Christmas, 2009

A wonderful Christmas.....a first for us. We had no out-of-town family, and we stayed home. So, it was just the 3 of us. Scout and I really talked about the traditions we wanted to start for our little family. We each had very different Christmas growing up, so it was a chance for us to meld the two to create our own.....overall, the theme of the holiday has been easy-going and relaxing! Mo and I wore PJs all day. That is a tradition I could get used to!!!

Christmas Eve was fun. Friends came over to eat chili and frost cookies. It was fun for the kids to play and fun for us to enjoy some egg nog, and a nice fire!!! Mo was so excited last night, she had a hard time going to sleep.....but finally, she gave up the fight. Scout and I spent the next several hours wrapping presents and putting them under the tree.



Christmas day started with Mo crawling into bed with us, and snuggling in. We got up and went downstairs, Mo was so excited about all the loot under the tree and in her stocking. She was very careful to open each present and them to play with it for a few minutes before moving on to the next one. With each new present, she would just smile and say...."Thank you, Santa!"


The favorite toys of the day were the barbie and barbie clothes, she got a new baby that also came with clothes....she loves to dress them up. She also got this cake decorating kit....which she loves....we had lots of birthday parties today.

A bead kit.....to make necklaces for her babies!

Barbie clothes....
She got several new books....Pinkalicious, Purplicious....and Snow.

Scout got several things for golf.....so she was very happy with her gifts. I got many wonderful things that I wanted, including a Wii Fit. Which, I had asked Santa for....so I am excited to try that out!

We tried to make a special meal for Christmas Dinner.....Scout made this fantastic Prime Rib.....really yummy. I made Potatoes au Gratin (which was undercooked)....and creamed spinach (which was really bad)....so, we will have to work on our menu a little for next year.
Overall, a wonderful holiday.

Santaland

Today, we went to see Santa. We went to the downtown Macy's....where the original Santaland used to be. In it's heyday, it had a monorail, and whole North Pole town. It has been reduced to just the reindeer stable, a few houses, and a train. But, they have the REAL Santa. I mean, this guy......looks like Santa. He really acts the part. Made it very fun for all of us. I even got misty eyed when Mo sat on his lap. I couldn't understand why there was a little girl sitting on his lap, not the baby girl that I swear she still is......



This Christmas has been so much fun. Mo BELIEVES. She really believes. Watching the holiday through her eyes has made it so much fun. She is so into the magic of it all. Scout and I have marveled at how this holiday is so wonderful because we see it through her eyes.

Mo's First Performance

This afternoon, we attended Mo's first dance recital. It was so great. Lindsay, Stefani, Whit, Baby R, Uncle Brad, and Jacqui all came to show their love and support. And we felt every bit of it!!!!

BTW......Scout, Lindsay, Stefani, and Jacqui all cried......and I got teary before she actually went on.

Enjoy the cuteness.....Mo is in the middle with the pink, snowman dress on.

Tattle Tale

Mo has totally bought into the whole idea of Santa, and the magic of the season. She is very aware that Santa knows if she has been naughty or nice. She wants Santa to REALLY know what is going on. So lately, she has taken to telling the Elf on the Shelf things, just in case Tito misses it.

This morning, we were painting and I put something on her paper. She runs into the living room, and I hear....

"Tito, Mama just put that thing on the my paper, and I didn't like it."

She comes back to me and says...."Mama, I told the elf what you did, and his face was NOT happy!"

Elf Update

Mo has changed the name of her elf on the shelf......instead of "Stumpy"........the new name is "Tito."

Elf on the Shelf

Some friends turned us on to this new holiday product, Elf on the Shelf.....here is a write up about it from Barnes and Noble.


The Elf on the Shelf is an activity the entire family will enjoy. Based on the tradition Carol Aebersold began with her family in the 1970s, this cleverly rhymed children's book explains that Santa knows who is naughty and/or nice because he sends a scout elf to every home. During the holiday season, the elf watches children by day and reports to Santa each night. When children awake, the elf has returned from the North Pole and can be found hiding in a different location. This activity allows The Elf on the Shelf to become a delightful hide-and-seek game.


Let me just say, Mo is WAY INTO this elf.....ours came today and she named him "Stumpy." We have been getting lots of traction with this. Mo is eating more of her dinner, putting her things away.....really following directions. This thing is brilliant.

Now how we can create a Valentine Sprite and a 4th of July fairy?

The ugly tooth

So lately, this blog has been about dogs.....they are our first children, so it is appropriate that they get some blog time.

Our dog Cricket is our super sweet, super sensitive dog. We got her the summer we lived in Mexico. We volunteered at this animal shelter while we were there, and little Cricket was there. She was just getting over a major illness, and she almost didn't make it. When we walked through the doors, the people who ran the shelter could tell we were a couple of suckers, and they immediately put Cricket in our laps, and told us her sob story. It took about 10 minutes for us to decide to adopt her. She has been ours ever since.

Lately, Cricket's breath has just been awful. We have been giving her those special teeth/breath cleaning dog biscuits, but they haven't helped. So, yesterday, we took her to the vet. And she did need a teeth cleaning, and they thought they would have to pull a tooth, or two.

We took her in this morning, and they put her under for the cleaning, and to see what was going on. They called a few hours later to tell us that Cricket needed 21 teeth pulled......

Yes, you read that right...

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21!

Every single tooth in the front of her mouth had to go....she only has her molars left. The vet said it was due to bad food and care when she was a puppy. And that we will have to be extra careful to avoid loosing the rest of them. She may have to eat wet food for the rest of her life (which I am sure she will love).

Our poor Cricket is at home, and very sore, groggy, and gummy.

Losing Percy

Tonight, Mo and I were coming home, she had fallen asleep in the car. I was trying to carry her, and numerous other things into the house. Apparently, I didn't make sure the gate was closed. The dogs saw this as a golden opportunity to explore the neighborhood.

Now, I have posted before about our dogs (one got the looks, one got the smarts)....well, tonight perfectly illustrated this. Cricket and Percy headed out on their adventure. By the time we realized they were out, Cricket was back at the back door waiting for dinner. She was able to find her way home.

Percy is still not home. He couldn't find his way out of a paper bag. He got about a block away. Some very nice people took him in, and gave us a call. They were headed out, and we are going to get him later tonight. Percy, as I write this, is having a play date with a Boston Terrier.

Happy Halloween

This Halloween season sure was fun. Mo has been looking forward to it for the past several weeks. We went to the pumpkin patch a few days before and had a great time. We took Uncle Brad and Jacqui with us....So basically, there were 4 grown people focusing on one small girl. I tell you, she is deprived!






Mo helped get the house ready....

She "helped" carve pumpkins....we had to do 3, one for each of us. Mema is the goofy looking one!


Mo loved being a fairy.....and she was so brave. She walked up to every door by herself and knocked on the door. She had her eyes on the prize. Her efforts were rewarded, she came home with more candy than one person should ever need.




We love our new neighborhood, we had about 30 trick or treaters....the most ever since moving to Portland. Kids were all over the neighborhood. I am still so enamoured with our new house and where we live. Feels like a real community that we have fallen into.

Mo's Superpower

Mo has an incredible superpower.....which I decided today is not just a once-in-a-while thing....

Sometimes (ok, all the time), when I get on the phone, Mo does everything she can to distract me. She will get into something she's not suppose to, or she will start yelling and making lots of noise.

Back to the superpower, If I am calling some company that I have to navigate the phone system (press 1 for billing, 2 for service, etc)....Mo can make a squealing sound that will activate the phone system. I don't even have to push a button, Mo's high-pitched squeal is just the right frequency that will "press" the buttons for me.

This has happened more than one time to be just a coincidence. Today, I was trying to make an appointment at the doctor. I was listening for my "push button" choices...and Mo was making noises in the background, next thing I know, I am talking to some lab manager because Mo's noises had pushed a whole series of buttons and gotten me away from the appointment menu.

Very random.

Don't mince words

The other day, Mo and I were leaving the house.....running late....

We got outside and I realized I had left the directions inside. I told Mo, I would be right back, I was getting the directions.

As I came back out, Mo asked.....

"Mommy, did you get the erections?"

Perfect Storm

We are creatures of habit.....all of us. We tend to have the same schedule week after week. But this week, we had the perfect storm of off schedule activities that threw us all for ONE BIG LOOP.

First, our day care provider went on a trip, and was gone for 2 days.....so Uncle Brad stepped up and watched Mo for us on those 2 days.

The next day, she went to daycare, but I had one of those after school meetings....you know the ones....the meeting that is not mandatory, but if you don't come, your principal gets an email wanting to know why you weren't there....so, a teacher friend, Alysson, picked Mo up and took her over to her house for a few hours after school.

The very next day, Scout went into the hospital for out patient surgery on her leg....and Mo got picked up by Uncle Brad, and hung out with him until almost bed time.

So, in the past week.....I have not picked her up one day or come home with her.....she has been going hither, thither, and yon.....and it is starting to take its toll.

Last night, she was cranky (can you blame her).....she was tired (I get it)....and she was clingy (of course).....

Today, we had arranged for Uncle Brad to come get her and take her to daycare, so Scout and I could have a quiet day while Scout's leg got to feeling better.....but we decided instead to have a "family day." We enjoyed the time together....watched movies....worked some puzzles....walked to the park.....it was nice to feel normal again. Everyone seems much better.

Can't wait to get back to our boring, regular life!

Dreamland

Mo is remember her dreams and wanting to talk about them each morning. They seem to revolve around a particular theme....monsters, and boys. Not sure if there is a connection.

Usually, the dreams goes something like this.....

"I was in my room, and there was a monster, and I went into Mama and Mema's room, and you were wearing different clothes....and you took care of me."

or

"Claus came over for a playdate.....I love Claus, he my best friend."

Most days, I don't remember my dreams......I guess too much going on my head for a dream to 'stick.' I love it that Mo remembers hers and wants to share them with us.....just one more way she is turning into her own little person.

Speech Class

Mo is a talker....always has been....she puts her hands on her hips, and talks up a storm. But she has trouble saying words with S in them.....

stop is "top"
spider is "pider"

So, lately, we have really been practicing the "s" sound in front of words. For example, today on the way home, this was the conversation....

Mo: Its on the tairs.

Me: Don't you meean.....sssssstairs?

Mo: Oh yes......sssssss - tairs.

Me: Very good, let's do another one....

Mo: OK.......sssssss-van........ssssssss-car.........ssssss-truck

Happy Anniversary

Today is our wedding anniversary. We got married 4 years ago today. It was a wonderful day, and so much has happened in the time since.

We went out to dinner, with Simone, so it wasn't the most romantic evening (we will do something just the 2 of us this weekend)......

Here is to the past 4 years........and to the next 40!!!!

Back at School

Last week was the first official week of school. Even though Mo and Scout aren't in school, they still have to suffer through the first week along with me. It is hard to get back into a schedule, getting used to fixing lunches, picking out clothes the night before, and all the other things that go along with starting back.

Last week, it was a personal goal to go to bed at 10:00......does it count, if I fell asleep on the couch at 8:00, and then moved to the bed at 10:30?

The year is off to a good start....Scout and Mo are helping out.......I have a great class.....and I feel really comfortable teaching in my grade right now....my program just feels solid....I feel prepared......

But, I still have dreams of winning powerball!!!!

Conversations with a 3 Year Old

Grownup: What's you favorite farm animal?

Mo: Boy.

Grownup: What sound does a boy make?

Mo: They pop (meaning, they fart).

Our Old House

It has been one month since we moved in. Most everything is unpacked, and it does feel like we are living here. We needed a bigger house....we had just overrun our old house.

When we decided to move....I had 2 criteria........closer to work, and NOT a fixer-upper. Well, we are farther from school, and you guessed it.....the house needs work. Not a lot of work, but the entire house needs to be updated. We loves the bones of the house, and it is totally livable, but things need to (and will) change over the next several years.

So, here is a snapshot of the house as it is now.

There was baby blue carpet all throughout the downstairs, stairs, and upstairs......we took it out downstairs.....it feels good to have the original hardwoods downstairs....they are not in bad shape, but will need to be redone next year.

This is the entry way, right as you come in the front door. This is what sold us on the house....we loved the stairs going up, we loved the front closet and how the whole area welcomes you in to the house.....

Also, in the front hall is this mirrored, marbled wall......not what we love about the entry way....I am sure it was high style at one point, but it is coming out in the next few weeks.....we hope it will open up the entry to the living room.


Our living room is HUGE....used to be both the living and dining..., so we love how we have 2 separate conversation areas.....we don't have enough furniture to fill it up, yet.....give us a few months....

I love the light coming in the front windows....can't wait for cozy fires in the fall!!!

The kitchen.....it has been updated....but it so......white.....some paint will do wonders.





The dining room right off the kitchen....it is so nice to have room for a big table, perfect for having friends over! Check out the fabulous wallpaper....it is hard to see in the picture, but there are gold sparkles all throughout it.....adds glamour!


Speaking of wallpaper.....there are some unique finishes in the house....my 2 favorites you find in the bedrooms upstairs.....

Red shag in Mo's room.....with streaks of black....

The wallpaper in our room....the bamboo pattern is actually raised off the paper.....nice 3-D effect. They loved this so much, they wallpapered over the closet doors....and on the built-in drawers.....

This is a photo from the top of the stairs......we have 4 bedrooms up here.....but they do not work for us they way they are now......first, there is no bathroom up here (major problem)...and 2 of the rooms are too small to be used as real bedrooms....also, there are 4 different carpets up here....including the indoor/outdoor carpet in the guest room...

Not sure what will happen up here.....the architect is coming over in a few weeks to talk about the master plan for upstairs......keep you posted....

Babywearing in Portland is huge. Everyone you see has their baby in some sort of carrier. For the first 2 years of Mo's life, we had 5 different carriers that we used for all sorts of occasions......most of her baby pictures, she is in the sling.

Since we don't go anywhere without a baby for the little mama.....Mo has started wanting to 'wear' her baby. It really is more convenient for those 'moms on the go'.....it is too hard to climb a play structure with a little one in hand. So, you can see Mo's is a true Portlander....swinging and wearing her baby at the same time.

If you look carefully, you can see her Hello Kitty cell phone on the ground by the swing.....Mo had to bring her phone, she didn't want to miss any messages.......her words, not mine.

The Grapes of Wrath...or the Wrath of some Grapes....

So, Mo had a lovely play date with her old friend, V. The girls were born 10 days apart, and have know each other FOREVER! It is always fun to have them play together.

Yesterday, both girls were upstairs playing in Mo's new playroom....and having a great time. Michelle and I were hanging out, drinking coffee...and talking. We went up to check on the girls, and we realized they were chewing gum...... but wait, we don't chew gum, and don't have any in the house.

On closer inspection, we discovered they were actually chewing these little grapes from Mo's kitchen set. They had picked the bunch clean, and most of the grapes were gone. After a brief interrogation, the girls fessed up that they had SWALLOWED the grapes. We think they each ate about 10 grapes.

Calls were placed to the doctors.....and we were told that the only thing we can do is wait and watch......what goes in the body, must come out of the body. So now were are on poop watch.

There is a part of me that hopes pooping these grapes out is not a pleasant experience. I want her to have a 'natural' consequence for this action. It may be a lesson she remembers!!!

One day, I will remind her of this.....maybe at her wedding!

Brain Fart

Sorry for the lack of posts.....I have just been so mentally exhausted from moving. At night, I just want to lay on the couch and relax....if I have any gumption to do anything, I feel like I should unpack...just...one....more....box.

The good news is the storage units are almost empty.....and the boxes have all been unpacked....well, not the ones I shoved into the basement. I will deal with those in October (maybe).

We are in......

We moved in.....we have been sleeping here for a little over a week......and we are sort-of, kind of, not quite settled. Most of the boxes have been unpacked, but we are still trying to figure out where everything should go. The space in the house feels nice, and we are loving how the house 'lives.'

This move has been harder than any of our past moves. We have more stuff.....but the biggest difference is Mo. Not only does she have her own stuff (and lots of it), but she is not very tolerant of taking time to unpack boxes. So, we end up unpacking a box here and a box there when we can.

I will post pictures of the house soon.

Evacuation

We were living large in Millwaukie......it was really going well......until.....

HEAT WAVE 2009 HITS PORTLAND.

Seriously, it is HOT. We have had 3 days of over 100 degree temps. It started on Monday....and it just keeps getting hotter. Today it was 105. It doesn't cool down at night, so you get no relief at all. This is suppose to continue until Friday. It is the hottest Portland has EVER been...no joke...beating all the records.

We totally punked out. We moved into a hotel Monday night. Smartest thing we have done in a long time. We are living in the A/C with an indoor pool. We are so much more comfortable, and much less grumpier than we would have been otherwise.

Living Large in Millwaukie

(The title is not a typo, that is how they spell it)

We cannot move into our new house for 2 weeks. We were so lucky to house sit for Mike and Beth (who have moved into their new house, but haven't sold their old one).....so we have our very own house all to ourselves.

It has been wonderful to have this break in the middle of moving. A nice, relaxing period with no house stuff to deal with. We have enjoyed it.

Millwaukie is a south of Portland.....it is its own little town. Very cute.....they had the Millwaukie Days festival last weekend, and we went to see the fireworks on the river. It was a lovely night....warm, but with a good breeze. The fireworks were great....Mo loved them, plus the music featured the latest summer Top 40 hits.....'gotta get that boom, boom, boom....." Could it get better.....oh, yes it can......

My favorite part was the concession area. They had a beer garden and a Papa Murphy's pizza truck. That was it! Who needs fancy food carts with crepes, gyros, and wraps........beer and pizza.....I like the way Millwaukie rolls.......

Moving Out

Well, this is about a week late, but we are officially out of our house. We got everything moved into the POD (if truth be told, Scout and Brad got everything moved into the POD).....and got the house cleaned up for the new owners.

Both of us felt sad and excited. This house holds many memories......good and bad. We lost Scout's mom and a baby in that house.....but we also had wonderful times with family and friends there.....we also brought Mo home to this house. So leaving is bittersweet.

On a side note, I went back to the house several days later to pick up a package.....and the new owners have PAINTED the entire inside of the house. I don't like it, but it is not my house, so who cares what I think.......it does make it easier to separate from the house......I wouldn't want to live there with that color scheme!!!

Dancing Queen

When I was pregnant with Mo, Scout and I would lay awake and wonder what it would be like to be parents, what our child would be like. We talked for hours about all the things we wanted for her, happiness, college.....Scout dreamed of playing catch in the backyard, playing golf, and fishing....

This was my dream.....




How stinking cute is that!!!!!

No Grocery Stores for Mo

Today, we stopped in Safeway to pick up a baby shower card and to get a Starbucks. As we were waiting to check out, Mo sees a woman leaving the store. Then suddenly, out of her mouth...."Wow, she has a BIG BUTT!"

Fortunately, the woman was out of earshot....and several people around us snickered. I told her in my serious voice that was unacceptable, that we don't say things about people's bodies....but, I felt bad. She wasn't trying to be mean...she was just stating the facts as she saw it. Mo looked totally confused.......and I guess I don't blame her too much.

Poor thing, I encourage her to be observant, and she gets in trouble for it!!!!

Walk Through

Last night, we went over to our new house to meet with the Dorr's. They have lived in the house for 38 years and raised 2 children there. It is clear when you talk to them that they love the house, and the only reason they are moving is because they cannot navigate the stairs anymore.

Spending time with them was so much fun. First of all, both of them are very saucy! Mrs. Dorr is really passing a torch to us. She gave us a detailed map of all the plants in the garden down to plant description and care instructions. She also gave us a map of our street with all the names and phone numbers of the people who live there. Helpful hints were also noted like "remind Mike across the street to mow his grass."

Everytime we go in this house, we get more excited. We cannot wait to move in.....more importantly, we can't wait to live our lives there. Scout is like a little kid waiting for Christmas! This place has has good house karma.

Thought for the Day

It is amazing how when you are first packing for a move....you wrap an item, put it carefully in a box which is labeled with all the necessary information......."left hand drawer from dresser in Master Bedroom."

Now, we are to the "throw everything in a box and get the box filled as fast as possible" stage. I actually labeled a box today that said "random items from bath, bedroom and kitchen."

Moving Update

Moving has begun......we have half our stuff in boxes, and the other half is scattered around the house. We have gotten to the point where we can't pack too much more, because everything that is out, is stuff we need until our actual move out day.

The smartest thing we did was to get a dunpster. We are purging a ton of stuff that we just don't need anymore and that is total trash. So right now in front of our house it looks like this....

One medium sized dunpster....


One very large POD....
I think we got the sizes mixed up....we should have gotten the extra large dumpster and gotten rid of most of our stuff. Just take the good stuff to the new house......

6 more days until we move out......

Tattle Tale

Mo is such a tattler!!! She knows what certain rules are and feels the need to enforce them with EVERYONE.....for example....

1. At the airport, these 2 women were running down the concourse trying to catch a plane....Mo yelled at them to walk, because "it is not safe."

2. At the grocery store today, a young woman was leaving on her bike. Mo pointed and loudly said "She is not wearing a helmet, that is very dangerous!"

Clearly, Mo is very safety conscious and also feels to need to enforce every and all safety guidelines.

Thank you, I'll be here all week.....

Mo has always been funny......she cracks us up on a daily basis. She has always been aware of her audience and plays to their likes and dislikes....put a few grown-ups in a room with her, and she is dancing and acting, and has them eating of her hand within 5 minutes!

Lately, she has been trying out funny sayings, funny words....and repeating things that Scout and I (mostly Scout) say that get a laugh. She latched on to the "like a fox" phrase.....Scout will say that she is sly....like a fox.

Tonight, as we were leaving the park.....Mo says....."I'm sweaty.....like a fox."

Keep Portland Weird

I have always loved those bumper stickers to "keep _______ weird." I have seen them about Austin, Santa Fe, and of course Portland. But how weird can a city be, if you have to keep reminding people! Shouldn't it be evident that a place is weird? Wouldn't everyone be able to see how weird it is?

Several things over the past few months have reminded me just how quirky Portland is....I don't like word 'weird'....has a bad connotation to it.....quirky sounds lighter, and more fun.......so, some quirky observations of late.....

1. While in my car, I had to stop for several children riding their bikes....or rather their UNICYCLES. These kids were around 8 or 9.....all riding unicycles....and riding them quite well! Who rides unicycles these days?

2. Again in my car, I passed a guy waiting at the bus stop. He was full on break dancing all by himself.....no crowd, just popping and locking and getting down! I did notice he had boom box on top of his back pack. Which is good, I mean, you never know when you are going to get a few extra minutes to practice your mad skills!

3. Mo and I love to go to the park.....and with the beautiful weather there are lots of other kids there. Last week, we met a lovely little girl named Pandora. Who names their kid Pandora? We also met a baby named Osama (the mom was quick to point out that it means peace). Gotta love a place when Mo's name seems mundane and run-of-the-mill.

I love Portland.....

2006, 2007, 2008, 2009

The other night, Scout and I went back and looked at the pictures from the day Mo was born. I was crying remembering that day, and how life-changing it was! Seems like that was really just yesterday.......I feel like even though I enjoy each and every day with her, I have no idea where the time has gone......when did she grow up?

A look back.....

2006 - newborn....after 16 hours of labor....our 10 pound girl was born!



2007 - made it through the first year....the party was for us.....Mo had no idea what was going on!


2008 - The terrific two's........first 'kid' party in the park.....the kids ran like crazy people all over the playground!



2009 - First year that she really KNEW what a birthday was, and couldn't wait! She looks like a little girl!

You say its your birthday.......

For the past 2 years, we have celebrated Mo's birthday at our neighborhood park. The kids love it and we love the ease of just taking pizza, juice and cake to the park....and viola....a birthday party! Here is a slide show showing how much fun we had this year.

The scariest thing ever!!!!

In Georgia at all the malls, they have these jumping things. Mo wanted to try them more than anything in the world. We were assured they were completely safe (and they are).....but it still feels SCARY when you are watching your very small child jumping almost to the ceiling of the 2 story mall.

The video shows how fearless our child is........the screams you hear are me, not Mo's.

Georgia Pictures

Here are some pictures from our trip.....

Gerogia on my Mind

The family has returned from a long trip to Georgia. Scout's family is from there, and we took Mo to meet her relatives, some whom she has never seen! It was loads of fun, and there are lots of pictures and videos. I am putting them together so they will be easier to look at. I hope to have that posted by tomorrow.

The trip was good despite the sweltering heat. At one point, I really thought I was going to die. It was close to 100 degrees every day.....getting down to a balmy 88 at night. We ate really wonderful food (Aunt Ree's famous southern breakfast.....yuuummmm), and enjoyed more sweet tea than a person should.

The only thing that was hard was the airplane. We took a red eye, with a lay over in New Jersey. Mo did as well as could be expected, but she didn't sleep......never a good thing. Travel time was about 10 hours each way.....so it was a challenging to keep her entertained the whole time. Luckily, on the way home, there was a little boy Aiden sitting in the seats acros the aisle. We were in the last row of the plane, and had a little playgroup going on.

Mo's highlight of the trip was meeting her cousin Jacob. She LOVED Jacob. She followed him around like a puppy....wanted to do everything he did, and is still talking about him constantly.

It was so wonderful to visit family......as much as we love Oregon....being so far from family is hard. We really cherish the times we do spend together.

3 Wheels

We have been encouraging Mo to ride her tricycle as much as possible lately. She sort of realizes that when she turns 3, she is getting a new bike. A REAL bike.....at least one with 2 wheels. So, we are trying to get her interested in riding more. She is not really a fan right now, but I am hoping when the new bike gets here, it will spark her interest more.....even if she doesn't really like it, she sure looks darn cute while doing it!

Blue Heron

From Wikipedia...

The Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North and Central America.

All I know is we were out on the deck when this large bird came swooping in(there is really no other word for it). It came down into our yard and landed on the roof of our neighbor's shed.




I have seen herons on the river when I would go out paddling, but never in a neighborhood.....wild in the city. LOVE IT!

Our New House

Well, it is slightly official.....I didn't know if I should post about it or not, but things are looking good, so here goes nothing.

We have a new house. We put an offer on it and it was accepted. We have had the inspection, and found just a few minor things....nothing that could cause the deal to fall apart. So at this point, we will close on July 15th, and move at some point after that.

The house is HUGE! 4 bedrooms.......more space than we will know what to do with. A nice couple have lived there for 38 years, raised their children in it......and taken very good care of it. It has good house karma. We want to update it, and make it more to our taste, but it is move-in ready.....nothing has to be done....but it will be hard to wait to make the changes we want.

Here is a video of the house.....excuse the strange opera music......



I will say, this feel like a very "grown-up" house. We are so excited!

Let's spend the night together....

Our friend O came over last night and spent the night. It was a first for both of them....and they did a great job. After we put them to bed, we could hear Mo in there TALKING O's ear off. She talked non-stop for about an hour. O was lovingly patient with our little chatterbox. They slept through the night and had a wonderful time playing this morning......It was a lot of fun.

House Update

We had the inspection on our house yesterday, and apparently it went fine. A few minor things were found (which we expected).....so we just have to get the report and negotiate what to fix.

We have gone out looking at houses once, and are back at it tomorrow afternoon. We didn't find THE house, but we found some good options. That gives us hope that we will find the right house soon. Our goal is to find it before the 17th....we leave on vacation that day, and hope to have this house hunting business wrapped up.

What you talking 'bout, Mo?

Lately, Mo has been making up songs, and having a great time playing around with language. Her new thing right now is using made up words. She thinks it is so funny. Her new favorite word sounds like "sha sha." She uses it when something is really nice.....

Mommy: Look at this pretty shirt....

Mo: Ohhh....shaaaa shaaaa.

or exciting.....

Mema: What to go get ice cream?

Mo: SHAAAA SHAAA

It is so funny to hear her experimenting with words and sounds......cracks me up!!!!

Would you mess with this face?

Today, we were outside playing in the sprinkler....Mo decided she wanted to have a picnic. Carefully, she spread out her towel and put her baby in the perfect spot. Then Percy walked across the towel......and this hilarity ensued!

Mo: Percy Jones, you a bad, bad, bad dog! You are wrecking my picnic. We do NOT do that in this house.

That last part in italics....guess who she has heard that from!?!?!

This is her looking a bit more happy. She looks like a pre-schooler. Our toddler is growing up!

Strange Turn of Events

A little history lesson.....

6 years ago, Scout and I were dating, but taking it slow. I wanted to buy a house.... something close to the school where I was teaching. After looking for a couple of months, I found this house, made an offer and it was accepted. It was Memorial Day weekend.

Flash forward to THIS memorial day weekend.......we got an offer on the house from a young woman.....who is a teacher.....the first offer wasn't what we wanted.....we countered, and she accepted. Now, we are under contract, and at this rate, looks like we will need a new house in the next 2 months.

Apparently, this house can only be sold during Memorial Day weekends. I should let the new owner know that!

MIA

I have not been around lately. We have had some pretty major stuff going on in our family. For those of you didn't know, I was pregnant, but lost the baby right after Easter. It has been a tough go of it the last month. But, I feel like we are coming out of hiding somewhat with the nicer weather that has arrived.

The other big thing is...we put our house on the market. It was our plan all along to do that this spring, and even with everything that happened, we decided to go ahead with it. Here is the listing....the house looks good, even though the pictures don't do it justice. The listing is at

www.rmls.com and type in MLS# 9037699.

I keep waiting for the bidding war to start over the house.....I guess I will wait a little longer!

Here comes Peter Cottontail....

Every girl needs an Easter dress, right.....well, Mo needed 2! We went shopping for dresses, and, of course, Mo wanted one with flowers and I wanted a different one. We had a coupon, and there was a sale, so what the heck...I got both of them. We had a baby shower to go to over Easter weekend, so I figured she would could wear both of them. I should trust Mo's fashion sense, her dress was much better.

Mama's Choice.....



Mo's Choice ......see, much cuter!


Mo wore this at the baby shower, and I couldn't believe what a great job she did at this grown-up party. She was well-behaved....and was very engaging with all the other grown-ups. There was one small baby, but no other kids, and no toys. So, she did an excellent job of being a very nice party guest.

Enjoying cake at the baby shower....

Easter Sunday was just grand! Mo was very excited about the whole holiday in a way she wasn't last year. She had a real understanding that the Easter Bunny was bringing her "things." She was also very interested in the whole hiding eggs business. She loved coloring them, putting them in her basket, and carting them around......




On Easter, we went to Church, and then over to a friend's house to have brunch. It was a relaxing, leisurely time. Good times with good friends.....Luckily, the rain stopped for about a minute, and we were able to hide eggs outside. A very nice (albeit wet) day.

New Pictures

We have been remiss in posting photos of Mo.....in looking at the pictures, I can't believe what a little girl she is turning into....unreal....

We are a Pajama Family....

Something that is developing in our household....is everyday, Mo wants to come home, take off her clothes and put on her 'ja-ja's'. She loves to wear them around the house. I couldn't figure out why she wanted to do this everyday.....

Then I realized, the first thing Scout and I do every day when we get home, is change into lounge-wear/pajama bottoms.......Mo is just following our example.....

So, it is official. If you come to our house....you will see 3 lovely ladies wearing their ja-ja's.

Burning Down the House

It has been beautiful the past 3 days. And, after a long, long, wet, dark winter.....it FEELS good to have the sunshine on our face.....we have spent so much time outside, working in the yard, and just playing.

It is also tradition that when the weather gets nice, Scout breaks out the grill. It is also a tradition that she forgets to clean it before we try to cook on it. This year was no exception. We got some yummy brats to grill, and sure enough....as the grill was heating up....it caught fire. We were able to move the grill away from the house and put it out....but still flames were coming out.

Cut to tonight.....Scout mowed the grass, and the bugs seemed worse than normal....so we lit our tiki torches. Scout thought she would add a "little extra" to the top to help it get started....well, she set the both of the damn torches ON FIRE. We were able to put them out in Mo's sandbox....

I can't tell if Scout has decided rather than put the house on the market to sell, that she is just going to burn the whole house down so we can re-build a bigger house.....

The tribe has spoken......Scout has been voted off the island.

A window into the future

Lately, Mo has been "acting out." She is going through some sort of growth spurt. She is eating us out of house and home, and she is just cranky! Her latest thing is trowing a huge tantrum when she doesn't get what she wants. The tantrum consists of her just standing there and yelling at the top of her lungs.

Our response....."I can see you are upset....you can go and be upset in your room." Brilliant parenting, right?

Mo's response.....storms off to her room and slams the door!

I feel I will be writing this same post when she is 16.

Sorry for the break

Sorry for the break from the blog. I have been sick for 2 weeks, and honestly, it is has been all I could do to go to work and come home. This past week has been Spring Break, so I have been getting some good sleep, and resting up. I am finally starting to feel among the living.

I have some great pictures from today at the park with Mo, I will get them uploaded soon.

Airplay Cafe Fun

This morning we went to a very fun, family event. The Airplay Cafe on East Burnside is a sweet little cafe that totally caters to families. Today they had a little "dance" party.....the music was fun (and not all kid music).....the kids danced around on the stage, while Scout and I enjoyed coffee and bagels. They have concerts, sing-a-longs, and baby karaoke....which sounds like a hoot!!!!

We had been talking about going since yesterday, and Mo was really excited.....she decided she would wear her tutu to the dance show. She became very concerned when she realized that Scout and I would not be wearing tutus.

It was a nice way to start the day this morning.

Happy Birthday Nana!

Mom, we are thinking about your on your birthday, and hope you have a wonderful day!!!!!

Mo has been coughing for a few days, and it is still hanging around. But it didn't damper her enthusiasm....

We went swimming, finally!

Today, we finally got the schedule right and went swimming. Mo LOVED it....she squealed for the first 10 minutes we were in the pool. She did really well. She is tall enough, that she can walk in the shallow end. We ventured to the deeper part with her holding on to me or to a float. There were a few times where her face went under by accident....but she was brave, if not just a bit surprised. By the end, she was dipping her mouth and nose under the water...and feeling very proud of herself.

Swim lessons officially start this summer. It will be so strange the day she doesn't 'need' me to be right there with her in the pool......a strange, sad day.

I write the songs.....

Scout and Mo are always singing silly songs....songs that Mo knows from school, or songs that Mema wants to teach her. Lately, they have been making up lots of silly non-sense songs and Mo LOVES these. The sillier, the better.

Well, a few days ago, she wrote her very first original song.....

"Mommy want to go poop, she don't want to go poop, she want to go poop, she don't want to go poop."

She also composed a song about Mema....

"Mema, don't forget to give me a hug and a kiss."

Both songs will be available on ITUNES shortly.

Baby Suits

So, more about the trip to the Community Center Pool in the next post....

But as we were getting ready to go swmming.....Mo says....."I need my baby-suit." I love how she calls it that......We get her cute little pink striped bathing suit out and put it on her.....then she says to me...

"Mommy, do you have a mommy-suit?"

Don't make me disappoint my kid.....

So, I have really built up this trip to the pool. We have been talking about it all weekend. Planning what we are going to do (float on the kick boards, go down the slide). Mo was so excited....she talked about it before going to bed....it was the first thing she talked about when she woke up this morning. She was so excited to go.

Now, I am pretty responsible....I check on things...get the right dates, times, etc....so being that responsible parent, I went on-line and checked the pool schedule for the community center pool. There it was "Family Swim from 4:15-5:30, Sundays." I checked on-line literally five minutes before we walked out the door.

We drive the community center, find parking, walk in......walk up to the lady at the desk to pay our drop-in fee.....and are told that there is no Family Swim on Sundays.

Excuse me? But, I checked the schedule....

The woman says.....schedule is subject to change....says so right on the top.

By this time, Mo has realized that we are not going to swim today.....she looks devastated....her lower lip is poking out.....

We walk out, and I am doing some fast talking.....telling Mo that sometimes even Mommy's make mistakes, and the pool is closed right now....but that we will go swimming soon...

I feel so guilty, Scout and I take her to the merry-go-round at the mall!!!!

Going to the Show

Last Thursday, my kindergarteners had an evening performance at school. It is program our music teacher has been working on for months. So, it was a BIG deal.

Because home and school are so far away, Mo and I hung out at and around school before the show instead of going home. We went to a friend's house for a playdate, we went to dinner, and then back to school for the show.

I was so proud of her. She did great at dinner - stayed in her seat....used her quiet voice, ate her food.....very nice meal. And at the show, she was very patient letting me do my 'teacher' thing. I was herding kids onto stage...taking care of coats, and last minute nerves.

The pay off for Mo was being at 'Mommy's School." She loves to coming to big school. I think she is sizing it up for when she is old enough. She loved the performance. She danced, clapped, laughed....and was mesmerized by the whole experience.

It was a long night, but one that was really fun.

Be My Valentine

We had a very nice Valentine's day. It was nice because some of it was spent as a family...and some of it was spent with just Scout and I.

Our next door neighbor offered to watch Mo while we went out to breakfast. It was so nice to have a leisurely meal.....quiet....relaxing. We enjoy eating with Mo, but truth be told....we REALLY enjoy going out eat without her!

When we got back, we spent the rest of the day together. Mo loved getting cards, and practically tore them into pieces trying to get them out of the envelopes. She also loved the fact that we all got candy. She sneaked and got into my pecan clusters....which created quite the sugar high. We ended up going to the park to burn off the extra energy!

All in all, a very nice family valentine.

Grandma's Rule

Grandma's Rule

You must do what I want you to do before you can do what you want to do.

Mo has such 'certain' ideas about things, like not wearing clothes (naked or PJs are sooo much better)....or eating at the table (why, when running around is more fun).

So, today, we started a treasure (i.e. bribe) box at our house. We went the dollar store and picked up a bunch of small trinkets....baby animals, rings, spinning tops.....all kinds of party favors. Put them all in a pretty basket.....and introduced the idea that she will get a reward when she shows certain behavior. Right now, she can earn treasure if.....

1. She puts her clothes on the first time we ask.....and that she do as much as she can by herself. This includes shoes and socks.

2. She sits at the table for the entire meal.....even waiting until Mama and Mema are finished.

Lofty goals, but today she earned a treasure for dinner, and was super excited about the whole thing. We will see how tomorrow goes with getting dressed.

At first, I really questioned the whole "reward" thing. There is a part of me that wants Mo to have the self-motivation to want to do these things herself. But then I remind myself, she is 2 years old! She has to learn what motivation is.....and right now, the little Disney princess stamps are enough motivation for her.

Who's your mema?

Children talk about their families......they ask questions....there are things they want to know. Do you have brothers and sisters? What's you mama's name? What's your daddy's name?

We talk to Mo about her family....we talk about her having 2 mommies as a matter of fact. It is just something that is part of our daily life conversation. In books that have the word 'Mommy" in them, we will interchange "Mema" for "Mommy". We do this so Mo can see her family, her life represented in other places besides just in her house.

So the fact of her having 2 moms has come up.....she was asking questions about some of her friend's families......What is S's mommy name? What is S's Daddy's name? What is S's Mema's name?

We told her that her friend didn't have a Mema....Mo was incredulous....she just couldn't get over that a child wouldn't have a Mema......"why?" she wanted to know. We then gave the speech about families have different people in them.....2 moms, 2 dads, one of each, 1 mom, 1 dad, and so on, so on, so on.

When the whole conversation was finished....she seemed content.

Then she says to her self......."No, Mema....." as if this was the strangest concept of all....how could anyone not have a Mema?

......from the mouths of babes......

THE SQUEALING IS OUT-OF-CONTROL

Mo has finally discovered her voice....or rather her squeal. Everyone knows what I am talking about. The girl squeal....the high-pitched, glass breaking, blood curdling squeal. Mo likes to squeal when she goes from one room to the next. She likes to squeal when she is happy, surprised, sad, angry.....any time can be a squeal moment.

How long will this last?

.....until she is a teenager, I am afraid.

Makes a Mama Proud!

Being a kindergarten teacher, I have often dreamed of reading books to my own children.....having them love to read....having that experience of cuddling up with my family and enjoying a book together......

When Mo was little, I was worried because she didn't want to look at pictures in books....she wanted to eat them....I thought, could this be a bad omen? As she got older, she wanted to listen to books more and more....

Now, we have reached this point...

If your friends jumped off a bridge.....

One of my favorite things Mo says are "ja-jas" when she's talking about her PJs. She has always called them her ja-ja's...and it is really stinking cute.

Today on the way home....I said something about her ja-ja's.

Mo: Chloe (a girl at day care) says they are jammies.

Me: Why yes, some people call them that."

Mo: I call them jammies too.

Me: You can still call them ja-ja's. (I don't want to give this up)...

Mo: No, just jammies.....that's what Chloe says.

I know we are a long way off from Mo wearing inappropriate clothing to the mall, or putting on too much make-up to keep up with the "in" crowd. But, I thought Scout and I had some more time to be her main peeps. Nope, at this point, Chloe holds all the cards!!!! Parenting this child has to be the most humbling experience of my life!

Movie Madness

So, I have been playing around with my Flip camera and IMOVIE. It wasn't easy since, for some reason, all this new technology is hard for me to figure out. It really makes me feel old, but I did it. And here is my first movie.....

Mt Hood

Last weekend, we went with another family up to Mt. Hood to play in the snow. Scout and I want to be wintersports people, but we are quickly discovering that we are not. We gave it a solid effort though. We took Mo tubing, which while she enjoyed it, scared the holy SH$T out of me!!! Thank goodness their were other people there to go down the hill with her. She would have been bummed to be stuck with us - watching everyone else go down.

Here is the mountain in all its glory!


Look how happy she is in the snow!!!


Luckily, Mo has plenty of Aunties who LOVE wintersports......hint, hint, Steph, Leah, Whit and Stefanie!!!!!