Brianna had her first haircut (photos will be posted at a later date). She had been asking for a haircut for two weeks, so I finally took her. At first I was just going to get it trimmed, but then thought about how much food she gets in her hair and how it’s always falling in her face, so we decided on a bob cut with bangs. Instantly she looked two years older. Even after having two kids, I’m amazed at how fast they grow up. It’s just not right!
I got to hang out with some old friends at my best friend’s (Dr. Irene Avila) PhD graduation at ASU. We went down to Phoenix for a long weekend. It was perfect. I had so much fun. The kids were great. Greg and I were so proud of them and the whole weekend was entertaining. It was hot (over 100 every day) but wonderful. We also got to spend time with my Aunt Sue and cousin Kendra and her family. Liam and Brianna had so much fun with all the kids, their toys, and trampoline. I’m so proud of Irene. We graduated from college together back in 1995 or was it 1996, I can’t remember. Anyway, she was focused and there was nothing that was going to stop her from getting her PhD. She is truly amazing and tenacious and I feel honored to count her as a friend.
Greg’s had two business trips in the past month. So for two separate weeks, I’ve been a single parent. The first week he was gone was the worst. The kids just weren’t having a good week and I had no one to tag team with. It was exhausting. This past week (Greg flies home tonight) was so much better. I don’t know if it’s because I was relaxed from our mini-vacation in Phoenix or what, but I liked the kids much better this week and things went much more smoothly – even with Brianna having to stay home one day due to a fever (she’s fine now). Anyway, I feel bad that it takes Greg being gone for a week before I realize how much I depend on him – especially in the mornings when I’m not at my best. And props to all the single parents out there – more power to you!
This long Memorial Day weekend I plan on finishing the garage. We’ve slowly been putting all the stuff in the POD back into the new garage cabinets, but we still have half a POD to go. If I get nothing else done this weekend, I will get the POD emptied, so we don’t have to pay for another month of rental on it. Then I’ll be able to focus on having a party to show off the new, improved Boyd household.
I have so much to do besides just finishing the garage. I need to clean our house - Get our lives organized, since summer is coming and the kids will be on a new schedule – Plan Brianna’s 3rd Birthday party – Plan a BBQ/see the new improvements party – Upload photo’s from Easter to present – Figure out how to carve out time for Greg and I alone – make more time to spend with my friends – Go through all the crap in our bedroom and do some purging. Do you see the theme here – TIME MANAGEMENT. Something I’m not all that good at or I’m perfect at it. It’s really weird. I can set up a schedule and stick to it like nobody’s business for a couple of weeks and then it all goes to hell and I somehow lose the time to do anything. I’m still looking for the balance between all my competing sides (work, friends, family, husband, self). I LOVE being a team leader now, but I really hate that I had to give up my 30 hour work week.
I miss having all the time in the world to have crazy, philosophical discussions about bizarre things or important things or whatever. Just to sit around and talk to your friends about why the world is the way it is and how to make it a better place. It’s like time keeps speeding up and I can’t slow it down no matter what I try to do.
I’m having a little bit of a mid-life crisis because I’ll be turning 40 in October. 40! I feel like I’m still 28 (expect for the drinking thing). My dear friends and family keep reminding me that my 30’s were so full – I got married, bought a house, and had two children. I accomplished a whole heck of a lot in my 30s. Maybe that’s why they sped by so fast. I was so busy living my life that I didn’t stop and notice. Someone recently told me that every night before she goes to bed she writes in her journal all the things for which she is grateful. She said in the beginning it was sometimes hard to come up with something, but now she spends a lot of time writing because there is just so much to be grateful for. I think I need to start doing this. I really do have so much in my life, such a great life, and I just need to take a few minutes everyday to appreciate it more thoroughly – not just be a thought in the back of my mind. I need to be fully aware and cognizant of all the gifts I’ve been given – a patient husband, fun kids, a supportive family, good friends, etc. etc.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Easter Bunny Almost Caught!
Wow, this weekend was fun and there is so much to tell. Was it Virginia Wolf who wrote in a free association style? I can’t remember - high school English class was so long ago. Anyway, that was meant as a warning. Here we go.
After five years, Liam has become an eggcellent Easter egg decorator (yes, I’m just too punny). He’s learned how to gently place the eggs in the dye without splashing and how to wait to take them out, let them sit on a paper towel to dry a little and then place in the egg carton. Brianna on the other hand likes to see how big of a splash she can create when she drops the eggs into the dye. She also likes to crack the eggs by dropping them on the table. I wish I would have gotten pictures of her holding the egg at about eye level and then letting it go. This brought her much joy and I quickly would wipe up the spillage. We colored three dozen eggs. In the past the adults would get to help color eggs too, but this year not so much. My Dad helped Brianna and my Mom helped Liam. I did a few eggs, but I don’t think Greg got to do any. So for Liam’s last egg, we dipped it in every color which is what Greg does with at least one egg every year. Liam loved the espeariment (experiment – not a flavor of gum) and I loved that we were carrying on a family tradition that Greg started years ago before we had kids (Yes, I made everyone color eggs every Easter before we had kids. What can I say? I love egg salad sandwiches.). Oh and I got smart this year and the kids colored eggs in their undies. No stained shirts or pants to have to worry about. Brianna does have a colorful speckled chest though.
We also made cupcakes. I’m currently doing Weight Watchers at work and have been doing very well – consistently losing weight (not much, but every half pound counts). So in order to prepare for Easter and the chocolate fest that can ensue, my friend, Ashley, and I decided we’d get the kids more little toys and less chocolate. I also decided to try something different for my tradition of lemon cupcakes with green colored coconut. I came up with the idea to make lemon angel food cupcakes. I found a recipe on-line and it turns out that it’s only 2 points per cupcake (sorry for the Weight Watchers speak). They actually turned out really good, although I was the only one that ate them. I originally was going to make whipped cream to “ice” them. When I did that, you totally lost the delicate lemon flavor. So I ended up making a glaze of lemon juice and powered sugar and just drizzled a little over the top with a fork. Well, Liam is all about baking and he told me in no uncertain terms that he doesn’t like lemon cupcakes and he “needed” to make some chocolate cupcakes. So we did that and I did pretty well not eating much of the batter. I then used the whipped cream I had made to frost the chocolate cupcakes. Brianna loved this because she thinks whipped cream is ice cream. She kept asking for more ice cream. Oh and they both helped make the cupcakes. Liam put the butter in the bowl. Brianna put the water and eggs in the bowl. Liam turned on the mixer. Liam got to lick the scraper/spatula. Brianna got to lick the beater. Both had chocolate faces. Much fun.
Autumn had recently told me about the hams they have at Costco and so we bought one. Last weekend I cooked it and it was delicious. Since we still had leftovers this weekend, I decided to make scalloped potatoes for Easter Linner (you know that meal around 3pm that replaces lunch and dinner). It turned out great by the way. Autumn’s suggestions/helpful advice are always spot on. Anyway, we also made deviled eggs and egg salad. I found out that my daughter LOVES eggs. She ate her egg she got at school on Friday as soon as we got home. When she colored an egg pink on Saturday, she wouldn’t let it go until I peeled it for her and she promptly ate it. Then on Sunday she ate another egg before we had a chance to turn it into egg salad or devil it.
The plan was to hide the eggs in our backyard once my parents came over and could distract the kids. Well, I had recently gotten out of the shower when I heard the door bell ring. I quickly got dressed and entered the backyard from the sliding glass door in our bedroom. Oh and I had grabbed the eggs out of the fridge and taken them back to our room when I went back for my shower. I thought I was a genius to use this time because the kids would still think I was in the shower. Unfortunately, I don’t think Greg was in on the plan and my mom thought I would come out before hiding eggs. I’m trying to quietly and quickly hide eggs and every time I hear the kids, I try to duck back into the bedroom. In case you don’t know, we have a glass door in the family room that opens to the backyard and it just has a lace curtain over it. I guess Liam saw me at some point and started getting excited because he saw the Easter bunny. This of course caused the other adults to shepherd the kids out to the front of the house. I actually broke into a sweat and had to relax a little and brush my teeth before heading out of the bedroom to let the kids know I was ready. Later that day we all would just look at each other when Liam would start talking excitedly about how he saw the Easter Bunny and what big ears the bunny had, etc. etc. I’m a little self-conscious about my ears now, so next time you see me please don’t bring up their size and/or shape.
This year, we decided to hide the Easter baskets. Evidently this is a Boyd family tradition and the kids loved it. Have I mentioned Liam’s little British saying? He says, “Straight away” a lot. On Sunday morning Liam says as soon as he wakes up, “We need to find our baskets straight away!” It’s the cutest thing. I don’t know where he picked it up.
Brianna is such a mix of girly girl and tomboy. Sunday the weather was so nice that the kids had water play in the back yard. Brianna was hard charging and ended up falling and scraping up both of her knees - one bad enough that a regular Band-Aid wouldn’t cover it. I put a big bandage on it, which Greg promptly made fun of – something to the effect of putting a table cloth on her knee. She also was climbing all over in her dress with no fear. But in true girly fashion, she changed her clothes five times that day. Okay, I put her in two outfits – her Easter dress to look for eggs, then play clothes to play outside in. She picked out another dress, her swim suit, and later that night a different swim suit (which caused us to explain that when the sun is setting we don’t play out in the water).
We also were trying to find a good time to call Greg’s family to wish them a Happy Easter. This is always difficult. We have to take into account the time difference, but more importantly the child temperament scale. You would not believe how hard it is to get both kids awake and in a good enough mood to talk. Normally it’s one or the other and on really bad days they both go into melt down while we’re on the phone. Fortunately, we got both of them awake and they both talked on the phone for a few minutes. Unfortunately, Liam was starting to get tired which causes him to go into “crazy” conversations. He’ll tell you that you’re a food of some sort and how he’s going to eat you and then your eyeballs are fire or garbage or some other lovely thing.
This post is getting way too long and I still have to download pictures. I guess I’ll stop there then. I hope everyone had as much fun over Easter weekend as we did!
After five years, Liam has become an eggcellent Easter egg decorator (yes, I’m just too punny). He’s learned how to gently place the eggs in the dye without splashing and how to wait to take them out, let them sit on a paper towel to dry a little and then place in the egg carton. Brianna on the other hand likes to see how big of a splash she can create when she drops the eggs into the dye. She also likes to crack the eggs by dropping them on the table. I wish I would have gotten pictures of her holding the egg at about eye level and then letting it go. This brought her much joy and I quickly would wipe up the spillage. We colored three dozen eggs. In the past the adults would get to help color eggs too, but this year not so much. My Dad helped Brianna and my Mom helped Liam. I did a few eggs, but I don’t think Greg got to do any. So for Liam’s last egg, we dipped it in every color which is what Greg does with at least one egg every year. Liam loved the espeariment (experiment – not a flavor of gum) and I loved that we were carrying on a family tradition that Greg started years ago before we had kids (Yes, I made everyone color eggs every Easter before we had kids. What can I say? I love egg salad sandwiches.). Oh and I got smart this year and the kids colored eggs in their undies. No stained shirts or pants to have to worry about. Brianna does have a colorful speckled chest though.
We also made cupcakes. I’m currently doing Weight Watchers at work and have been doing very well – consistently losing weight (not much, but every half pound counts). So in order to prepare for Easter and the chocolate fest that can ensue, my friend, Ashley, and I decided we’d get the kids more little toys and less chocolate. I also decided to try something different for my tradition of lemon cupcakes with green colored coconut. I came up with the idea to make lemon angel food cupcakes. I found a recipe on-line and it turns out that it’s only 2 points per cupcake (sorry for the Weight Watchers speak). They actually turned out really good, although I was the only one that ate them. I originally was going to make whipped cream to “ice” them. When I did that, you totally lost the delicate lemon flavor. So I ended up making a glaze of lemon juice and powered sugar and just drizzled a little over the top with a fork. Well, Liam is all about baking and he told me in no uncertain terms that he doesn’t like lemon cupcakes and he “needed” to make some chocolate cupcakes. So we did that and I did pretty well not eating much of the batter. I then used the whipped cream I had made to frost the chocolate cupcakes. Brianna loved this because she thinks whipped cream is ice cream. She kept asking for more ice cream. Oh and they both helped make the cupcakes. Liam put the butter in the bowl. Brianna put the water and eggs in the bowl. Liam turned on the mixer. Liam got to lick the scraper/spatula. Brianna got to lick the beater. Both had chocolate faces. Much fun.
Autumn had recently told me about the hams they have at Costco and so we bought one. Last weekend I cooked it and it was delicious. Since we still had leftovers this weekend, I decided to make scalloped potatoes for Easter Linner (you know that meal around 3pm that replaces lunch and dinner). It turned out great by the way. Autumn’s suggestions/helpful advice are always spot on. Anyway, we also made deviled eggs and egg salad. I found out that my daughter LOVES eggs. She ate her egg she got at school on Friday as soon as we got home. When she colored an egg pink on Saturday, she wouldn’t let it go until I peeled it for her and she promptly ate it. Then on Sunday she ate another egg before we had a chance to turn it into egg salad or devil it.
The plan was to hide the eggs in our backyard once my parents came over and could distract the kids. Well, I had recently gotten out of the shower when I heard the door bell ring. I quickly got dressed and entered the backyard from the sliding glass door in our bedroom. Oh and I had grabbed the eggs out of the fridge and taken them back to our room when I went back for my shower. I thought I was a genius to use this time because the kids would still think I was in the shower. Unfortunately, I don’t think Greg was in on the plan and my mom thought I would come out before hiding eggs. I’m trying to quietly and quickly hide eggs and every time I hear the kids, I try to duck back into the bedroom. In case you don’t know, we have a glass door in the family room that opens to the backyard and it just has a lace curtain over it. I guess Liam saw me at some point and started getting excited because he saw the Easter bunny. This of course caused the other adults to shepherd the kids out to the front of the house. I actually broke into a sweat and had to relax a little and brush my teeth before heading out of the bedroom to let the kids know I was ready. Later that day we all would just look at each other when Liam would start talking excitedly about how he saw the Easter Bunny and what big ears the bunny had, etc. etc. I’m a little self-conscious about my ears now, so next time you see me please don’t bring up their size and/or shape.
This year, we decided to hide the Easter baskets. Evidently this is a Boyd family tradition and the kids loved it. Have I mentioned Liam’s little British saying? He says, “Straight away” a lot. On Sunday morning Liam says as soon as he wakes up, “We need to find our baskets straight away!” It’s the cutest thing. I don’t know where he picked it up.
Brianna is such a mix of girly girl and tomboy. Sunday the weather was so nice that the kids had water play in the back yard. Brianna was hard charging and ended up falling and scraping up both of her knees - one bad enough that a regular Band-Aid wouldn’t cover it. I put a big bandage on it, which Greg promptly made fun of – something to the effect of putting a table cloth on her knee. She also was climbing all over in her dress with no fear. But in true girly fashion, she changed her clothes five times that day. Okay, I put her in two outfits – her Easter dress to look for eggs, then play clothes to play outside in. She picked out another dress, her swim suit, and later that night a different swim suit (which caused us to explain that when the sun is setting we don’t play out in the water).
We also were trying to find a good time to call Greg’s family to wish them a Happy Easter. This is always difficult. We have to take into account the time difference, but more importantly the child temperament scale. You would not believe how hard it is to get both kids awake and in a good enough mood to talk. Normally it’s one or the other and on really bad days they both go into melt down while we’re on the phone. Fortunately, we got both of them awake and they both talked on the phone for a few minutes. Unfortunately, Liam was starting to get tired which causes him to go into “crazy” conversations. He’ll tell you that you’re a food of some sort and how he’s going to eat you and then your eyeballs are fire or garbage or some other lovely thing.
This post is getting way too long and I still have to download pictures. I guess I’ll stop there then. I hope everyone had as much fun over Easter weekend as we did!
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Big Girl Brianna
Brianna seems to have turned into a big girl overnight. Her hair is long enough to put into pigtails without falling out even when dancing (see photos). It seems like yesterday I didn't think she'd ever grow hair. She also finally got over her fear of climbing out of the crib, so we had to convert it into a toddler bed. She's very proud of herself for having a big girl bed, but of course now she has mobility at night. She doesn't stray far from the bedrooms though. She does, however, like to wake us up in the middle of the night banging on our bedroom door (which is now locked at night). Sometimes she'll go into Liam's room and pull his hair or scratch him until he wakes up. She hasn't gotten the idea that you sleep for 8 hours straight without play breaks. Anyway, enjoy the photos.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Liam’s Grand Adventure and Time with Brianna
So my parents decided to take Liam on a road trip for the second week of his spring break. It’s been five days now. They left on Saturday and will be back this coming Saturday or Sunday. They call every night to tell us what the adventure was that day. Sometimes Liam talks and talks and other times he just says Hi.
Before he left Greg and I had mixed feelings; excited for him, sad because we’d miss him, excited to have one on one time with Brianna, sad because we couldn’t be on vacation too, etc. So far it’s turning out well for all of us.
My dad sounds like he’s holding up very well. He had his last radiation treatment the Monday before they left. Liam has only had a few minor fits mostly due to being tired (as usual). The highlights, both from my mom and Liam, in no particular order:
Eating at a McDonalds that was in an old train car
Getting binoculars at Hoover Dam
Going from wearing shorts in the morning to climbing to an elevation where it was snowing Taking an old time train ride to a ‘cowboy town’ where robbers ran through the train and the Sheriff had to chase them. Evidently Liam talked up the Sheriff quite a bit afterwards.
Liam’s been getting a lot of treasure for his treasure chest. You know those bins of rocks/stones – he’s basically getting something every time they are in a place with one of those.
Finally getting to Sedona, Arizona (the destination) and not wanting to take a Jeep tour around because all the tour Jeeps were pink and Liam was not about to get in a pink Jeep. I guess Brianna’s future Barbie car is safe from him.
Today they are meeting up with Lanny, my maternal uncle, and going to the wild animal park. I can’t wait to get the call tonight and find out how that went.
While the three of them have been having fun on their road trip, Greg, Brianna, and I have been having fun too. We almost forgot how much easier it is to just have one child. Saturday, I had a hair appointment, so Greg took Brianna to Dennis the Menace Park. Then they went to Black Bear Diner for lunch. I actually got home before them and when they did get home Brianna went right down for her nap. The next day, Brianna and I had our day. First we went to Target to pick up a few things, then we went to lunch at California Pizza Kitchen. We finished our day out at My Museum, a kids interactive museum. She fell asleep on the way home, but when I put her in her crib to continue her nap, she must have woken up and climbed out of her crib and came out to get us. The climbing out of the crib happened again when we put her down that night. She finally has hit that point – she is no longer afraid of climbing out of the crib, so we’re going to have to turn it into a toddler bed this weekend. My baby will be officially gone – well maybe not entirely because she’s still not fully potty trained yet.
Oh and we had the most fun play date after work yesterday. Amanda and I picked up Des and Brianna from day care and went to this nice, new playground just a few blocks away. There is a big kid area and an under 5 yr old kid area. Brianna had absolutely no fear going up this arched ladder thing to the top of the big kid structure. At the highest point, with my hands up as high as they would go, I would only touch the bottom of her shoes. Once up at the top, she took the biggest corkscrew slide all the way back down and did it again and again and again. Des only went down that slide twice - the first time with fear on her face until it was over and then a big grin, the second time she flipped a little half way down and finished sidewise, kind of head down. I think it scared Amanda more than Des. Anyway, after playing for about an hour (it was windy and a little cold) we all headed over to Del Monte Shopping Center and had dinner at PF Chang’s. Brianna had three bowls of egg drop soup and three helpings of brown rice. I was completely shocked she ate so much because for the last few days she hasn’t been all that hungry. I don’t know if she’s getting ready to grow again or if she was just keeping up with Des. Des is a very good, adventurous eater. Brianna and I got home around 7:50, 20 minutes past her bedtime. She was so tired that after stories she wanted to lay right down and didn’t get out of her crib (as she had the previous three nights).
So Greg and I are really enjoying our time with Brianna. She’s really enjoying the undivided attention she’s getting from us. It’s made me realize that I’m going to have to work harder at giving her more attention when Liam comes home. I feel so sorry for all the second and third and beyond children out there. You really do get screwed on the parental attention scale.
Oh and one more thing, Brianna asks me every day on the way home, “Where Liam, Mommy?” She misses him and they have talked on the phone with each other a few times, which is just so cute.
Just a few more days left until we’re a family of four again.
Before he left Greg and I had mixed feelings; excited for him, sad because we’d miss him, excited to have one on one time with Brianna, sad because we couldn’t be on vacation too, etc. So far it’s turning out well for all of us.
My dad sounds like he’s holding up very well. He had his last radiation treatment the Monday before they left. Liam has only had a few minor fits mostly due to being tired (as usual). The highlights, both from my mom and Liam, in no particular order:
Eating at a McDonalds that was in an old train car
Getting binoculars at Hoover Dam
Going from wearing shorts in the morning to climbing to an elevation where it was snowing Taking an old time train ride to a ‘cowboy town’ where robbers ran through the train and the Sheriff had to chase them. Evidently Liam talked up the Sheriff quite a bit afterwards.
Liam’s been getting a lot of treasure for his treasure chest. You know those bins of rocks/stones – he’s basically getting something every time they are in a place with one of those.
Finally getting to Sedona, Arizona (the destination) and not wanting to take a Jeep tour around because all the tour Jeeps were pink and Liam was not about to get in a pink Jeep. I guess Brianna’s future Barbie car is safe from him.
Today they are meeting up with Lanny, my maternal uncle, and going to the wild animal park. I can’t wait to get the call tonight and find out how that went.
While the three of them have been having fun on their road trip, Greg, Brianna, and I have been having fun too. We almost forgot how much easier it is to just have one child. Saturday, I had a hair appointment, so Greg took Brianna to Dennis the Menace Park. Then they went to Black Bear Diner for lunch. I actually got home before them and when they did get home Brianna went right down for her nap. The next day, Brianna and I had our day. First we went to Target to pick up a few things, then we went to lunch at California Pizza Kitchen. We finished our day out at My Museum, a kids interactive museum. She fell asleep on the way home, but when I put her in her crib to continue her nap, she must have woken up and climbed out of her crib and came out to get us. The climbing out of the crib happened again when we put her down that night. She finally has hit that point – she is no longer afraid of climbing out of the crib, so we’re going to have to turn it into a toddler bed this weekend. My baby will be officially gone – well maybe not entirely because she’s still not fully potty trained yet.
Oh and we had the most fun play date after work yesterday. Amanda and I picked up Des and Brianna from day care and went to this nice, new playground just a few blocks away. There is a big kid area and an under 5 yr old kid area. Brianna had absolutely no fear going up this arched ladder thing to the top of the big kid structure. At the highest point, with my hands up as high as they would go, I would only touch the bottom of her shoes. Once up at the top, she took the biggest corkscrew slide all the way back down and did it again and again and again. Des only went down that slide twice - the first time with fear on her face until it was over and then a big grin, the second time she flipped a little half way down and finished sidewise, kind of head down. I think it scared Amanda more than Des. Anyway, after playing for about an hour (it was windy and a little cold) we all headed over to Del Monte Shopping Center and had dinner at PF Chang’s. Brianna had three bowls of egg drop soup and three helpings of brown rice. I was completely shocked she ate so much because for the last few days she hasn’t been all that hungry. I don’t know if she’s getting ready to grow again or if she was just keeping up with Des. Des is a very good, adventurous eater. Brianna and I got home around 7:50, 20 minutes past her bedtime. She was so tired that after stories she wanted to lay right down and didn’t get out of her crib (as she had the previous three nights).
So Greg and I are really enjoying our time with Brianna. She’s really enjoying the undivided attention she’s getting from us. It’s made me realize that I’m going to have to work harder at giving her more attention when Liam comes home. I feel so sorry for all the second and third and beyond children out there. You really do get screwed on the parental attention scale.
Oh and one more thing, Brianna asks me every day on the way home, “Where Liam, Mommy?” She misses him and they have talked on the phone with each other a few times, which is just so cute.
Just a few more days left until we’re a family of four again.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Blogging in General
So as you can tell from my last post below, I wrote it in word and then cut and pasted it into the blog box. So there is some crazy carriage returns. Sorry I didn't check it before I posted it. I'm still having a heck of a time with getting the pictures where I want them and in the order I want them. Like below the first photo should really be the last one.
I've also noticed I say "So" a lot in my posts. What's up with that? I actually use to be a good writer. I'm just way out of practice I guess. Maybe if I blogged more, it would take care of it's self. But I'm sitting here almost falling asleep and I still want to upload my Jan & Feb pictures to Snapfish. But I think that's going to have to wait until another day. Not that there are that many pictures - Brianna being silly, the kids on the carousel at the mall on a rainy day, and the Sharks game.
Here are the pictures I promised of Greg's ankle. I didn't get any good ones of his stiches. But you get to see his book and the two small scars he now has on his ankle. His physical therapy is going great and he can now walk around the house without the boot, but still has to wear it anytime he's away from home.
I've also noticed I say "So" a lot in my posts. What's up with that? I actually use to be a good writer. I'm just way out of practice I guess. Maybe if I blogged more, it would take care of it's self. But I'm sitting here almost falling asleep and I still want to upload my Jan & Feb pictures to Snapfish. But I think that's going to have to wait until another day. Not that there are that many pictures - Brianna being silly, the kids on the carousel at the mall on a rainy day, and the Sharks game.
Here are the pictures I promised of Greg's ankle. I didn't get any good ones of his stiches. But you get to see his book and the two small scars he now has on his ankle. His physical therapy is going great and he can now walk around the house without the boot, but still has to wear it anytime he's away from home.
OK, I'm going to sleep now. Talk at you later.
Liam's First Sharks Game
I finally did it. After years of debating when the right time would be,
I took Liam to a hockey game. I had gotten Greg three tickets to the
Sharks vs. the Thrashers for his birthday. I know, I know. It was as
much a gift for me as for him. But he's really hard to buy for and
likes events more than stuff.
Anyway, the game started at 1:00, so I wanted to be there no later than
12:30. We got up and got ready - All three of us in our Sharks jerseys
(Greg and Liam had gotten new jerseys for Christmas). We dropped
Brianna off with Grandma and Poppi and then headed to the game. It's an
hours drive and Liam did the typical are we there yet, when are we going
to be there, why is this taking so long. I decided to spend more and
park near the arena just in case Liam fell asleep and we'd have to carry
him. Greg is still in a 'boot' from his ankle surgery and while he can
get around, I didn't want him to have to carry Liam a long distance in a
crush of humanity. Turns out Liam was wide awake and didn't fall asleep
until we were half way to Marina.
We get inside, do a potty run, and find our seats. Liam is still
pinging with excitement. I actually felt sick to my stomach on the ride
up because I was so excited for him. Would he like the game? Would he
get bored one period in? Would I be able to enjoy the game?
He LOVED it. He's head was on a constant swivel taking everything in.
He couldn't wait to get the cotton candy we promised him. He loved the
lights. He was mesmerized by the shark head coming down onto the ice
(they keep it covered in a huge black cloth until right before the
players skate through it onto the ice). He just kept saying, "Look at
that. What's that?"
And then SJ Sharkie (the mascot, in case you couldn't figure it out)
came rappelling down from the rafters and Liam was hooked. He was
hooked before the game even started. It was one of those moments where
you're just so proud and your heart is screaming, "Yeah, that's my son!"
He loved when the players skated through the shark head with the glowing
red eyes. "See that? See that?"
So the game started. Liam enjoyed clapping along to the music and the
folks around us enjoyed him. No goals were scored during the first and
second periods, but there was a good fight. Which after I cheered it on
and felt kind of bad about it, I explained to Liam that fighting is only
ok in hockey and boxing. Greg just gave me one of his looks, like "Yeah
right, he's going to buy that after you just cheered on the guys
pummeling each other."
I can't remember what period it was but the cotton candy man was walking
up the stairs near us (we were in the middle of a row, down in the lower
bowl - section 109 for those of you in the know). Liam saw him and we
explained that he needed to raise his hand to get the guys attention.
He totally reminded me of that character from Welcome Back Kotter. He
was practically jumping out of his seat. The folks around us smiled. I
smiled. The cotton candy guy threw the bag at Liam. Greg passed his
money down the line. Liam was happy. We all were happy. The Sharks
hadn't scored yet.
We also had to keep telling Liam that he could be as loud as he wanted.
I had to keep screaming during the make some noise parts of the game
just to show him that it was okay to be loud inside. The Sharks went on
a power play. We showed Liam how to chomp. He did small little chomps
(not the big chomps he does at home), but I believe the first power play
he was still eating cotton candy. The Sharks scored the first goal. We
jumped up and cheered. Liam was looking up at us. We got him up out of
his seat. He couldn't see over all the adults around him. I offered to
pick him up. Greg offered to pick him up. He was happy to sit there
and watch all these adults acting crazy.
About half way through the third period I saw where the camera man was
and I started to get Liam to dance in his seat during stoppages in play
whenever the camera man was pointed our way. Then two rows in front of
us a man put his small child (1 yr?) standing on his lap and dancing
around. The camera man caught it. I looked up at the jumbotron. There
was Liam over the right shoulder of the kid dancing away and not knowing
why Mommy and Daddy were so excited. By the time we got him to look at
the jumbotron the image was gone and replaced by the players in the face
off circle. I was super excited. Greg made some crazy comment about me
painting our faces for the next game.
After the game was over, we headed down to the Sharks store. There was
a huge line. Liam waited patiently. He just had to get something for
himself and his sister (he's so thoughtful). He got her a little plush
SJ Sharkie. He got himself a small goalie stick and a rubber bracelet
(a boy's bracelet). He hasn't taken off the bracelet as of 6:30 this
morning. I remained strong and didn't buy anything for myself.
The Sharks won the game easily, but more importantly they won over
another fan. I can't wait for our next game in March. And maybe next
year we'll introduce Brianna to the Shark Tank.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Valentine's Day
So Greg and I sat down a few weeks ago and planned out our year, sort of. We decided that this was the year we'll turn the garage into a playroom/exercise room. The first step of this project was to empty the garage and take everything we didn't want/need to Goodwill. It took three or four trips with Greg's truck full to get rid of the stuff we realized we just weren't going to use anymore. Then everything we wanted to keep got put into a POD. If you don't know PODs, it's a 12 ft. storage container that they drop off in your driveway. You can either keep it or have them haul it to a storage facility. We're keeping it in the driveway, which means we can only fit one car in the driveway right now - not that you really care about that part.
Then the next step is to have cabinets installed to hold all the stuff we're keeping. I thought ahead and actually measured everything that wasn't of a standard size to fit on a regular shelf. We're going to put rubberized (and green - meaning recycled) flooring in the garage - like what they have on the floor of the Biggest Loser gym (Is it bad that I love to watch that show with a big glass of milk and M&Ms?).
For those of you in the Mid-West, most Californians don't use their garages for cars - at least not in this part of the state. We don't really get weather and we don't have basements, so the garage turns into the storage center of the house.
I'm very excited about having a cabinet to store all our purchases from Costco.
So all this info is just background for the point of this story. I was reading Cousin Ginny's post on Valentine's Day and it made me happy. I too have never been a fan of this holiday. So when I set up the POD delivery for a holiday weekend to give us enough time to get the garage cleaned out, I had no idea it was Valentine's Day. So Greg and I had the most romantic time going through all our junk and then being sore and achy that night, not to mention covered in dirt and cobwebs. I did, however, get to take a really nice bath which is a rare treat (of course my back was spasming, so I didn't really have a choice).
I hope you all had a productive Valentine's Day.
Then the next step is to have cabinets installed to hold all the stuff we're keeping. I thought ahead and actually measured everything that wasn't of a standard size to fit on a regular shelf. We're going to put rubberized (and green - meaning recycled) flooring in the garage - like what they have on the floor of the Biggest Loser gym (Is it bad that I love to watch that show with a big glass of milk and M&Ms?).
For those of you in the Mid-West, most Californians don't use their garages for cars - at least not in this part of the state. We don't really get weather and we don't have basements, so the garage turns into the storage center of the house.
I'm very excited about having a cabinet to store all our purchases from Costco.
So all this info is just background for the point of this story. I was reading Cousin Ginny's post on Valentine's Day and it made me happy. I too have never been a fan of this holiday. So when I set up the POD delivery for a holiday weekend to give us enough time to get the garage cleaned out, I had no idea it was Valentine's Day. So Greg and I had the most romantic time going through all our junk and then being sore and achy that night, not to mention covered in dirt and cobwebs. I did, however, get to take a really nice bath which is a rare treat (of course my back was spasming, so I didn't really have a choice).
I hope you all had a productive Valentine's Day.
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