Digging for Dinosaurs

Today Abby and I had a playdate with the Souders and the Vanderveers. It was such a great time. I'm amazed by both the kids and the moms. The kids: here are these little people whom I distinctly remember as babies. Where did the time go? The moms: Kristin and Heather are just the most incredibly calm, patient, effective moms I have ever seen. Although Heather is 30 weeks pregnant herself, I watched her sprint, and I mean sprint when Shep started swimming without his arm floaties. Kristin- she just handles 3 boys without even breaking a sweat and it amazes me. I love having women like these around me. They're the type of mom I want to be: beautiful, fun, smart, and obviously loved by their kids.

As the moms had fun, so did the kids. Macy and Abby dug for dinosaurs while Logan, Ian, and Shep made a mess out of sand and water. Five kids between the ages of 2 and 5 and not one temper tantrum, tear, or scream. I'd say that's a successful playdate, wouldn't you?

long day

unlike yesterday, today was no fun. all I've done today is grade papers. the good news: the semester is over, the bad news: this is the only thing I really saw today.

Extenuating Circumstances

So, no post yesterday (but I did take a picture) due to the fact it was our 6 year anniversary- I can not believe it has already been six years! We managed to get away and stayed at the Warwick hotel in Dallas. If you've never stayed there, you should give it a shot. It was beautiful. A historic hotel, giant bath tubs, lots of old wood and glass, shutters on the bathroom windows- overall it's a great place to be. The Library (combination of books and a bar) serves over 100 different types of martinis so I tried out the Wedding Cake Martini- seemed only fitting right?

Anyway, I'm a fan of old hotels. Any place that has an old school mail system still in place has character in my opinion.

great minds think alike

so I went back to my happy place today (see yesterday's pic) to escape grading papers. turned out, I wasn't the only one with that idea. now I don't know that he too was hiding from papers, he might have been avoiding dishes or laundry. all I know for sure is that I wasn't the only one who went there looking for a quiet place to eat a snack.

New Happy Place

I think I'd be perfectly content to just sit under here and read a book or take a nap.

distortion is beautiful

I love old glass and windows. Sometimes the world outside looks better when it's a little bit fuzzy.

After the Storm

What began with thunder and lightning ended with beautiful colors.

For the grandparents

- don't worry, Abby is still being photographed on a regular basis. The new boo-boo on the chin is courtesy of the dining room table.

12 hours later...

and all the flowers have bloomed.

hello, friend

Here's the photo I wanted to post today:

and yet, I'm adding a few others. Why? Because I have never had a more willing model than this dragonfly. He landed a mere inches from me and posed for a good 30 minutes. When he got tired, he'd fly straight up, stretch his wings a bit, and land back in the same spot for a few more frames. I swear I saw him flip some hair over his shoulder at one point. Tyra Banks would call him "fierce". So, in honor of my new friend:

Only in Denton...

will they shut down the streets around the square so that a 6 hour bike race can happen. They just kept cycling a short path around downtown. All I could think was this must be what nascar is like... a bunch of people fly by and then nothing for 10 seconds and then here they come again. repeat ad nauseum.

undecided

I couldn't pick between these two today, so just choose the one you like and pretend it's the only one I posted!

Memory

so i'm driving along today and all of a sudden a college memory pops in my head. i don't want to forget it again, so i'm putting it into print.

let me set the scene: once upon a time, april 2000 to be exact, my best friend and roommate keri and i had decided to move from our home at denton north apartments. denton north was lovely; 1000+ square feet for about $550 a month. however it did have issues: breaking and entering was a common problem as were bugs, creepy neighbors, creepy maintenance people, and strange smells. i digress. we had decided to move it on up in the world and to do so, we needed a truck. enter my amazingly wonderful albeit too trusting older brother. keri and i drove to his place of employment, went inside and chatted for a few minutes, exchanged keys and left with a promise to return the truck on sunday.

the beloved memory: keri and i arrive at the little blue truck. i unlock the doors. we both get in. seatbelts buckled. i look down. i look at keri. keri looks at me. keri looks down. keri looks back at me. "um, do you happen to know how to drive a stick shift?" i ask innocently. "nope" she says. i look back down. "well, okay. lets get going then" i say. and with quite a few stalls and several really loud screams from both the truck and us, we eventually make it back to denton.

my brother- clueless until sunday when i returned his truck. i mention that i got pulled over for running a red light. "why'd you run it?" he asks. "too scared i'd stall if i stopped" i reply. "oh" he says as understanding crosses his face and he looks around me to make sure the truck is still in one piece.

thanks again to both dean and keri for putting up with me.

Happiness

Today's photo:

Have you ever seen a more inviting chair? Ah, how I love the purple building (officially known as Recycled Books) in Denton.

Anyone else?

think that Katy Perry (singer of the repeatedly played "I kissed a girl" song) looks nearly identical to Lizzy Caplan (actress in cancelled TV show "The Class" and "Cloverfield" movie)??? It's not just me, is it?

Katy Perry:

Lizzy Caplan:

also, does anyone else think that Jason Mraz's song "I'm Yours" is the most addictive song in the world? It plays in my head on repeat for approximately 5 hours every time I hear it.

Sweet, sweet evening

Okay, so I took my mom to see Jersey Boys last night and my official review is: STINKIN' AMAZING! Those of you that know me well know that I should have been born about 30 years earlier... I've been told easily a hundred times in my life that I'm an "old soul" and I do agree in terms of music. My favorite band of all time is The Drifters and Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons are a very close second. How is this possible? After all, I'm a child of the 80s... MTV and big hair bands. I've done some soul searching and I've found the source: Michael J. Fox. Nope, not kidding. If you take Back to the Future and Stand By Me, two movies I watched in excess as a kid, then you can find the source of my addiction. I love the idea of a "simpler" time. I love the idea of pure music for music and not for money. I love the voices that aren't digitally enhanced. I love the 50s. And for those of you that don't, I've added 5 of my favorite songs to the site and if you can listen to them without smiling, I don't know what to say.

If you share the same love of music that I do, then try to see Jersey Boys before it leaves town. It does tell the true story of the group which involves quite a bit of language, so don't take little kids. But kids wouldn't really appreciate it anyway, would they?

And for the picture of the day:I went out and hiked through a crazy overgrown area to get to Lake Ray Roberts today. And even though I took some beautiful pictures of the lake and dragonflys, this one is my favorite. I was climbing when I noticed this blue thread just wrapped around a branch. It made me think about two things: 1. we tend to leave a mark on everything and everyone we encounter 2. sometimes I wish I could leave a trail of thread or crumbs to remind me how to get back to the places and times that make me happy.

Strawberry

No time to leave home today, so I found inspiration in the fridge.

Challenge

I'm currently in a funk. This has been brought on by the evils of: myspace (which I just explored for the first time this weekend), an upcoming 10 year high school reunion, some bad swimsuit photos from our Galveston vacation, and the realization that I'm not sure what my next professional move will be. Throw all of those together and you have a funk.

So after wallowing for 48 hours, I've made a plan. A defunking plan, if you will. It involves working out (quite a bunch), a 3 stage hair evolution (to be revealed later), and a personal photography challenge.

Part of the challenge is that I'm forcing myself to take new photos each day for 30 days. And they can't only be of Abby. They don't have to be brilliant, they just have to be new.

Here we go. Day 1: Denton's courthouse on the square. I've given some thought over the years to why exactly I love this building so much. Nothing personally monumental happened there. I finally figured it out: it reminds me of Back to the Future. The movie which created my fascination with clocks and furthered my love of Michael J. Fox aka Alex P. Keaton. So even with the crazy birds roosting and flying around, I love this place.

Time Warp

So here's the issue. One minute I have a two year old running around screaming a song she's made up that goes like this, "I'm a big mystery... I'm a BIG mystereyeyeyey!" She tends to look like this at that moment in time:

That's all well and good, even with the singing. The problem is that just seconds later I blink or turn around and she looks much older. When I look at her I can clearly see the young woman that she'll be, and I know I'm her mom and all but I'm pretty sure she's going to be a heartbreaker:

Vacation

We spent the last few days relaxing at a beach in Galveston and it was a great escape for us. Abby contemplated the vastness of the ocean before she started chasing the seagulls.

Fourth of July

Christmas will always be my favorite holiday but I can't deny that July 4th is a nice second. They take place in different seasons. One is a religious celebration and the other a state one. But in my opionion both are about the same thing: freedom. One freedom in particular. Freedom to choose Christ, freedom to deny Him. Christ gives us free will but I'm thinking it's a lot easier to exercise that will here in America. So this weekend I spent a lot of time being thankful for both Christ and the USA.

Here are a few pics from our 4th of July:

Abby tried playing a little football:

We had a little picnic with all-American Capri Sun drinks:

Uncle Josh entertained Abby by letting her use him as a jungle gym:

A few dum-dum suckers kept us awake way past normal bedtime:

And of course, fireworks:

Unusual behavior

Abby and I went for her 2 year doctor visit the other day (only 6 weeks late!) and found out a few interesting tidbits of information. Mainly that Abby speaks like a 3 year old and is the size of a 3 year old. Yep, she speaks in paragraphs and is officially 3 feet tall now... she's in the 90% percentile of height and the 49% of weight. I'm pretty sure the dr would have said Abby acts like a 13 year old if she'd had a chart for attitude.

What does having a child who looks and acts a year older mean to me? That I was in fact pregnant for 2 years instead of the usual 10 months. I'm glad to finally have confirmation from someone else.

According to the checkup it's also unusual for Abby (or any 2 year old) to enjoy eating raw peppers and onions... I offer the following photo as proof that she is related to granny. (Nope- that's not an apple- it is in fact a bell pepper)

I want a choice!

Here's a recent conversation between myself and Abby:

Me: Abby- please get out from under the table.

Abby: I don't want to get out of the table.

Me: Well, you don't have a choice.

Abby: I want a choice!

This declaration has started me thinking... when exactly do we realize we aren't in control but wish we were? How is it that my two year old can voice the exact sentiment I want to scream out as an adult? So many times my prayers have just been cries for choices.

If Abby and I can just accept who is really in charge, we'll both be much better off.

I just saying you

Ahh... the joy of a completely verbal child. We are never bored listening to Abby talk. Just a few of her latest conversation pieces:

1. "I just saying you!" Translation: this is apparently what Matt and I say to each other when we're trying to not argue... "I'm just saying..." So now Abby regularly says: "I just saying you". This is normally used when we're asking her to do something she doesn't want to do. Smart kid.

2. "I go to sleep. I wake up. Then I go to the lake." Translation: After nap time, Abby goes swimming. She calls the swimming pool the lake. That's okay for now, but I'm not sure what will happen when she actually goes to the lake.

3. "Mas Abajo!" Translation: Um... too much Diego.

4. "I so sad I cry at church. Then I play with my friends." Translation: we have a few teary minutes at church daycare every week. Eventually she plays though.

5. "I'm snuggle." Translation: she's ready to snuggle. This happens at random times of day and it's always wonderful to hear!

Perfect Balance

For those that don't already know, Matt is the chef in our family. Being the cook was a survival instinct that kicked in after about 2 weeks of marriage. I still remember the surprise in his voice when he said, "You really do eat cereal for dinner." I felt sorry for him then so I cooked the next night... it was met with the response, "Um... there are three types of carbs on my plate." So Matt was put in charge of dinner.

Amazingly enough, I don't feel as though I've failed as a wife in this area. Because for as much as Matt loves healthy balanced meals, I love baking. I've always loved it. I made my first cake at Granny's house; I chose to make a red velvet cake and cream cheese frosting... all from scratch. It was delicious! Since then, I've continued my love affair with cakes and added cookies, muffins, and breads to my menu.

So you see Matt and I have the perfect balance... he makes an amazing dinner, and I make a sweet dessert to top off the evening.

And because I always encounter people who don't understand how I love baking but hate cooking, here's my argument: Baking has a magical element to it. When you're cooking on the stove top and you're throwing ingredients in the pan, you see what's happening. You watch the meal come together and you know just what you're going to have in the end. Baking is different. You mix everything together, you put it in the oven, and then magic happens. Because even if you peek every five minutes you'll see something different each time. What you take out of the oven will never look like what you put in.

Tuesday's creation: a lemon glazed buttermilk bundt cake with slivered almonds: