First Day Of School

This cracks me up! That face is sooo Jamie. She wanted NOTHING to do with having her picture taken and she was mad at me for some imaginary thing I did to her. The kid makes up reasons to be pissed.

Olivia was trying not to act too excited because she is a big kid and big kids never act uncool but she was really happy to be a prime!

not for the squeamish

In the Emergency Room..

Number 6

CHECK!

Thanks to all the time spent in bed I completed number 6 on my list. Woo!

#6 is "Listen to all the episodes of This American Life that I have stored on my ipod".

Finally!

Our house is finally on the market! Woo!

Craigslist Ad



I know I promised a picture of the summer digs two weeks ago but shortly after that post I had a little accident and have been in a narcotic induced coma (with a little facial reconstruction surgery thrown in for good measure) over the past two weeks.



So..drumroll...new summer home...

And that brings the count at my mom and dad's house to 10! Warren upstairs in his Waldorf suite, Joe and Kels are our neighbors in the apartment attached to the garage and we are camped out in the tent trailer, sharing a little yard with them.

I have to say that in light of my recent need of drugs and ice at all hours of the day/night that I'm actually really glad that we are here. Someone is always here to check up on me (no one has a real job). I've been sleeping in my mom's bed because she sleeps like a wrapped mummy so there is no fear of being whacked in the face in the middle of the night and she doesn't grumble when I need more drugs at 3am. She's a good nurse, that one.

Everyone has been doing their best to keep me entertained. When I couldn't read or watch TV Warren set me up with some podcasts and last night we had a movie outside on the back lawn. My mom is doing her best today to make it seem like we're having a 4th of July party. (Even though no one is coming over and there are no fireworks. hehe)

I don't know how long we'll be camped out here. Hopefully our house sells quickly and the we'll go from there...

Who knows what will happen then?!

Speedy Catch Up

I guess these photos are reversed so it's kind of a rewind to the last day of school.

Went camping last weekend with the whole family (minus Jimmy).
Custom walking sticks by Joe!

My mom, Warren and I waved goodbye and went back to our reading, Sudoku and drinking. Respectively.)
Shoshone Ice Caves. If anyone cares: Lame and expensive (of course) and the lady at the gas station gives bad directions but you might not mind since in our case it scored us another night of camping.

Camping at Miracle Hot Springs over Memorial Day weekend = Hagerman Fossil Days.

Cool lame small town parade, terrible Bluegrass by some REALLY old people, yummy fair-like food, terrifying rollercoaster, ducks on a leash, cotton candy...it was a good weekend.

AWWWW...last day of school! We love you Taira, Lisa, Mary and Sherri! We miss you!

My summer so far!

I have a really great picture for tomorrow. Our new summer home. For those of you who don't know...I think you'll be very entertained.

It's In The Air

DISCLAIMER:

Megan: I must be PMS-ing. I totally lost it when I came home today.

Me: Me too. I'm making Rice Krispie treats, listening to some sad music and drinking PBR (from a can).

Megan: Rice Krispie treats sound sooo good right now.


Over the last few months I've been making plans for summer. Plans to make a bunch o money, basically. However, one day very recently I had an epiphany!

This is the last time that Olivia won't be in school all day, everyday for the REST OF HER LIFE!!! Oh geez. I just started crying! Where did the time go? What the hell happened to the first day of school three years ago?! I remember it like it was yesterday! Damn those people that told me, "It'll just fly by!"

So...my summer plans have changed.
I make these plans knowing full well that come July I will think it was the stupidest plan on the planet but I also know that (in the words of Paul Simon hehe) "these are the days of miracle and wonder" and I will never get them back.

So I will temper, "Get me the hell out of this house!!" with, "oh my baby is growing up, sob, sob" and I will hope for a good balance of spending time enjoying these last days of freedom from obligation with keeping mom's sanity intact.

It's a tricky balance for sure but I hope to come away from this summer with a good healthy dose of snuggles, blanket forts, giggling, monkey legs wrapped around me, her brilliant ideas, sweaty baby neck (mmm), lots of talking, and all the wonderful things about my 5 year old sweetie. I will store them away and 10 years from now (oh god. 15!) I will cherish them.

Two things that made me cry recently:

Pioneer Woman. The picture of that beautiful baby waking up then falling back to sleep in the way that only a toddler can do.

And from Soule Mama:

"As a new season of growth begins for us in the garden, I feel the growth of my children too. I'm reminded through this seasonal rhythm we celebrate and treasure - these yearly markers of time passing. One tells me ever-so-gently that I'm putting the potatoes in the ground incorrectly. He knows how to do this better than I (and he really does - with his memory and his body that has gardened his whole life. I still look in books). One explains to his sister in great detail and with accuracy just how it is that all that worm poop is good for her peas. She, old enough now to write, makes markers for each crop with an enormous amount of pride. And this year, I feel the kicks of a happy, vibrant boy on my back - the one who was still just a dream himself at planting time last year.
And thus, another season of growing begins."

28 Things To Do Before I Turn 29

Yeah, my birthday was a month ago. I'm lazy. That's why I need lists!

1. Use these more. For journaling prompts (kids and I both), discussion topics, and family art/drawing time:

(by the way, these are Table Topics and 52 Things To Do...)

2. More backyard picnics, blanket/clothesline forts, yard naps and camping out on the grass

3. Do this:

4. Have that perfect day I wrote about (and have edited a hundred times)

5. 1,000 Recordings To Hear Before You Die (just want to get started)

6. Listen to all the This American Life Podcasts that I have on my ipod

7. Make these sweaters with thrifted and felted wool:

8. Make these prints:

on skirts with one of these:
9. Take more photos

10. Take that one photo that I really want

11. Make some simple cloth dolls and clothes with the girls

12. Read the books on the list

13. Make a path or piece of patio that looks like the one I took a million pictures of in Fremont

14. Finish those tea towels I bought at the flea market

15. Make the reusable snack bags before Olivia starts school in the fall

16. Bust out the books and the preschool teacher arsenal more often

17. Make marshmallows with the kids

18. Use these cute birds on something

19. Alter/embellish/make more of my own clothes

20. Implement my brilliant movie night idea

21. Make the skirts (the more difficult ones)

22. Do some linoleum block prints

23. Teach Livi to jump rope (and all the rhymes)

24. Get Jamie off those training wheels

25. Put the tree swings up in the front yard

26. Drive the damn Cadillac!

27.

28. Do all the things I didn't do from "27 Things To Do..."

See 27?

It's blank. I need one more thing. Really it's just an evil plot to get all 2 of my readers (hehe) to make a suggestion. What would you add? What do you think I should add?