Good Morning

It's been a good morning.

• The kids slept till seven.
• M. (a.k.a "Hubby") and I had time to drink coffee and chat about things other than the kids or our business.
• And the dog threw up next to our bed. But my husband was here. He cleaned it up. Life is good.

Finally, we're outside

Yesterday, we didn't get outside until 4:00 p.m. Every hour I kept meaning to do it, but dirty diapers, a cranky teething daughter, lunch, snacks, playdough and naptime all conspired to keep us indoors (and after all that, I still have to do laundry). It was a beautiful sunny day, by the time we got outside it was starting to cool off, but hey, we got out!



Aaaahhh, finally outside.

What a day!

I'm So Happy

What better way to start off the weekend. Our latest fave song from our fave show Yo Gabba Gabba. Really...it's good, it's not just for kids!

"I'm So Happy" by The Salteens



Yo Gabba Gabba is kind of like the Banana Splits for this generation. They usually have a different indie band on the show doing kid songs. The Salteens are a band out of Vancouver B.C. Unfortunately, you can't download this song off iTunes, since the show owns it and they haven't released it yet.

Think Before You Speak

Today we had to take Boo to a specialist to take a closer look at her legs, on our pediatrician's recommendation. She is fairly bow-legged and has a slight pigeon toe thing going on, but the good news is that it should work itself out. Apparently, her body is still "unwinding" from her position in my womb, something that can take up to two & a half years.

But that's not what this post is about. As the doctor had my diaper-clad daughter walk to evaluate her gait, one of the nurses smiled and said "Whoa, you can see she doesn't miss any meals. Look at those thunder thighs."

Excuse me, thunder thighs? I wish I could say that I had a great comeback for her, but unfortunately I'm not Tina Fey. I know it wasn't meant as an insult, she said it in that "isn't she cute" sort of way, but a word of advice...the words thunder thighs should never be uttered when someone is walking around pantless. It doesn't matter how old you are!

Tuesday's Creative Thing

The beginnings of a birthday card I'm making for the kid's cousin, Terron. I wanted to use their art and I love the colors from their painting.

I've decided it counts as 'making something cool' if I got my kids to do it. It takes at least as much effort.

Plus, I'm giving myself brownie points for making the clean up fun too.

Where Is My Mind?

I suppose when the Pixies wrote "Where is my Mind?", they weren't talking about motherhood, but it certainly fits. Between multi-tasking and two all-consuming toddlers, things can get mixed up.

For example, this week I:

• put leftover carrots in the plate cupboard
• put the coffee pot in the fridge
• called my son by the dog's name...more than once
• caught myself describing the kids show "Yo Gabba Gabba" to a friend on the phone ("then they have Dancey Dance time....")
• cringed when I heard myself say my high-pitched, enthusiatic "Good Job" toddler mantra to a friend as she negotiated the stroller down our porch.
  (......thanks to all of my patient friends!)
• and my husband was surprised when I put the cheese in the butter compartment...at least it's in the fridge.

Family Tree

So I didn't exactly do this yesterday, but it's going to count as a creative activity for this month. I've had this family tree idea since we first hung up this wallpaper tree in the kids room (ahem, before they were born!), and I finally got around to starting it a few weeks ago. The kids can see their extended family and it keeps them occupied while I change diapers. Then they have the fun of hanging it back on the wall.



It's far from done, there are many more family members to add, but it's a start. These "apples" are made of felt and attach to the wall with self adhesive velcro. I laminated the photos before gluing them inside the 2 layers of felt.

To Susan....

As If I Need More to Do

I'm taking the plunge. I just discovered this on Polliwog's Cakewalk, which referred me to Dabbled. I'm starting a little late into the month, but we'll count the things I'm already working on.

April is Make Something Cool Every Day Month

I think I'm up to the challenge. I may not be able to always do both....it may not be cool, or it may not be every day, but isn't it the process of creating that's important?

So come along for the ride....if you dare. :-)

P.S. To any fellow procrastinators out there: The Cult of Done

Easter...

The kids loved wearing these ears, but try as I might,
I couldn't get a decent picture of them.

Luv the bubbles....

To be a princess, you've got to start early.

Holidays: an excuse to wear that dress that's been in the closet forever
...even if it's just for 10 minutes.

"Cool! Thanks Dad"

Life is complete with a kazoo.

Flowers, Sunshine & Good Guacamole

The obilgatory sunset shot in Ventura

Pretty cool, huh! The Kiss Gazania


Right: My compadres, Carrie, Shirley & Nancy

Left: Alan standing in front of Carrie

A beautiful display in Gilroy.

Just messing around in Somis.

I'm throwing all caution to the wind and posting on my blog while my sick children nap. In spite of all the shoulds guilt-tripping me...cleaning, laundry, etc... I thought I would post a little something about my trip instead of whining about everything. Southern California was everything it should be...sunshine, ocean vistas and fashionable skinny people. (I've been in my funky small town for so long now, if it's not fleecy and not made by Carhartt, it's fashionable!)

We viewed flower after flower, caught up with business contacts (many of whom I hadn't seen for almost 2 years due to maternity leave) made too many U-turns and enjoyed awesome Mexican food. I hadn't realized how pale I was until I saw my arms poking out from my black shirt in the San Diego sun. (Aha moment-I need to shed all this Pac NW black garb for some other colors.)

A great moment was when I introduced our new salesperson, Carrie, to perennial plant icon, Alan Armitage. I got to know him about ten years ago when he did some work for our company. He's a bit of a celebrity in the plant world, has a gardening show, and is responsible for introducing dozens of plant varieties to the global market. Carrie was gushing when she met him, saying what an honor it was, etc... and he replied "oh, I'm just a big goober".

The trip was too short, and yet it was long. I missed the babies. Especially when I could hear them in the background during nightly phone calls. On my last night, I resorted to watching videos of them on my digital camera in the hotel room before bed. I got home super late...2:00 a.m. and had to get up early, since 16 month olds never sleep in (no matter how late they go to bed!). Ahhh, but that's the life of motherhood and I'm grateful for it.

My California Souvenirs

Nyquil
Sudafed
Cold Eze
Advil
Kleenex