The Note That Became A Tome

(tap, tap, tap)
I can't see out there, so I'm not too sure how many people still come to visit. I'm thinking Megan, Kelly, Tink, NZ-Jen when she's not busy lassoing the stork, Claudia hoping for pictures of grandbabies, and a few others when time allows, right?

Well, I have to apologize first. It's been a whole heckuva long time since I put any time and energy into this space. I've been trying to blog from my iPhone for a few weeks, and have been entirely unsuccessful. I know blogger has changed some settings for mobile blogging, and so I'm thinking that might be the cause, and I HOPE I can get that sorted because the time I spend in front of an actual computer is minimal at best. Mobile blogging really makes it easier for me to keep in touch, and when that's down, so is my communication. Sorry!

I can't upload any pictures right now, but when I can, man alive, you better be ready! It's been a busy month for us! We've been on dog sleds, on snow machines, to a 100 year old birthday party, had a million hugs from wonderful family and friends, had a wonderful and blessed Christmas season. We've baked, we've sewed (sewn?) (stitched?) (been sewing?), settled in a bit more, we've painted, we've celebrated...on and on the list goes.

Oh, wait. Here, try this. I copied these from Facebook.

There you go. Here's a picture of a real life musher (a.k.a. dog-sledder person)  Dave's aunt and uncle live in Alaska, and have a team of sled dogs, and his uncle ran the Iditarod. They are in Michigan for the winter (a balmy one, if you ask them!), and brought the dogs along. We spent the day with them earlier this week, and had the chance to go for a ride. Of COURSE I jumped at the offer. :o)  Mookie and I sat while Chris drove. What a fantabulous experience!

Here is a slew of other pictures from that day...

(Mookie was howling because the dogs were HOW-HOW-HOWLING with excitement and anticipation. They sure love their job!)

 Just being cute. It's easy for her. :o)

The dogs really do love to go for runs through the woods. They usually go for a 5-6 mile run a day, but they are not tired anymore, so a longer trail is being carved for them. :o)

Another action shot of us mushin' along.

Here's Dave coming in after his ride. He was pretty quick, and we didn't get very many good pictures. Sorry! You can see the dogs' area, though. And stop right there if you think these dogs must get cold at night. They're used to living in Alaska! This is toasty for them! :o)

Mookie and I were just foolin' around, waiting for Dave to return from his ride.

My beautiful, sweet, pensive daughter.

My beautiful, sweet, mischievous daughter. 

Doesn't that picture just warm your heart? She would much rather chew on the spoon itself than possibly ingest anything that might have once been ON said spoon. Silly girl.

I just look at this and laugh. We tried and tried and tried to get a picture where all of us were looking at the camera at the same time. Well, we got it! Nevermind the fact that the four of us were apparently reacting to four different scenes in a movie! Why can't we all be smiling?!?!? Into the camera?!?!?  At the same time?!?! (sigh)

And, finally, the reason we are gathered here today. The beginning of it all. 100 years ago, a sweet little baby girl was born, and we celebrated her birthday in style!

Here she is with her two youngest grandchildren (no great-grandchildren! Can you believe it? 100 years and no greats!)

The beginning and the end. Bookends on the story of life.

And that, my friends, is the end of this post. Good night. Hopefully I'll be back again, soon. Until then, have a happy New Year!

I Elfed Us

In honor of my 500th blog post, I decided to Elf us.

Did you do it this year, too?

Cracks.
Me.
Up.

What's your favorite part? 

Mine are at 22, 30, and 37 seconds. Ahahahahahaha!!!

That Must Be...

...a very scary book she's reading. (~Grandpa Bill)

...some crazy experiment the military is doing out there in Colorado.
(~Sister Sarah)

...what happens when you put her hair in pigtails (~Cousin Don)

What say you? :-)

Cheerderella

We discovered a bag of hand-me-down costumes this morning and Mookie saw the Cinderella costume and decided that she HAD to wear it.

Over her jammies.

Then we discovered the pom poms. And we had to "cewebwate." :-) We celebrated how awesome Mookie is. :-)

Whoopsie!

Tonight when Mookie was getting into the chair before dinner, she
slipped. Just a little, but when I asked what happened, she said, "I
dropped myself!"

She is...

Helpful.

Helping me wipe down walls. So cheerfully, too. :-)

(yes, rats do live in her hair at night)

Nibble Nibble

Old Navy, I heart you. You make what I want for cheaper than I can make it myself.

And it looks adorable on my child.

Thank you.

Introducing, Mookie Cupcake...

(Some people thought she was an ice cream cone.) 

(They were wrong!)

Do you know any ice cream cones with attitude? :o)

Sprout went as a Mummy. I didn't get any pictures of her, though. (Mummy because she was all wrapped up in my white Moby.)  :o) 

Must Read: I'm Sharing A Secret...and couldn't come up with a better title.

I have a an important secret to share with you here today.

Are you sitting down?

I've been meaning to do it for a while, now, but couldn't muster up the courage.

I have twins. Twin daughters. They are a marvel of science, and just to be clear, they are fraternal twins.

Here are their Halloween pictures:

Fraternal "twins" who just happen to have been concieved and born two years apart.

They are a marvel of science, my copy-cat babies.

(P.S. You know I'm kidding, right? I had you going, though, didn't I?)

Hello, June

The apron came from Aunt Carolyn, the necklace was my mother's, and the combination? All Mookie.

She cracks me up.

Now That's Professional!

Flock of Seagulls paid good money for hair like this.

Moms worldwide would pay good money for the nap that created this hair. :-)

And man alive, we needed a good nap!

Welcome To Our 'Ool

So, um, issssHOTTTTTTTT up in soCal.

I know some of you are enjoying autumn, enjoying the crisp change in weather, enjoying the cooler nights. Not I. Oh, not I.

Back in July and August when it was hot everywhere but here, my neighbors were complaining about the cold. I was not. Not only was I not uncomfortable, but I knew our inferno was coming. And oh, has it ever. In spades and buckets and dumptrucks.

Right now, at 3:18 pm, it is approximately 104 degrees Fahrenheit outside. And there is NO breeze. None.  And inside? It's 89. (edited to add that it got up to 95 in Mookie's bedroom later on in the afternoon).

We don't have central air conditioning in our house, nor do we have a window unit. Most of the time, we don't need it! But when the winds shift, and Mother Nature decides to have mercy on the rest of the nation at our expense, we get our comeuppance. And we are instantly shellacked with sweat. It's like living inside an oven.

This afternoon I thought of putting Mookie in a cooler bath just to help her cool down, but then I thought "Why should she have all the fun?" So I inflated our little pool, and filled it up. With nice, cold hose water. In the garage. A bit unorthadox in the inflatable pool realm, but the garage was much cooler than outside! And much shadier.

And it was goooooood.  I invited Kelly and her girls down, and I think it's safe to say that we were all cooler when it was over. Mookie dumping buckets full of cold water on our legs might have had something to do with that, but it sure was a welcome shocker! :o)

Tomorrow the high is only supposed to be 87...but I'm keeping our "indoor pool" up just in case we need an afternoon cool-off.

Go To Da Joe Sto'

"Mommy, I go shopping at da Joe sto' by my felf."

(Lemon Meringue along for the ride)

 I was too busy steering her away from toppling the displays to take a

picture inside, but she did well, and the cart only tipped over one time. :o)

(at Trader Joe's)

It Ain't What It Used To Be



We went to the county fair. Sprout conked out. Look how pretty my fingernails are! I guess I need a haircut, though, huh? Looks like I've got a tree growing out of my head!

No, in all seriousness, folks. It wasn't the county fair of my youth. Of course, I didn't grow up in Los Angeles county, either, but there just weren't enough goats and pigs and cows and smelly farm animals. Like, for real. At the fair, you're supposed to be able to smell the animals, NOT the food vendors!!  It was just too commercialized. There were 2 gigantic shopping plaza buildings, in addition to all the vendors in their tents!  I didn't see a single quilt or jar of pickles or half-eaten apple pie with a blue ribbon on it anywhere. I'm sure they were there... somewhere...but they were obscured by all the overt attempts to take our money in exchange for a good memory. It was absolutely a wonderful experience to have had, but it's not something I would have season tickets for.

With that said, though, Mookie rode a pony, and she did REALLY well (until the very end). And I hope you'll forgive for showing you all of these, but I think they're funny, in a sick-mama kind of way...

CHEESE

Okay, I'm over it.

Mommy come get me?

I must be seeing things. I'm still on this dang pony!

Wait a second. Who are YOU??

Mama? Mama come get me?

Maaaammmaaa. Why you stay over there?

And she petted some goats.

(she looks thrilled, no?)

And she threw up on herself before the pink elephant ride got started, so I don't have a picture of that. :o)

And she sobbed and sobbed all through the carosel ride.

(clearly traumatized by her earlier pony ride)

(So Dave found a little teacup to ride in. She wasn't having any of that.)

I'm thinking she'll have great memories of this day!! :o) I'm sure she'll forget the fact that she didn't nap and we left the fairgrounds approximately 3 hours after  her normal bed time.  Can you say overtired?!  Poor kid.

In other news, I got to try a Pink's chili cheese dog without the horribly long line at their LA restaurant. It's nothing to write home about. Grandma makes better chili, and they put (I cringe at typing this) processed "cheese" on it. Glad I had one. One is enough.

And in ENTIRELY other news, the doggie went home on Friday evening. His owner found a sign and called, and I knew as I was driving down his street that we were near his home because he got all whiney and animated. :o) The owner was very happy, and promised to get tags and a microchip this weekend. Maybe tomorrow I'll tell you how I knew it was his rightful owner... :o)

A Whole Lotta Lovin'

Any locals need a little extra love in your life?

I found this little guy running down a rather busy street the other day, and have been trying with all my might to reunite him with his humans! It seems, though, that either his humans don't want to be found, or he's a true-blue stray.

But folks, let me just tell you this. He's a LOVAH!  He is extremely friendly (unless you're a cat), is afraid of trash cans (aren't we all?) and won't eat or chew on a rawhide unless I'm right there with him. Goofy guy. I don't know much, but I think he's a terrier mix, and I think he's young based on his actions and his teeth.  I bet he weighs between 20 and 25 pounds, and is about knee-high.

This is a pretty pathetic picture of him, but I didn't take too many, and wanted to show you his whole self. Doesn't he look happy-go-lucky? No? Hah...that would be the photographer's fault, not the dog's. :o)  He's a tail-wagger, he is.

There, that's better. His tail is fuzzy because it's wagging.

He's great on a leash, and is pretty tame around tame big people and tame 2 year olds, and he is jubilant around 8 year old boys. We've got a great back yard here, but, unfortunately for him, he is slippery and unless you're out there with him, he likes to slip out through the gap under the gate. Which, now that you mention it, might explain why he doesn't have a home!

When we do play in the backyard, we pretty much just run in circles. He will go after a ball, but won't bring it back or even pick it up and run with it. Mookie runs around squealing and laughing because she thinks he's chasing her. And when the neighbor's boy was over, the dog pretty much just licked the boy to pieces. Who needs a bath when you've got that kind of all-over cleaning treatment?

Speaking of circles, here he is, getting geometric with his bad self...

Dogs. They crack me up.

Since he doesn't stay in the backyard, and since I've already got a house full of girls I have to care for, he's been relegated to a crate in the garage. Poor guy. I feel terrible for him, but he barkbarkbarkbarkbarks when he can see us, and is quiet (mostly, sorta, kinda) when he's in the dark garage. Now, I'm a fan of crate-training a dog, make no mistake, but I don't like the idea of him being in the crate 24 hours a day besides walks. That's just not fair to him. So, when it's quiet inside (like right now), I let him out of the crate and hang out with him in the garage. He walks around a bit, sniffing things, then settles down and eats or chews on his rawhide.

And when he lays down, he splays his back legs out behind him. I love that in a dog, don't you?

Now, for all you out there who think he was MEANT TO come home with me, I would like you to stop. Look around your house. Look at your yard. Look at the next few months on your calendar. Do you have 2 wee ones to care for? And two aging cats? And a yard that doesn't hold this dog? And a move in 2 months (yes)?  No? Well, God, The Universe, and Bob Barker may all have conspired to "give" me this dog, but they will need to reconvene because he is NOT staying here.

So again I ask you...anyone want some extra lovin' in their life?

So...How Was Your Good Day?

Ever wanted to be a fly on the wall around your kids? Ever wonder what they would say to each other when they aren't being coached (and corrected?) by you?

Last week, when Kelly had the chance to do something you can only do in LA, I watched her girls, Kendall (2) and Cameron (almost 1) till her husband got home from work. Kendall and Mookie are just best buds. It's a shame they live so far away and the girls don't play together more often.

(hanging head in shame...)

(they live up the hill from us)

Anyway, the girls were playing in a little tent/castle thing we have, and after eavesdropping on one silly exchange, I had the foresight to stick the camera over the top and capture their ramblings. Tee hee.

As an intro, when Kendall and Mookie were first playing together, Kendall very clearly said to Mookie, "So, how was your day?" To which Mookie replied, "Good."  And then about 28 seconds later, Mookie said "So, howwayougoing day?" To which Kendall very clearly replied, "Ummm...we're not going anywhere. We're sitting on the floor." I just had to laugh (and get the camera for future dialog!)  It made me realize that, although Mookie is VERY verbal, and has a VAST vocabulary, her clarity is lacking a bit. :o)  She got better, though, as you will hear. 
There was much laughter that evening, and much more today when Mookie and I saw this video together. Over, and over, and over again.



And  now Mookie asks me all the live-long day "So, how was your good day, Mommy?"

She's a Barbie Girl

The other day a lady from church gave Mookie a small box with 3 Barbie dolls and a bag of clothing for them. She doesn't yet understand the concept of the Barbie, she just knows it's a doll and she can change the doll's clothing.

Periodically, she'll come to me with the fur wrap, or the purple and pink sequined dress and say "Oh my goss, Mommy. Oh my goss."

I'm pretty sure cuter words have never been spoken.

Dear Sprout - Month Four

Dear Sprout,

It really seems like yesterday that I was live-blogging your birth. Maybe it's the lack of sleep messing with my head, but I just can't believe you're 4 months old!! Healthy and happy. I can't ask for much more. Well, maybe you could sleep a little longer at night? I think that's a fair request. :-)

What's new? (well, besides everything since this is the first letter I've written you!) Let's see...you have giggled and rolled over in the last month, and, just like your sister, you have refused to repeat yourself on both counts. You are SO much stronger, and more curious and more alert and more AWARE of your surroundings. We went to the monthly Modern Quilt Guild meeting this week, (I always take you) and you were wide awake and paying attention the whole time! You particularly enjoyed the lovel alphabet quilt you saw. Everyone in the guild loves and adores you. That could be because you are lovely and adorable, but so are they. :-) We'll sure miss them.

Tonight was our monthly neighborhood potluck, and I had you in the Moby, like I usually do. When we first got there, you were craning your neck trying to see everyone and everything. :-). I was thinking it might be time to turn you around, but then you conked out and I was glad you were in proper snuggling position. :-)

Your favorite place to sleep is still on me, but you're getting better at sleeping in actual beds, too. The 5-8am slot is non-negotiable, though. It doesn't matter when you were last fed, this is just "our time." You fuss, you chirrup, you squawk. And then I pick you up, settle down on my tummy, and you go right to sleep. Out. Like a light. You can be mad as a hornet, but the instant you realize you're on my tummy, all is right in the world. Well, until your sister wakes up and destroys our special time. :-)

But, boy howdy does your big sister love you. And you seem equally enamored by her. :-) My two peas in a pod.

When I actually rub my two remaining brain cells together to think and ponder and process these last 4 months, I get a little bit sad. I feel like I'm treating you like a second child and not treating you like the unique and wonderful blessing that you are, and I'm sorry for that. I'm so sorry for that. I want you to know and feel beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are cherished and adored and that I love you more than I ever thought possible. I pray that you never doubt or question my love for you. And I pray that God will help me show my love for you every single day of your life. I want you to feel my love, your papa's love, and God's love every day.

My sweet little Sprouting, are a blessing. To me, to your papa, to your sister, to your grandparents, to our church, to the members of LAMQG :-)...to everyone.

I can't wait to see what new stuff happens this next month (or four, the way I'm going!).

I love you forever and ever and always,
~Mama.

P.S. Because you're going to spend your whole life being compared to your sister, I'll just start now. :o)

Here's a picture of the two of you at 4 months. :o) I love this.

And here's a picture of her wearing the same cow suit when she was about 3 months old. :o)

Smooshy Face

I know this picture is blurry, but I wanted you all to see Sprout'sBig Smile these days and this was the best I could do with my phone.

I think you can still appreciate her sweet, smooshy face. I hope this makes you smile a Big Smile, too. :-)

She's a Rockstar!

Today my girl told me what she really thinks about tummy time.

She's rolling right out of it! Every time. Dangit.

Mommy, I'm A...

Cowboy.

(Where does she get this stuff?!?!)
:o)

She's Helping, Too

I discovered that Brady's Smile will send get well posters along with their "comfort bags". The program is called Crayons n' Care, and they encourage kids of all ages to make a mini-poster for children in the ICU. (I don't believe these actually go with the blankets for babies in the NICU, but it's a question I will ask.)

As I make blankets in lieu of a gift, I'm thinking of asking the birthday boy/girl to make a mini-poster to send along with the blanket. Depending on the child's age and maturity level, I think it will help the child to connect a bit with the blanket and donation. What do you think?

I was hoping Mookie would color in the outlined letters (hah!), but when she wasn't interested in that, I just let her doodle, then gave her some stickers and let her go to town.

And to town she went! And back again! The girl loves her stickers. :o) (I didn't realize that sticker-love was a genetically inherited trait, but apparently it is!)

That's it for us - I'm hoping to get a few done this weekend...now, only if my 2 will cooperate and leave me to my sewing...

Hope you have a great weekend!

Should I Leave the 'Stache?

We're fingerpainting today.

I'm not sure, though, how Mookie ended up with a purple moustache. I guess I need to explain the difference between fingerpainting and facepainting. :o)