I really do know how to feed a baby. I do.

However, from the looks of Trae man's face, it doesn't appear to be so.

It was not my fault. I blame Sponge Bob.
Yes, that's right, Sponge Bob as in Square Pants.

yes, this is his normal hair-do

Today while I was stuffing Trae man full of Apple Delight and Beef and Cheese Pasta, Blair wanted to watch Dora.

So, I brought the high chair in to the front room and let Blair eat her lunch at the ottoman. She waited for her show while I fed Trae.

Sponge Bob came on first and every time the baby would take a spoonful, he would quickly turn his head to watch the t.v. I tried to spoon off the food but he would just turn again and further smear his face. As he would turn back to me all laughy from the show, his smile faded quickly and he looked at me with a blank stare, as if wondering what was taking me so long.

He was ready to get back to business.

And then we'd start all over again...

Nine months old and already watching the yellow sponge.

Reese would be so proud...

Valentine Swap

About a month ago I signed up for a "Very Vintage Valentine Swap."
Not to be confused with "Wife Swap" or any other weird swapping...

This is an activity where you sign up with a hostess (mine was at Foxgloves, Fabric and Folly)and are assigned a partner. Based on each other's information, like favorite colors, etc, you get an idea about what kind of items you like. Then, you and your partner swap Valentine's packages. We had a specific deadline to mail out our presents so everyone could receive them around the same time. There is a spending limit as well. I really enjoyed having a month or so to gather little things and send them out to my swap partner, Kimberly.

Well, today Mr. Postman was my favorite guy because he brought me a little something from Kimberly.

Inside the colorful wrap, I found fun presents...

but I have no pictures of the tasty Pretzel Hugs treat because they are all gone...don't expect me to keep any chocolaty salty goodness around very long! I can attest they were good!

It was fun, I made some new friends, and received some cute stuff!

Who knows, I may even participate in the next one!

Losing my mind and mispronunciations

Belen hugging little sis, Blair Noel
I went to the school the other day to pick up Charley for a Dr's appt. which BTW, was not the right day!
Aahg!

I get all of the kids out of school, pack up the little ones and head out to the Dr. only to be told it was the wrong day. I looked at my notes, checked the cell-phone calendar and double checked the paper where I wrote down the day and time of the appt. along with a bunch of doodles. (Terrible habit - I deface any paper that's laying around. Kind of embarrassing when I send out bills and I have doodled all over them. Oh well.)

But anyway, my scribbles say it was the right day, but apparently it wasn't. Man!

So we head back home and the kids are happy they have a half a day off.
I'm sad that I am losing my mind.

Is the memory the first thing to go? See, I can't even remember that!

And now I'm completely off track because this wasn't the main part of my story.

See? Memory loss here.

Anywho, while picking up the kids, I decided I had better get Belen too. She wasn't going to go with us originally. But I didn't think I'd be back in time to pick her up and then get her to practice so I had the office call her out of class. She was in the lunchroom at the time so they made the announcement over the loudspeaker. When an office worker said her name, she pronounced it "Bee-leen." She really held out the syllables, BEEE-LEEN, like if someone had asked you to speak up so you speak louder and enunciate ev*er*y. syl*la*ble. Who would name a kid BeeLeen?? Maybe Apple, Xanadu or even Bronx but BeeLeeen??? No way.

Oh, what did I do to her? (She actually likes her name and prefers her full name, Belen-Therese, but everyone would shorten it when I would say it, so I just followed suit.)

I sat wondering how in the world she got that from Belen (written for her with an accent on the second E) Sounds like "Bell"+"len," = Belen. Sometimes it sounds like Bay-len. My brother, for one, says it this way,which is cool too.

Oh well, the office lady tried and she gave me a chuckle for the day. That counts for something!

When Belen got in the car, she told me when the announcement came over, everyone got quiet. When her name, or whomever name it was, was said, a boy stood up and yelled toward the loudspeaker, "IT'S BELEN! BEL-EN, NOT BEELEEN!" Everybody in the lunchroom laughed, including Belen. It was funny.

She would answer to Marvin O. Gravel Balloon Face if it meant getting out of school early.

They Say It's your Birthday

Charley's birthday was yesterday, January 18. I can't believe my little red-head is 12.

I remember the morning, a Sunday, when I woke at 6 am and told Jon it "was time." I was 2 weeks overdue but I figured she needed extra cookin' so it didn't bother me. I showered and got ready for the hospital as the contractions were getting closer. We stopped off at a friends house on the way and then made the 45 minute drive to DACH, the Army Hospital. I was transitioning in to hard labor when I got there and they didn't think I could have an epidural at that point.

Whaaa?!!?

Me likey the drugs and I admit it!

Then my nurse said that I could get one (bless you, sweet nurse!) and that 15 minutes of rest was awesome!

Charley came quickly and easily - she was ready for the world.

We were ready to have her.

All of her siblings love her, especially Blair. Charley makes us laugh and has an easy-going, creative and considerate personality. I enjoy hearing her practice the guitar, cello and working on her voice! I love this child of mine and my life has been enhanced by her. She adds so much interest to our family. When she was little, people would ask, "Where did you get that hair?!" and she'd shyly reply, "From Jesus."

She likes to make other people happy. It is easy to love her because of her tender heart. She is always for the underdog and thinks of others. She is very helpful to me around the house which I really appreciate.

On a funny note, she is also known for her fashion sense. Her Elementary school principal said to me that they couldn't wait to see what she was wearing every morning because she had a good sense of fashion. It's funny because she tends to shun trends to mix things up on her own with pattern, layers, and necklaces. As Charley would happily bounce in to school, the office staff told me they thought, "that kid is gonna go far in whatever she does."

Because she easily shares her feelings with her dad and me, it gives us joy that she feels comfortable enough to come to us.

We pray it always stays this way.

We love you Charley bear!

A Beauty all its Own

At times I get "homesick" for some of the places we've lived. We started out from the West coast and migrated to the East coast with a few stops in between and we each have lived in foreign countries for a time.

Of course, our beloved home state of Washington (and Oregon) will always be the favorite. I miss so many things about it. The volcanoes that seem to pop up out of no where, the rugged yet romantic coast, the crisp, fresh air with its piquant aroma of Evergreen and those breathtaking waterfalls...

We have great memories of the places we've lived and the friends we made there. Every city and state had its quirks and unique forms of beauty. In the Central California coast, the fragrance of Eucalyptus trees made for an inexpensive house freshener and I enjoyed watching the seals play next to the walking path to Cannery Row. Only in Utah could you ask "what south are you?" when asking for directions and everyone understood. And those protective Wasatch Mountains - no need to say more. In Texas there are "Texas Friendly" driving lanes and neighbors who bring you freshly picked pecans. In the Low country of South Carolina, you can enjoy its native fare - the Low-Country boil and see hauntingly beautiful Spanish Moss dangling from Live Oaks.

And here in PA, I am reminded once again just how wonderful it is to explore this beautiful country and come upon scenes like these.

Just a simple day of running errands makes for simply pleasant surprises...

This year's word

one goal of mine for 2009-
kiss this face more each day!

A new year is here - right on!
I look forward to the new year and all of its possibilities!

Jon and I were talking about the word for ourselves for the year. It has to be something that will sum up our goals for 2009 in one word.
His is 108. But that's a number so his word is one-oh-eight. That's better. It's for his job and he is working hard to meet his career goals. High five me, honey!

I was thinking about my word all day and it will be enhance. This seems to be my mindset as I go into the new year with a continuous stack of home improvement projects to do and business ideas I am always throwing out there.

Using a word for the year may seem too simplistic but this is a better way for me. I just know that when I set goals, I never seem to get to all of them. I guess I'm either a realist or I sell myself short, I don't know. I just haven't been a huge goal setter but Jon reminded me that I'm good at supporting other people's goals. Does that count?

I remember a while back at a church activity, we had to write down 3 goals we had achieved. I didn't write anything down and went on to the next question. Someone asked me about it and I replied that I really don't set any (and I might add I was always okay with.) "Reeaallyy?!?" she said with a gasp and I suddenly felt like Bart Simpson. She thought that was the dumbest thing she had ever heard and then ended up using me as an example in her Sunday School lesson the next day. Something like, "I was speaking to someone once and they said they didn't set goals. I just don't know how any one could live that way." Translation: I was speaking with Laura yesterday and she is such a loser.
Luckily for her, I laughed at myself.

So back to my word.
This year I want to make sure that whatever I do will somehow enhance the lives of my family, my friends, and myself whether it's here at home, work, school or church.
For example, before I bring anything else in to the house I can ask myself if this item is really going to enhance our life or just make it cluttered. Or I can do more for my young women's class at church so their lives will be enhanced by a better prepared, fun, and well thought-out lesson. See, my word is already leading me to setting a goal of getting organized - in a round about way.
The nerve of my word - making me all goal-y and stuff!

So, do you have a word of the year for yourself?
If so, what is it?
Your ideas would help me, I'm sure.
Remember, Bart Simpson, here!

Do share!

Remembering Mom

The call came on a chilly, January morning in 2008 at 8:30 am eastern time. I glanced at the time as Jon handed me the phone, telling me that it was my older brother, Brett. A bit of panic struck me as I noted the time difference. Usually no good calls come at 5:30 am from the West coast. As soon as I heard my brother's voice, I knew what he was calling about and he didn't have to say much more. My mom had died during the night. My mind was numb and I really didn't want to hear much more. I have missed her more than anyone would know.

Today my mother, Carolina, would have been 71. So I thought it appropriate to write a little about her and remember her on this day.

She was a true 50's girl with the cute skirts, saddle shoes, knowing all of the cool dances. She worked at a malt shop and liked to go to concerts. She had a great singing voice, was a straight A student and wanted to be a doctor.

She met my dad, they married and started a family a year later. Soon they had 3 children under 3 years of age. She carted them everywhere with her as she didn't believe in babysitters. Because I came 5 years after my siblings, I had a lot of time alone with my mom. As a teen-ager, I would often fore go a night out with my friends for a night out with her. She was more fun.

There wasn't anything she could not do or make. I always thought she could show Martha a thing or two. She was a collector of many things and took me to antique shops and all sorts ot interesting places meeting interesting people. My life is enriched from all that she taught me culturally. You could call her anytime and ask for the most obscure item, and she'd say "Oh, I've got that!" and then tell you why it's good to never throw anything away, and sure enough, she'd have what you were searching for.

Like many women of her generation, she put her personal dreams on hold to become a wife and mother. In so doing, her dreams became her children, dreams made even sweeter by the blessings of grandchildren. Boy did she love and spoil those grandkids! Why are parents always easier on the grandkids?? We would tease her about that.

She and I spoke the night before she died about a new venture we were starting. She was always encouraging me to use my creative talents. I was at work while we chatted over the phone and I was getting paged over and over. I had to go so we set a time to call the next day. That was the last conversation. I can't remember if I told her I loved her before we hung up and it bothers me to this day. She loved us. She loved the Gospel and was a resilient lady - life threw her some serious curve balls but she was strong and never intimidated.

Even though I know that through Heavenly Father's plan, I will see her again someday, I still miss her now. But because of that plan, I will have the opportunity to finish our conversation,

Thank heaven. Literally.

After we spoke last and I hung up the phone, I turned smiling to a co-worker and said, "That was my mama." I felt proud and happy. I am still happy she is my mom.

If you haven't done so today, call your mom or someone you love and remind them - you love them.

Don't waste time! Go, now - do it.

Happy New Year!

xoxo