anyone. Oh we’ve gone on walks and waved to people, but did I mention I’m an introvert? I’ve only had one best friend in my entire life. Someone I could tell anything to and she’d understand or at least not think I was a total weirdo. Or try to solve my problem, like my sweet husband. Or be too busy, like my mom.
Well, that’s not totally fair. My mom listened to me totally unload on her the other day over the phone. She thought maybe I could make some cookies and take them to some neighbors and start chatting them up. Chatting them up. Right. Couldn’t I just read an economics textbook instead? Or maybe run five miles? Or maybe have an emergency C-section? These things, I can handle.
But when she pointed out that I had to do this for Eleanor (and I realized I didn’t want her to grow up lacking the social courage I do), that was a kick in the pants. It was such a hard kick that I went searching for affordable cookies I could make with what I had on hand. I found a great one on Prudence Pennywise’s blog. http://prudencepennywise.blogspot.com/2008/10/chocolate-buttermilk-cookies.html
Okay, so I had two plates of delicious cookies, I had even frosted them. But the boot was still kicking. I wanted a backup plan for these introductions in case I simply choked up, threw the plate on their doormat and ran away. So I made a little card out of a 5X7 notecard and some tinfoil stars, listing the names of each family member. Ostensibly a Halloween treat, but with the ulterior motive of a cheat sheet about the Mann family in case the guest lecture went bad.
I put the baby down for a nap, grabbed a plate of cookies and my sweet little girl (wearing a matching shirt and skirt, miracles never cease). Armed with her exuberance, we went to meet some neighbors. I started at the first door next to us. Knocked. No answer. Stand around for a bit. Move on to the next door. Eleanor knocks with me, and a little dog barks in answer. But that’s the only answer. Well, third time’s the charm. There’s even a car out in front of this door. Knock again. Another dog’s greeting. Stand around for a bit. Knock again. Stand around, then move on. I wondered if anyone was watching this housefrau and her little girl wandering aimlessly with a plate of cookies through the neighborhood in the middle of the day.
Finally on the fourth door, a woman yanked it open. She had her hair up in a scrunchie and was swathed in a red bathrobe, barefoot. This is pretty much my nightmare. Bothering people when they are busy. Bothering people who are in various states of dishabille. Well, maybe she wasn’t as uptight as I am. I said, “Hi, I’m Adrienne Mann, and we just moved in and although we all just went through a hurricane together, I still haven’t met very many people. And uh, here’s some cookies I made for you.”
The woman regarded it like a plate full of poisonous snakes. “Oh, no thank you.”
In the dead moment that followed, I cast about for some recovery. “I noticed you have a dog club sticker on your front window, what kind of dog do you have?”
“Oh, I don’t have a dog anymore, I didn’t have time to take care of it.”
“Really?” Maybe she had kids she was busy with, like me. “What do you do?”
“I work for Continental Airlines.” Okay it was time to go.
“How nice, well, it was nice to meet you, I guess I’ll see you later.”
“Yes, it was nice to meet you too.”
I turned away, and heard the door slam shut. Still armed with my cookies and little girl, I was no longer aimlessly wandering. I went straight home. And ate cookies.
So you’d think everything was great, right? Beautiful new home, gorgeous wooded location close to everything, marble standup shower and garden tub in the master bathroom. We had arrived! My introverted self could just wander blissfully around the house where all the doorknobs matched the light fixtures which matched the water faucets. But woman cannot live by brushed nickel alone. Woman cannot live alone. Woman certainly cannot live with only two kids as company day in and day out for months. I slowly realized that I needed a friend. And my daughter REALLY needed a friend. She always asked if she could go play with the little girls in the window (a group of kids ride around on their bikes and play after school). The trouble is, I didn’t know their families, and I’m pretty sure it would be extra difficult to make acquaintances because the first thing everyone asked us when we moved in was “Do you speak Spanish?” When I said no, the little kids pointed to Eleanor and said, “Does she speak Spanish?” I shook my head and they went back to their games.
It’s now been two months and I still haven’t really met anyone. Oh we’ve gone on walks and waved to people, but did I mention I’m an introvert? I’ve only had one best friend in my entire life. Someone I could tell anything to and she’d understand or at least not think I was a total weirdo. Or try to solve my problem, like my sweet husband. Or be too busy, like my mom.
Well, that’s not totally fair. My mom listened to me totally unload on her the other day over the phone. She thought maybe I could make some cookies and take them to some neighbors and start chatting them up. Chatting them up. Right. Couldn’t I just read an economics textbook instead? Or maybe run five miles? Or maybe have an emergency C-section? These things, I can handle.
But when she pointed out that I had to do this for Eleanor (and I realized I didn’t want her to grow up lacking the social courage I do), that was a kick in the pants. It was such a hard kick that I went searching for affordable cookies I could make with what I had on hand. I found a great one on Prudence Pennywise’s blog. http://prudencepennywise.blogspot.com/2008/10/chocolate-buttermilk-cookies.html
Okay, so I had two plates of delicious cookies, I had even frosted them. But the boot was still kicking. I wanted a backup plan for these introductions in case I simply choked up, threw the plate on their doormat and ran away. So I made a little card out of a 5X7 notecard and some tinfoil stars, listing the names of each family member. Ostensibly a Halloween treat, but with the ulterior motive of a cheat sheet about the Mann family in case the guest lecture went bad.
I put the baby down for a nap, grabbed a plate of cookies and my sweet little girl (wearing a matching shirt and skirt, miracles never cease). Armed with her exuberance, we went to meet some neighbors. I started at the first door next to us. Knocked. No answer. Stand around for a bit. Move on to the next door. Eleanor knocks with me, and a little dog barks in answer. But that’s the only answer. Well, third time’s the charm. There’s even a car out in front of this door. Knock again. Another dog’s greeting. Stand around for a bit. Knock again. Stand around, then move on. I wondered if anyone was watching this housefrau and her little girl wandering aimlessly with a plate of cookies through the neighborhood in the middle of the day.
Finally on the fourth door, a woman yanked it open. She had her hair up in a scrunchie and was swathed in a red bathrobe, barefoot. This is pretty much my nightmare. Bothering people when they are busy. Bothering people who are in various states of dishabille. Well, maybe she wasn’t as uptight as I am. I said, “Hi, I’m Adrienne Mann, and we just moved in and although we all just went through a hurricane together, I still haven’t met very many people. And uh, here’s some cookies I made for you.”
The woman regarded it like a plate full of poisonous snakes. “Oh, no thank you.”
In the dead moment that followed, I cast about for some recovery. “I noticed you have a dog club sticker on your front window, what kind of dog do you have?”
“Oh, I don’t have a dog anymore, I didn’t have time to take care of it.”
“Really?” Maybe she had kids she was busy with, like me. “What do you do?”
“I work for Continental Airlines.” Okay it was time to go.
“How nice, well, it was nice to meet you, I guess I’ll see you later.”
“Yes, it was nice to meet you too.”
I turned away, and heard the door slam shut. Still armed with my cookies and little girl, I was no longer aimlessly wandering. I went straight home. And ate cookies.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Kid picture
This was taken in the mountains of Utah this summer. Pictures of the new house coming soon. I keep thinking we need to have the whole house clean at the same time to take the requested pictures, but duh, I can just do 1 picture a day. Which is about the rate of tidiness I can handle in this giant toybox that is my house.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Fun things to do in UT (taking suggestions)
Here's some things I want to do while visiting my family:
1. Cookout in the mountains
2. Payson lake (walk, swim)
3. Trail ride on horses up West Mountain
4. Utah Shakespearean Festival
5. Board games
6. Sing around the piano
7. Get Eleanor some violin lessons
8. Seven Peaks
9. Eat at Carl's Jr. and Crown Burger
10. Get a shake at that one place...
11. Heber Creeper
12. Visit Joe and Miranda, Rob and Jeana
13. Take Eleanor and Sam to the Bean Museum
14. Temple Square
15. Isn't there a candy factory somewhere?
1. Cookout in the mountains
2. Payson lake (walk, swim)
3. Trail ride on horses up West Mountain
4. Utah Shakespearean Festival
5. Board games
6. Sing around the piano
7. Get Eleanor some violin lessons
8. Seven Peaks
9. Eat at Carl's Jr. and Crown Burger
10. Get a shake at that one place...
11. Heber Creeper
12. Visit Joe and Miranda, Rob and Jeana
13. Take Eleanor and Sam to the Bean Museum
14. Temple Square
15. Isn't there a candy factory somewhere?
Quick update
Sterling got a job at Pacific Life, it starts on August 1 here in Houston (The Woodlands). We are excited and proud of him. Our lease is up on July 24, so we have a week of downtime during which we'll make the trek up to UT. The plan is for Sterling to leave the wife and kids with Mama and Papa Landes for most of August. I will not be doing the Park City half marathon as I am not ready and it's one of the toughest halfs you can find (6 miles uphill anyone?).
It's been fun and weird packing up because this time everything will have its own box instead of like last time where we only had 3 boxes that we just loaded them up, moved them, dumped them out and refilled them back in the apartment. It drove me UP the WALL. So my sweet husband has been scrounging for boxes from Walmart at midnight every night this week. I think we literally have 900 pounds of books!
It's been fun and weird packing up because this time everything will have its own box instead of like last time where we only had 3 boxes that we just loaded them up, moved them, dumped them out and refilled them back in the apartment. It drove me UP the WALL. So my sweet husband has been scrounging for boxes from Walmart at midnight every night this week. I think we literally have 900 pounds of books!
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Family Milestones this Month
It's Christmas in May, that's what it is. Time for the annual self-important monologue about our family's exploits.
Sterling learned to walk. Oh what's that you say? Which Sterling? Well, obviously the 1-year-old.
Eleanor has been doing chores for about a month now saving up for a Cinderella magic wand. It cost $8 but we only charged her 3. She had buyer's remorse the next morning. Definitely takes after her father.
Adrienne hit 170 pounds. Is that on her way up or down? You be the judge. Last year at this time she was rocking 215 pounds. Egad.
And Sterling has been averaging one thousand words a day of creative writing on various projects for the last two weeks. He has also been reading at least one novel every day. Oh what's that you say? Did I not clarify WHICH Sterling I was talking about?
Sterling learned to walk. Oh what's that you say? Which Sterling? Well, obviously the 1-year-old.
Eleanor has been doing chores for about a month now saving up for a Cinderella magic wand. It cost $8 but we only charged her 3. She had buyer's remorse the next morning. Definitely takes after her father.
Adrienne hit 170 pounds. Is that on her way up or down? You be the judge. Last year at this time she was rocking 215 pounds. Egad.
And Sterling has been averaging one thousand words a day of creative writing on various projects for the last two weeks. He has also been reading at least one novel every day. Oh what's that you say? Did I not clarify WHICH Sterling I was talking about?
Friday, April 4, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)