Okay, Because it's Saturday, and I'm Bored Out of My Gourd

Just so you know, these are not all true for me, but I can relate to OH so many of them. Oh, and I know lots of people who were actually born here...

You Know You're From Colorado When...

People move onto the highway at 15 miles an hour. You have absolutely no recognizable accent. If the humidity gets above 25%, you consider it "muggy". You only go to Central City when friends are in from out of town. You have been skiing less than 10 times in your life You think 5-points is a ghetto. You are the third car to run a red light after it has changed. You say things like "I don't care how big Golden is, it's still a one-horse town". You think only stupid people get lost in your town. When giving directions, you never say "Turn left, turn right", it's always go West, then South. During a thunderstorm you wonder "which I-25 underpass is flooding". You never plan a picnic between 3:30 and 6:00 in Spring or Summer months. If it rains more than 2 days straight you compare the weather to being in Seattle. You voted for higher taxes to fund Coors field, but voted down taxes for public transportation. You have a broken windshield. You see no reason to travel to Aurora. The only RTD bus you've been on is the 16th Street shuttle. You carry your $3,000 mountain bike on top of your $500 car. You thought "Californication" would be banned by Amendment 2. You think "South Park" is a place to stop for gas on your way to Buena Vista. You have a business degree and are frying burgers at a McDonald's in Vail. You have a flat tire in your refrigerator and your garage. You own a big dog named Aspen, Buck, Cheyenne or Dakota that wears a bandanna. You cast out your fishing line while white-water rafting. You've never seen the tourist attractions in your own city. You think a pass does not involve a football or a woman. You are 82 years old and take up snowboarding. Your real Y2K fear was running out of Celestial Seasonings tea and trail mix. The entire top of your head is bald, but you still have a pony tail. You personally wouldn't pay $10 per head to drive up Pikes Peak unless it was the only mountain on earth, but you tell all our house-guests to do it. You get depressed after one day of foggy weather. You think that formal wear is ironed denim. North means "mountains to the left;" south is "mountains to the right;" and east and west are where all those damned liberals keep moving in from. You go anywhere else on the planet and the air feels "sticky" and you notice the sky is no longer blue. You consider a three-piece suit to be a pair of shorts, a sweatshirt and Birkenstocks. You see your East Coast relatives now more than when you lived there. You think gun control is a steady hand. You can run up 10 flights of stairs without huffing and puffing. You've stood on solid ground and looked down on an airplane in flight. You know what the "Peoples Republic of Boulder" means. You're a meat eating vegetarian. You think the major food groups are Boulder Bars, tofu and Fat Tire Beer. You've been tear gassed in a riot to celebrate your local sports team's victory. You can drive over a 12,000 foot pass in 4 feet of snow, but can't get to work if there are 4 inches of snow. You know the correct pronunciation of Buena Vista. When you visit friends at sea level, you can drink a case of beer and not get a buzz. Your car insurance costs more than your car. You have surge protectors on every outlet. April showers bring May blizzards. You see someone riding a Harley in a snowstorm, and you look closer to see if it's anyone you know. "Timberline" is someplace you have actually been. Many times. You know what a "Chinook" is. You know what a "rocky mountain oyster" is. You know what a "fourteener" is. But you don't know what a "turn signal" is. A bear on your front porch doesn't bother you nearly as much as a Democrat in Congress does. Your golf bag has a 9-iron, a 3-wood and a lightning-rod. People from other states breathe 5 times as often as you do. Having a Senator named Nighthorse doesn't seem strange. Thunder has set off your car alarm. A sudden loss of cabin pressure is not a big deal. "Where we're going, we don't need roads!" You know where Doc Holliday's grave is. You can recognize the license plates of all 50 states on sight. Driving directions usually include 'Go over ____ Pass...' You've used "checking for ticks" as an excuse to get someone naked. You've gone skiing in July. You've gone sunbathing in January. They were both in the same year. You get a certain feeling of satisfaction from knowing that California and Texas are both downstream You know the elevation of a town, but not its population. You never pack away your coat and sweaters. You can name only two people you know who were actually born in Colorado. You call tumbleweed "groundcover". You love your Broncos, your Avs, your Rockies, Nuggets - well you can't have everything. You or someone you know plays golf 12 months of the year. You don't have AC in your home, but you use it in your car all winter long. If it snows in the morning you expect it to be gone by lunchtime. You can name the states that make up the Four Corners. You know what and where the Continental Divide is. You actually get these jokes and pass them on to other friends from Colorado.

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My Sweeties

Yesterday I plopped down on the chaise lounge and put my hands on my head.

"What's wong mommy?" asked Drew.

"I have a headache."

"Oh." and then he kissed my cheek to make me feel better and start rubbing my head with his tiny little hands.

Then Beau, who was struggling to get up on the lounge with us, finally made his way up. Seeing his big brother give mommy a kiss, he, in his toddler way, stumbled forward and gave me a kiss as well. He must have felt like he needed some practice, because he kissed me many times. (This is his first attempt at kisses, by the way.)

I love my little boys.

Pottery!

After months and months of anticipation, I have finally completed another batch of pottery. I hope to be turning out peices on more of a regular basis. The more I do this, the more I enjoy it, and of course, there is always room for improvement. So without further ado, here are the photos:


The Drew Vase: made especially for Drew one night when he came to see what mommy does at pottery class.


The Butter Bell: also known as a French butter dish, I believe. Butter is placed into smaller "bell" and then water is put in larger container, keeping the butter smooth and spreadable, while keeping it fresh.

Top of the butter bell.


My Lopsided Purple Bowl: For sale: $15


Lovey-Dovey Mugs: For Sale: $20 for the set.

I Am From

I am from lean-to chicken coops, from cheetos and Plum Candy, and Lip Trip to protect my lips from the wind as I snowboard down Sun King.

I am from the cozy little, one room with a loft, log cabin, nestled by the chilly resevoir.

I am from the aspen trees, the heart shaped leaves, fluttering and clapping in the breeze.

I am from ambling down unknown (by us) country roads, and fun-loving, from Summer and Dirty Al and Grandma Bunny.

I am from the eating dinner past eight p.m and laughing at bathroom talk at the table, and having belching contests with my two sisters.

From being told there were children somewhere else in the world that were starving while I refused to eat my ginger flavored veggie burrito, and "can't never could."

I am from the Bible Church, memorizing Psalm 100, having a puppet show for Sunday School, and singing the Music Machine. (Theres' no other gadget that you've ever seen.)

I'm from Colorado and California, from fried burritos, chips, salsa, and beer, and lush, colorful salads.

From the concert at the Vineyard, where my best friend told me about the drummer, and I noticed him checking me out, and he later became my husband, and from a mother and father who prayed for him when I was a little girl with pigtails.

I am from Grandpa Al's old chest, the drawers in the buffet table, my mother's knick knack cabinet, from the blood, sweat and tears of three days of labor, from being fought for, from being prayed for, from being happily given away.




I stole this inspiration from Faith. You can find the template here, should you decide to do it yourself. Let us know if you do, so we can read yours too.

A Crazy Week

Well, this has been one crazy week. Let me give you a little update on everything. I decided not to continue teaching after last week. I really enjoyed teaching, and if anything, I know that I can do it now, however, after talking with my dear hubby, we both came to the same conclusion: we were dreading the next three weeks of me being gone. After talking with my mom about the job and so on, she decided she wouldn't be going back either. We both think it will be best for her to take a good chunk of time off and focus on herself, and my dad, and getting well. So I also thought it would be better for the kids if they have the same teacher for the rest of the year. I may go back to finish at least one project with the seventh graders though. They were really excited about the claymation project, and so was I, so I'd really like to be able to finish it with them.
It turned out to be a really good thing I decided to not continue the teaching thing, because (and unfortunately) it turned out that my mom was needed down here this week. My poor grandma needed her care after taking a spill last Friday night and spiral fracturing her pinky toe, chipping her ankle bone, possibly seperating a rib, and getting a bruise and bump the size of Manhattan on her fluffy white-headed noggin. Needless to say, this was pretty stressful for all involved (and let me say, the receptionist at the ER didn't make it any easier for us.) Yesterday, my body had apparently had enough of all my internalized stress, and forced me to lay down with a migraine.
Today I feel much better and much less stressed. My grandma is doing very well, and we will all be helping her out with what is beyond her reach. My mom is headed home to my dad. And I get to hang out with my best bud tonight and watch a chick flick.
All has been crazy, but all is well, and will be well, even if a little rain falls here and there. However, if next week even remotely begins to resemble the craziness of this week: I'm going on vacation!

The Easter Gorilla

We asked Drew if he wanted the Easter bunny to bring him some candy and he said, "Uuuuh, how 'bout King Kong?"

Ariel at 19 Weeks

Isn't she so cute! (I picked out this dress, by the way. Yes, I know I have good taste...ha ha ha)
The ultrasound went very well, the baby is healthy, and the baby is going to be a GIRL! Yeah!

Dear Beau,

I cut your hair today. All your golden curls are now gone, and you look more like a little boy than ever. The only thing holding you back in babyhood world, are your gorgeous chubby cheeks. Those seem to be diminishing ever so slightly too. Your neck is getting longer, your mouth is getting full of teeth. Each day you learn a new word. As I sat and looked at your sleeping face today, lost in dreams of mama's warm milk, I missed seeing your beautiful curls on my arm. I did not want to cut them, but your father has mentioned it so many times, I thought it might be a good idea. Looking at the ratted mess on the back of your head this morning sealed the deal, and I got the clippers out. Now I'm cursing myself for ushering you into boyhood a bit too soon, just by clipping your hair. Watching you and Drew grow up is such a bittersweet thing. I wish I could keep you young forever, but I am excited to see what the future brings for each of you. What kind of things will you be passionate about? Who will you emulate? What will you look like? What will you become? Who will you marry?I promise you both, I will enjoy and relish every moment of your growing up, because it goes much too quickly.
I love you both so much. You have brought such light into my life.
Love,
Mama

I Survived Week One

Well. I survived my first week of teaching! I think, by all comparisons to various teachers first weeks of teaching, mine went incredibly well. The students seemed to respond to me well for the most part. We didn't have any major behavioral issues, and I am learning quickly enough what is okay and not okay in the classroom and how to control the atmosphere in there. I can honestly say I really wish I had some teaching classes under my belt, like teaching techniques, and commanding your students respect and so on...but alas it is not to be at this point. At least I'm a quick learner. (I think.)
It was hard being away from my hubby for three days, (especially after being away for 11 days a week earlier!) and it was hard not to come home to my own little space if you know what I mean. I think I must be officially grown up now that my old home doesn't feel as much like home than my own house now...if that actually made any sense. It's just difficult to acclimate yourself and two infant children to a room in a house that serves as a guest room, and and office and a staging room of sorts, but anyways.
It has yet to be decided if I will go back next week. I suppose we will be "playing it by ear" for the whole month, as all of this rests on my mom's health/energy levels and so forth. So far, she is responding rather well to the medicine, Praise God! She is just VERY tired. I don't know about you, but I'd rather be tired than feel like I have the flu, so I'm thankful. Her dosage is upped this Friday, so pray that she doesn't acquire any side affects with the additional milligrams (or whatever they are.)
On the flip side, I'm kind of excited about some of my students and the projects we are doing. (See, I'm already calling them "MY" students.) My seventh graders consist of seven boys, and they are the funnest class. We are going to do a short clay-mation film. They are really jazzed about it, and just buzzing with ideas. So I'm really excited about that. I have to admit, I wanna stick around just to see that come to completion. If I do keep teaching them all, I will be taking a more hands-on approach and starting my own projects with them. It's much easier to teach them something that I've come up with, rather than trying to finish something my mom started with them.
Well, I wont bore you with any more of this drizzle. This was kind of a diarrhea of the mouth post for me, but it feels good to just let it all out.

Second Day and Fire Poop

Okay, so the second day wasn't so bad either. I had the fifth graders and the second graders today, and they were a little more testy than the students yesterday, but overall no serious problems. I'm getting a little bit better about asserting myself as well, and expect more improvements in the near future. Tomorrow is the biggest day of the week, with four classes taking up the entire day. Then I drive back home to my hubby! Yay!
Let's hope that Beau doesn't wake up the whole house at three in the morning again, like he did last night. Poor little guy, was really upset and I couldn't get him to go back to sleep for anything. I was freaking out because I wanted to get some sleep and because I knew he was waking up everyone else in the house. After several minutes of crying, "Pfffffffrrrrrbbbbtttt!" Yeah, he pooped, and we were fine. I have this terrible addiction to Flamin' Hot Cheetos you see, and Beau likes them too, so last night we had a few. So when my mom said to my dad, at 3 in the morn- "What the heck is going on up there?!" My dad aptly replied, "Maybe he's having a flaming hot poo..." To some extent, I'd say he was right. But we got back to sleep, and we've had no cheetos tonight, so hopefully we be able to all sleep peacefully...

Tomorrow I get my highspeed internet back! Not to mention, my Mac......
Until then!

First Day of School

Well today was my first day teaching, ever. And I have to say it didn't go too bad. I started out with the highschoolers, and ended with kindergartners. Talk about two different worlds! But so far it has been fun, and once I figure out how to command the kids attention, I think I'll be fine. I need to not worry about everyone liking me, and put my foot down on certain issues. I can really see how the little ones in particular will walk all over me if I don't show them I'm not a push-over. So...tomorrow I have fifth graders and second graders. I hear the second graders can be a bit of challenge sometimes...so we'll see. I DO think that having two rowdy boys, somehow helps qualify me for all of this, so I'm sure I'll be okay.

I'm staying with my mom for the three days I am working, as she lives much closer to the school than I do. Lets just put it this way, the school is a 50 minute drive from her house and I live and hour and fifteen minutes away from her...so naturally... All that to say, she lives out in the boonies and does not have high speed internet, so I apologize if I am unable to make it to your blog this week, or comment. Hope you are all having fabulous weeks!

Mrs. Sarah

Well, it's official, folks. I will be teaching art to kindergartners through twelfth graders for three days a week for the next month. This is normally my mom's job, but she is taking a break to adjust to the medicine she will be taking to combat the MS. Fortunately, she is feeling well enough to be able to watch my boys, and I will take her job for her for the next month. This should be an interesting learning experience for both of us. Please keeps us both in your prayers as we embark on this journey together.

Ariel at I Forgot How Many Weeks

She has an ultrasound on Monday...so hopefully we can see if it is a boy or a girl! Will keep you updated!

More Spring Break Shots

Alright. Here are the last of the spring break pictures.

Beau asleep on the way down there. Just had to catch him with his arm around his hairy ball.

The boys at the start of the Science museum. I think Drew would have slept the entire time if we had let him. He fell asleep in the car and we transferred him to the stroller, then walked down the street past a construction zone where they were using a jack-hammer, ordered lunch, endured loud children, and he slept through it all. And no, the jack-hammer part is NOT and exaggeration. We woke him up, because this was mainly for his enjoyment, and I'm glad we did. He had a ball there and started crying when we had to leave.

They had an exhibit on robots, with a robot hall of fame. So Drew and I had to pose next to C-3PO, naturally. I was a little bummed they didn't have R2-D2 though...

And here's Drew's best smile outside of the museum on a picturesque rock we found. He is way more excited about the dinosaur egg that I bought him, which is what is in his hands.

Zippity ZOO Da

Sorry for the barrage of zoo pics, that is where we took the majority of our pictures, for obvious reasons. The kids really had a blast there. It was fun to see their little minds absorbing all the new sensory information. One of the neatest things about this trip is that I know that both of my kids, Drew in particular, are smarter from all the new experiences they've had.



Drew, Hannah and Mom, and yes, we really were that close to the rhino, and that is all that was separating us from it. However someone did point out that "I don't think a rhino is going to JUMP over that."


Although, this picture does kind of look like she's getting ready to charge. (I assume it was a female, I really don't know...and I wasn't trying to find out. Hee hee)


Beau, totally conked out from all the running around.


Hannah and Drew on the train. I don't know if you can tell be the look on his face, but he is super excited to be on this thing.

The minute he saw he didn't stop talking about it until he got to ride on it. Later his daddy asked him what his favorite thing about the trip was, and he said, "I don't know...uh..the train. I go on a train!"

Momma and the Beau. There is actually some exotic bird in this picture too, but it is being blocked by my head.

The second of two carousel rides we took on the trip. The first one, was Drew's first carousel ride ever and I had the most fun, and such a "mommy moment" watching his face transform as we rode. At first he was just in awe of the thing, trying to decide if it was okay to smile or not, then he let the smile come out, and it was pure joy on his face. I couldn't contain myself, and started to cry...truth be told, there are tears in my eyes as I'm telling you right now. It was just one of those things... I know my explanation doesn't do it justice...but anyways...had to share.


"I like to move it, move it! I like to move it, move it. You like to? MOVE IT!" (Only those who have watched Madagascar will know what I'm talking about)

Auntie Hannah and the Beau...she doesn't look at all like me does she? This could totally be me, just with red hair...like four or five months ago...

Some lovely macaws (I think.) This was one of the times, actually this whole day at the zoo, I really wished I had my Nikon. It would have totally been worth lugging it around. It doesn't fit in my purse, but I had my camera out most of the time anyways, so it wouldn't have made a difference....but alas...the Kodak did just fine.

Feeding The Giraffes

Okay, pardon me for making you wait to see ALL of the vacation pics...by just dispersing them a few at a time. But I must mention that not only does it take a week to prepare for a vacation, it takes a week to settle back in as well... Not to mention, doctors appointments and other things....inhale...exhale....

So without any further explanations...here are some shots of the giraffes we got to feed. Very interesting animals, with long slimy tongues. I couldn't help but shrug and shudder and say "eeewww!" after feeding it. Drew keeps on saying, "It looks like Melman." Ha ha ha.

Bouncy Slide Fun

My sister and her husband own a bounce company, so they set up one of the bouncy slides for Drew and Beau on the last day. We all had a lot of fun on it. Drew went up and down that thing so many times he ended up with little scratches all over the place from scraping the velcro. He looked like he'd been in a fight with a kitten. Beau was absolutely fearless. He was laughing the whole time he was on the slide. He climbed up the ladder/stairs all by himself a couple of times.

Explanations.

Well. Now that I am back I am really glad I had a little vacation. I didn't think about any of my weekly duties while I was gone, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Many thanks to my mom, sister and brother-in-law and his sister and parents for helping me out with the boys last week, I felt like I got a break from the mom role as well. (My sister is blessed with wonderful in-laws, just like me!) I didn't realize how badly I needed a break and how much it would help, until I settled back into The Routine today. Talk about stress. However, I was able to handle things with a little more tolerance and patience because of my little break. So I'm glad I went, and I'm glad I'm back.

So, okay- I think a few things need some explanations.

No, the falling chair episode did not happen at Ikea (too bad, maybe we would've gotten something for free...just kidding...Really.) Beau was venturing through my sister's kitchen when he tripped and grabbed onto her chair to steady himself. Unfortunately the lightweight chair came tumbling down on top of him and hit his ear. It was pretty nasty looking. And I felt pretty bad it happened, even though I was just three steps away when it happened. It has gone through an array of colors now, ranging from dead to green and I'm sure yellow is just around the corner.

The same night of the chair incident, I got Beau out of bed to nurse, put him in the bed with me an promptly fell asleep. Beau, then woke up, stood up, and fell right off the bed...onto Drew. Needless to say, both started crying...and that is one account of my sleep deprivation. All other accounts are mainly due to staying up until the wee hours enjoying chatting with my sis.

Burst water lines? Two ornery dogs. Need I say more?

Tomorrow I will post some pics with some more highlights from the trip...Did I mention we actually got to feed a giraffe?

I'm Baaaaaaack!

Hello! I am back now. I got here yesterday after two days of driving. And after a week in Phoenix, all I have to say is Brrrrrr, it's cold here! I can't write a whole lot right now, I need to take a shower and jet off to a much needed chiropractor appointment. I went to sleep with another searing headache last night, so I'm looking forward to an adjustment.

I will definitely be back today with pictures and details. Stay tuned!