very carrie

enchanting

2011-11-28T15:32:00.001-08:00

In an attempt to find out just exactly what makes New Mexico the "land of enchantment," we headed down yonder south after Thanksgiving to see if we could find anything more enchanting than Albuquerque.

Hello, they have a giant pistachio! I made a goal to see it after I read about a bunch of giantized sculptures around Australia. Awesome and enchanting.

Then onto the best sledding of our lives... in sand. I may never sled in snow again. It was so fast and we didn't start to freeze after ten minutes! Good thing because there was a little bit of this:

Roman dramatically plopped down and then raised his head to say, "cheeeeeeeese." hahaha

It was such a fun trip. Sometimes just getting out of town and staying at a hotel over night is just what is needed to cheer everyone up after all our family leaves after Thanksgiving. And I daresay it was a bit enchanting down there in Alamagordo.

leaves are falling

2011-11-09T07:48:00.000-08:00

Our neighbor's tree sheds all its leaves in one go. It's amazing. Yesterday the branches were completely full and this morning it is raining leaves and filling the lawn. I love how there is no warning, as the leaves don't even bother to change colors before their mass descent . So there's really no other choice but to head out on Leaf Shedding Day and have an early morning leaf fight. And the cute thing is that this house is in the middle of us and a family with a four year old and they were already out in their jammies with the same idea.

Ps. My favorite part of this picture is Banks over on the side.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

2011-10-31T11:49:00.000-07:00

Love,
The Black Swan, a Newsie, Harry Potter, Fire Ninja, and Little Monkey

critical update

2011-10-28T20:27:00.001-07:00

Good news! My nails have already dressed for the occasion so I might just throw on a costume to match them on Monday.

boo october

2011-10-27T09:06:00.000-07:00

These little guys have been sick this week. It's been kind of a crappy week, honestly. Between the sickies, and trying to adjust to newly cold and murky weather, and waiting for Halloween to get over with already has put us all (ok well mostly me) into poor spirits. I got all the costumes done early this year (!) leaving time for me to create a costume for myself even, but now that I feel so bah-humbug about Halloween I've lost all desire to dress up in it. Bah. Humbug.

But I'm excited for Thanksgiving!!!!!!!!!!!! Ma famille is coming to celebrate and I'm so excited!!!!!!

Whoa. I just looked at that picture and had a moment where I totally spazzed out because I have three boys. Sometimes I seriously wonder how I got here. Crrraaaaaazy.

thoughts mostly for me

2011-10-17T20:47:00.000-07:00

Benson is mad in this picture and no one remembers why. It's probably better that way.

I've been wanting to write a little ditty about Benson for a while now, you know the kind of thing you store away and stroke on your cheek when they are big and scary teenagers and have too many other things to do than frown in pictures in front of balloons. He is truly the sweetest boy, and I keep waiting for him to change into a regular 6 year old that is totally obnoxious but he's still the sweetest thing you ever did see. For example:

This morning when Roman was screaming his head off because he (and consequently all of us) woke up too early, and I was feeling tired and was short with the children, Benson came and found me in the bathroom and sweetly asked, "mom, what can i do to help you?" Even though I was short with him too! He learned this exact phrase from his father, by the way.

Banks was crying on the trampoline a couple of days ago, so I peeked my head out to see if there was any blood spilled and what do I behold but Benson holding and rocking Banks, stroking his hair and giving him kisses. And when Roman started to get a little jealous, he reached for the little one, pulled him into the hug, and rocked him too.

I could literally go on and on, but I'll stop with these two little occasions. Sometimes Ben and I talk about what we are going to do when our kids face problems as they get older, but in the end we often joke that everyone else will probably be okay because they have Benson going first to show them how it's done. And I don't think it will even be from the typical oldest child pressure to be perfect, he's just one of those kids who wants to do the right thing.

I feel lucky to have him around. We all learn a lot from our little Benson.

2011-10-06T17:25:00.000-07:00

missing my sunshine.

come back soon.

math i like

2011-10-03T20:14:00.000-07:00

Dad

+

Mom

+

B-one

+

B-two

+

Babykins

+

Lizard

=

Happy family night

haiku monday

2011-09-26T20:22:00.000-07:00

Roman at sunset

His Einstein hair orange with sun

He touched a cactus

she blogs

2011-09-23T13:28:00.000-07:00

I've enjoyed this little break, but on this, the first day of fall, I declare that today is the end of the blog vacation. I think. We'll see.

But in the mean time we haven't had too much going on, honestly, but here are a few of the comings and goings since I last blogged (in the order in which they appear in my brain). Ahem:

:: finished harry potter IV. benson is hooked and will be harry potter for halloween. haaaaappy mom. banks is stuck on a "minja" costume, and roman is now taking suggestions.

:: roman learned he can push chairs around to get to the formerly high safe havens of all things sharp and scary. he permanent markered on my computer this morning. sad sad day.

:: i discovered trader joe's salsa. my new fav.

:: ben and i discovered seared (read: raw and pretty much cold in the center) tuna. also so good!

:: i got my haircut exactly like snape's. like i literally took a picture of snape to my stylist and said "can i have this exact haircut?" (i didn't. it was olivia palermo)

:: ben started his second year of med school! woo woooo!

:: i started ballet again and i loooove it. i have boys in my class so we get to do mini pas de deux sometimes. (giggle giggle)

That's about it really. And there isn't much more on the horizon. But we are smoothly sailing and quite happy!

to michigan, to michigan, to play at the beach

2011-08-15T14:30:00.000-07:00

at the top of sleeping bear dunes

this was actually banks' best shot, believe it or not

the best part of the dunes: running down at top speed!

We returned from our trip to Michigan on Saturday. It was a blissful two weeks of picture perfect summer.

Lots of frog catching, salamander hunts, BEACH, walks through the forest, cousins, ice cream, fireflies, marshmallow roasting, and all around fun. And all of that sandwiched between lots and lots of driving. Ben and I even got away alone on a little side trip to check out residencies. Perfect.

We miss it already but it's good to be back home in our own beds. Benson starts school tomorrow and Ben on Monday. Crazy!

swimmy

2011-07-27T13:59:00.000-07:00

I wanted the $5 swim shorts from Zara, but they don't ship so I had to improvise with some swim fabric from Joann's. Ship to the us already, Zara!

Sometimes Ben and I are pretty good parents.

But most of the time we are crazy.

This summer we decided our children's unwillingness to put their faces in the water was reeeediculous and so we've spent the summer ~~torturing~~ bribing them to take baby steps toward our olympic swimming dreams for them.

Bribe 1: Get in the pool or I'll throw you in. (We ended up throwing at least one of them)

Bribe 2: Try putting your face in the water or I'll take you under myself. (...you can probably imagine)

Bribe 3: Jump in for a square of chocolate (Lots of prodding but eventual success!)

Bribes 4- 793: Swim, dangit, Swim!

And at the end of the summer, we have two swimmers, and two boys who want speedos so they can swim with more "freedom."

I've always heard you shouldn't force your kids to do things before they are ready, but after this summer I'm not sure... It seems to have worked pretty well. :)

lists

2011-07-18T07:48:00.000-07:00

Source: flickr.com via Mary on Pinterest

I, like my friend Mellie P, love making lists. I have long lists of plants for my someday vegetable garden, flower garden, and peony garden. I have lists of books I'd like to read. And places I'd like to go. And a short list of things I'd like to do. My to-do life list only includes two things (so far):

1. See a fashion show at a fashion week

2. Walk the Coast to Coast Walk with Ben. I wish so badly I could beam myself (and him) there right now, and we could spend the next two weeks strolling through the countryside from village to village, just him and me, walking and talking and walking some more. I think this is my new happy place for this week, when it is 95 degrees inside my house and I'm trying to not end up like the guy blinded by the heat in The Stranger.

and the living is easy

2011-07-11T11:56:00.000-07:00

This is the stuff of summer. Mouths full of cherries, riding tandem on the tricycle, shooting cherry pits at the "Momster" as Benson has taken to calling me.

Ben has been calling this summer "The Summer of Our Lives" as this is probably the last time we'll be able to spend this much time together (Ben's only working 2 days a week). And it really has been.

Three cheers for summer!

gotta git down on friday

2011-07-01T13:27:00.000-07:00

We are all putting on our dancing shoes cause it's friday night! Date night, woo hoo!

Of note:
1. He makes his own music to dance to.
2. The shoulder shake is his signature move.
3. Benson is embarrassed about being in his undies. Don't tell him you saw this.
4. Yesterday was thursday. Today it is friday. Tomorrow is Saturday. Sunday comes after thaaaat.
5. Happy weekend!

this week according to my phone

2011-06-23T20:59:00.000-07:00

First ever popsicle

Peonies for my table

Tennis lessons at 8 am

Hardhats are not flattering but essential on date night

City

Sliding

Water fight!

my darling,

2011-06-19T20:32:00.001-07:00

, originally uploaded by Annedear.

Well.

I just wrote out the greatest tribute ever to you, my dear, but as luck would have it, somewhere in the wild world between flickr and blogger it took a wrong turn and appears to be lost forever. I hope it didn't end up on someone else's blog. That would be uncomfortable.

Suffice it to say when it comes to the subject of dads: At the tip of the top, cream of the crop, is Benjamin Tracy and there we stop.

Though our children don't fully understand yet how lucky they are to have you, I do.

I do. I do. I do.

same sun, two states

2011-06-16T08:40:00.000-07:00

Setting sun in Utah:

Setting sun in New Mexico:

little treasures

2011-06-14T21:20:00.000-07:00

My blog died a little while ago. I started to feel really exposed, and self-doubting, and etc. about everything on here so I just quit posting (obviously?).

But.

I felt a little stirring in my soul in church a few weeks ago, when someone talked about trying to dig up some history from older people and found that their memories weren't quite what they once were. And because no one wrote things down all these precious little treasures were lost with time. I felt so struck by that. All these precious little family treasures that make us laugh, or smile, or cry are being lost as we forget things that happened even yesterday. And so, I hope to post on here a little more often partly to share with family and friends the little daily things that are happening around here, but also to help me remember these tiny moments. I hope! Oh I'm so terrible at staying on top of these things but onward we go and I'll do my best.

stitchery

2011-04-27T09:57:00.000-07:00

Bah. I don't have time right now to write all the many things in my head, so I'll put a picture of my latest finished project instead. I made this little blanket for my newest nephew, Maxwell, using these instructions. I really love how it turned out and I'll do it again for sure!

somebunny is one

2011-04-19T07:17:00.000-07:00

This is my favorite picture from Roman's birthday. He and his cousin (one week older) are not very good at sharing yet. :)

Roman likes:

Silky fabric for comfort
Greek yogurt
Oatmeal
Chocolate cake with peanut butter icing
Eating dirt
Playing with his brothers
Pat-a-cake
Calling people on the phone
Snuggling with Mom and Dad

Roman is not such a fan of:

Walking. He may crawl to eternity.
Sharing his toys with Kole :)
Other people looking at him

days like this

2011-04-11T20:10:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, I have a day where
Everyone is needy
All the children cry all day
Nothing sounds good for dinner
Things just don't get done
I just can't wait to put my babies in bed
And then crawl under the covers myself with my Ben.

But real quick-like I decide to download the videos from my camera and I find a little shimmering jewel like this one and I laugh and laugh until I cry happy tears at the job I get to do. I'm convinced this is better than a Christmas bonus to keep me reporting to my job every day.

..."this is green guy... he knows... cool stuff." Indeed, Banks. Indeed.

adding to our brood

2011-04-10T08:34:00.000-07:00

Meet Coco and Layla. May they survive Banks' constant squeezing and may their introduction to the henhouse be a miraculously peaceful one.

friday's child

2011-04-08T07:12:00.000-07:00

I hope this puts a big smile on your face this Friday.

It's the weekend(!) and I have a perma-smile today cause I'm going on a hot date tonight. Weeeeee! Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

oh, hello there!

2011-04-04T13:49:00.000-07:00

Hi. Yep, still alive and thinking about blogging.

xox,
Carrie

magical kingdom

2011-03-22T14:56:00.000-07:00

Ah. Again I have neglected this poor little bloggy. I've found it harder and harder to make time to record my thoughts lately.

We spent a little time in California a few weeks ago... it was so nice to escape winter for a while. Although I should really put winter in quotes, as we live in new mexico and find 40 degrees nearly unbearable, but still. It was 70 and sunny in california and very much appreciated.

I kind of can't believe how different our trip was this year from last. I really can't even put my finger on what was so different (besides the extra child outside me, instead of inside), but for sure one of the main differences is that we took the kids on Autopia, and then spent many many hours riding the "Topsy Cars" as Banks named them.

Also new this year (for us) was the Tower of Terror, which Benson was dragged on 4 times by his parents. He only had one nightmare about it though! On the same night I did!

Nothing to say about this one, except I love this picture of Roman.

And this picture is to prove that Ben was there!

*post script edit: um, obviously ben was there, he is in the picture above. that's what i get for working in html mode with a tired brain.

one by one the penguins steal my sanity

2011-03-01T10:46:00.000-08:00

I was only about four in when I realized this was a very bad idea. And somehow my exact cross-eyed, dazed look was translated onto the face of each little penguin.

They did elicit cheers from 70 kindergartners this morning when I delivered them, however, so perhaps they were worth it.

post edit: instructions here, and mine look different because I used milk chocolate and giant gumdrops for the heads because those strawberry puffs don't exist in New Mexico. And also because I had a little "helper" sitting on my lap for most of it.

for my mom, who wants to see my project

2011-02-25T16:27:00.000-08:00

Remember when I got all excited about that fabric way back in 2009? Well it did become available and here I am quilting a little quilty for my little baby. I was so nervous to start a hand-quilted quilt. I kept thinking back to the days when I was young and couldn't focus on a project for more than 10 minutes (literally) and I was nervous that I would quickly tire of the quilting and never finish but I'm already half way done and I'm really enjoying my time slowly stitching. It's really so satisfying! I'm actually excited at the prospect of more quilting when this one is finished.

And for those who might care, the fabric is from Far Far Away II by Heather Ross, and I'm quilting with Perle Cotton embroidery thread a'la Anna Maria.

Also in today's news:
Spring is springing here in the land of enchantment!

Exhibit A:

Bluebell starting laying again (more light = more laying you see)

Exhibit B:

Some very over-achieving irises are popping their cute little heads out of the sand! Yay!

tunage

2011-02-21T14:36:00.001-08:00

This is one of my newest favorite songs.

And the group is one of my newest favorite bands (do we call it a band? I'm so not cool). Introduced to me by my Dad, of all people. He got me to like classic rock as a kid and now we share a mutual like of Pomplamoose.

Thanks, Dad. I owe you.

Story of the baby's life

2011-02-17T09:56:00.000-08:00

This is a familiar scene around here. Someone needs to get a little bigger so he can toddle around after his brothers outside.

8 years

2011-02-16T08:38:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I spent most of the morning moping and feeling sorry for myself. I complained to my sister on the phone and then spent quite a few minutes sitting on the floor, my forehead resting on the ottoman, feeling sad that my anniversary would not include this:

by finn jewlery via this is glamorous

or a trip to Paris with my love,

or even a nice dinner out with just the two of us because we can't leave cutie-pie-cry-face with a teenager without an intense amount of worry.

And then.

He came home for lunch. He walked right in the door looking so very handsome. He twinkled his eyes at me, happily wished me a happy anniversary, and held me close while the kids pulled at our pant legs for attention.

And right then I was instantly happy. I didn't mind that we aren't at a point where we have money to spend on extravagant trips or gifts and our kids are too small to allow us many nights out. Because I've had him for eight years now, and I'll have him for the rest of my life and beyond and I actually get butterflies when I think of spending forever with him.

I love you, my darling. You have made this the happiest 8 years of my life, hands down.

2011-02-05T07:51:00.000-08:00

We are trying to take a family picture every month this year, as opposed to last year when we took maybe one. January's attempt obviously leaves only room for improvement this month.

This post is unrelated to the picture. Just so you don't get confused.

Don't you hate it when you think all the way through some conundrum and then forget you thought it all the way through and bring it up with someone then sound like a moron because it had an obvious answer and you knew it but you forgot you knew it?

Example:

Me: Hey, sister-in-law... I'm now going to give you this super long-whiney explanation as to why I'd like you to babysit Roman on Tuesday... not sure why I feel the need to whiney-ask because I know you'd say yes if I just asked normally but I can't fight the urge so... please please please!!

Sister-in-law: Well you know I would but did we not establish like 10 minutes ago that I am going out of town tomorrow and won't be back all week?

Me: Ohhhh yeaaaaah! So THAT'S why I felt all hesitant to bring up the babysitting! And yes, I do pay attention to what you say, and I already had this whole conversation with myself in my head. So sorry. Carry on.

This happens to me daily. If only I could remember my inner dialogues! Does this happen to anyone else?

2 days in a row now

2011-02-01T21:12:00.000-08:00

Snow day!!!!!!!!!

Thanks Rico Chavez, I loved hearing your voice tonight, telling me I don't have to wake up the kids for a 1-below-zero wait at the bus stop tomorrow.

Now please don't call me at 6 am tomorrow morning and reverse my love for you.

xoxCarrie

*edit: make that three days in a row. And we haven't had snow since day 1! So strange.

*double edit: make that 4. And apparently it's because New Mexico doesn't have enough gas to heat everyone's house, let alone the schools. Sweeto job, New Mexico.

roses are red. and pink.

2011-01-20T08:48:00.000-08:00

Did you see these beautiful roses on Kevin Sharkey's blog? I can't wait for the day I can collect exotic roses and plant them all around my house! And then they will probably die! I have a black thumb but perhaps by then I'll be a better gardener. A girl can dream, and even still it won't stop me from planting those roses.

Do you find it sad that as soon as the holidays are over the whole of blogland pines for spring, even though spring is months away? We should find ways to make Jan/Feb/Mar more celebrated.

once i drove to a pool hall in a blizzard but it was closed because NJ was in a state of emergency

2011-01-19T08:39:00.000-08:00

Ben's dream of raising a family of unassuming pool sharks has just been made possible by a generous donation from a nice family from our church.

We also have a fridge and a dart board so really all we need now is some beer for our fridge and we can finally open O'Tracy's Pub!

Just kidding. But maybe with some Sprite.

church is at 1 o'clock now so i have lots of time to dilly dally in the morning

2011-01-16T09:46:00.000-08:00

And so I shall post.

I have another blog. Did you know that? Actually I have like 5 other blogs but I have this one blog where I was invited by my dear friend Melissa to meet all of her literary friends and discuss books, which we do, but also we discuss life in general.

It's awesome. Like, really awesome.

And recently we have discussed blogs and blogging and the lack of posting on up in here and I came to some great realizations.

FOR EXAMPLE:

-I need to change the name of my blog. I think it's giving me a blog identity crisis. Because if I don't blog about the children round my house then the post doesn't make sense with the "purpose" of the blog and then I feel less inclined to write about fashion. And sewing. And music. And other pretty things. And those things are important to me too and I don't get to discuss these things very often and I would like that.

-Other boring things too like I need to change my header in a very very big way but I'm working on that.

SO I might. MIGHT post more often. About really random stuff. But there's also a good chance I will still not post very often and I'm ok with that. Thanks to all of you who update so regularly because I do enjoy reading all of your posts.

That is all. Thanks for listening. Happy Sunday!

ps. I haven't written "o'clock" in ten thousand years and it's a good thing my dad is here visiting because I would have most definitely spelled it wrong. If it is, indeed, spelled right now, which I am not convinced that it is.

it's about time, or roman is earning his keep, or learning new tricks

2011-01-08T12:28:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve

2010-12-30T17:54:00.000-08:00

Our house lit up with luminarias

Here in New Mexico we have a tradition of setting out luminarias on Christmas Eve along the walkways in front of our houses. We've never participated before (nor anyone in our former neighborhoods) but this is the year of becoming real New Mexicans and so we did. I loved it.

Most of the houses in our neighborhood also set them out, and since it's not too cold here most of the time, we bundled up and strolled around the neighborhood to check out the display. We were alone on the streets (except for a few late putter-outers) and so we sang every Christmas hymn we could think of as we walked and it might very well be my very favorite Christmas Eve ever. Sometimes I say mean things about New Mexico (mostly that she isn't as pretty as some of my former homes) but there are some really great traditions here that I have grown to love. I hope to spend every Christmas Eve in New Mexico, walking the chill, quiet night hand in hand with my family, singing of our Savior's birth.

a little holiday song and jig

2010-12-18T21:25:00.000-08:00

I must confess I very rarely actually take time to watch videos that people put on their blogs (unless it's my nieces or nephews, or one of Melissa's shorts!). I'm so sorry, I feel like such a jerk confessing that, but I thought I'd say it just in case anyone else feels guilty after they don't watch this one. But it is only 30 seconds and I can almost guarantee you'll smile just a little.

Merry Christmas Winter Break!!! Time to bake things. And only 1 week until Christmas! I literally could not be more excited!

!!

baby fever

2010-12-08T10:23:00.000-08:00

Is this not the greatest plan ever? That while we willingly create these messy, smelly, loud, needy little people to perpetuate our species, they are given to us in the cutest, most irresistible form imaginable? I'm sure no one else wants to look at dozens of pictures of my baby, but I could look at them all day so everyone else here gets to enjoy my whims. ha!

I absolutely love having baby Roman in our home. He creates the sweetest and most loving atmosphere between us all it's really a gift to have him. He started out life pretty grumpy, but he has turned into the sweetest, most social and smily baby I've ever seen. I hope he continues to grow very veeeeeeery s-l-o-w-l-y. I love seeing his personality come out, but I looooove his babyness.

ready

2010-12-02T12:03:00.000-08:00

We are ready for fires this winter

and Ben is ready for Pediatric clinicals today (with his new bow tie, best thrift shop find evah!).

these are the things you see when your house is filled with boys

2010-11-30T14:34:00.000-08:00

The Ninja Turtles have been trying to pick my locks again.

giving thanks in 2010

2010-11-26T14:43:00.000-08:00

Just a few photos from Thanksgiving... It was a lovely day and I loved having a day to remember to be grateful for all I have. It is so very much, and I don't take the time to really express and acknowledge my gratitude all the way from my tippy toes very often. I was happy to remember and celebrate the day with family.

And now it's Christmas time! Woohoooo!

how could i say no?

2010-11-13T20:49:00.000-08:00

I couldn't. So here's a photo of him in the hat.

He's just so cute to me I just want to sniff him in all the time. It's nuts.

I'm not super thrilled with this particular photo, but Ben snapped it quickly under poor lighting and meant to get a better one later but neither of us have yet so here I am posting the eh photo. Try not to judge too harshly.

Editor's note: I did have to edit out a giant booger glued to his forehead. Awesome.

there is finally a tiny chill in the air

2010-11-08T12:47:00.001-08:00

and so it is knitting season once again. I've got all kinds of projects planned and I can't wait. I might even post them as I go. This is called: No. 1; Pumpkin Colored For Roman.

it's already past time to think about christmas gifts

2010-11-05T08:46:00.000-07:00

I really wish we still lived in the olden days when we could just buy one bigger present for the kids, put a bow on it, and call it Christmas. I'd love to get one of these tricycles for Banks for Christmas (and you can get the red one from Sam's Club for a pretty decent price), but I just know he'd be so disappointed with just one toy. le sigh.

What do you think? Can parents (on limited budgets) get away with just one quality toy these days or should I just go for mass like the kids probably want?

because i have a kindergartner now

2010-11-04T15:38:00.000-07:00

School pictures! We actually debated whether to get Benson's school pictures since, let's face it, they are hideously done but I'm really glad we did. He's too precious for words.

I still can't believe I have a kindergartner. I don't feel a day over 21.

halloween 2010

2010-11-02T08:32:00.000-07:00

Left to right: Banks, Benson, Carrie, Ben

Somehow Ben ended up with two pumpkins modeled after him. He was particularly inspiring this year apparently.

Skeleton, Knight, Ventriloquist, and half-hearted ventriloquist dummy

I've been feeling sort of anti-blog lately but Ben keeps getting on my case to post something and it's probably good to make an effort here. I'd like to think I'll record my memories in a personal journal but if I don't have some sort of public accountability it's just not going to happen so I need to do better here. And it's fun to remember things!

Halloween was fun, as usual, and even though I had a mad dash to the finish with costumes (again!) it's getting more and more fun to create costumes for my little guys because they are so excited about the final results. Next year I'm going to try and convince everyone to dress up in a theme since I have 3 boys and that would be awesome-sauce.

And now: on to Thanksgiving! And we have family here this year which makes it twice as awesome! Yes!

bestest friday

2010-10-12T09:31:00.000-07:00

We had such a lovely friday.

We went to a park near our house to see if we could watch the glowdeo from far away. We couldn't see it, but we did spend the evening running around and playing football.

{Did I mention that Roman can sit now?}

We packed hot chocolate and rice krispie treats and brought our big blanket to lay together and look at the stars.

{There is an awesome hill for rolling at this park. Can't wait for sledding in the winter, if we get enough snow anyway}

And when it got dark, we turned on the flashlights and daddy told everyone one of his trademarked "Adventures of Supermommy" stories.

Extra bonus: although the city lights blocked the balloon lights, we did catch the fireworks show. It was awesome.

allllloooooo????

2010-10-07T12:57:00.000-07:00

I just finished typing this big ole post but it was as boring as all get-out. I just can't think of a good way to break the silence. So here:

Sugar should not be boiled in an otherwise microwave safe plastic container in the microwave. It's a really really stupid idea.

Amen.

aquarium

2010-09-16T14:56:00.000-07:00

Look at that face! Pure joy I tell you!

Even Nosy Posy came to get a look

Banks has started to look longingly at the fish at Walmart, so to appease his fish desire (but not actually commit to keeping something else alive...) we made this little aquarium for preschool the other day a la made by joel.

It's nice that Banks is finally getting old enough to enjoy some art projects cause I can only take so much cars and trains play. Barbies on the other hand.... haha good thing I don't have girls because i wouldn't get anything done for all the dolls and Barbies playing.

um i'm like hyper from sleep folks

2010-09-15T14:53:00.001-07:00

So hyper in fact that I just posted this with no actual content. Just the title. Ahhhhhh i feel like I'm hyped up on energy drinks or something but in faaaaaaaact:

I'm sleeping at night!

And so is Roman!

And I'm giddy with energy!

It's so awesome!

And he's cute and I have photos to prove it:

a book penned by ben, as dictated by banks

2010-09-09T22:01:00.000-07:00

"Dad-e" (given to Dad by Benson)

"F-16"

"Is going to"

"Punch your face"

Notice how I get smilier as the photos go... makes me laugh every time.

"Punch you in the face" is the go-to line around the house these days. And sadly, I find it hilarious almost every time someone says it. hahah I shouldn't be encouraging it but it's just so dang hilarious to hear coming out of their little mouths.

For example last night's post bed-time exchange:

Banks (wandering out into the living room after being put to bed): Benson said he's going to punch me in the face.

Me: Benson, don't tell Banks you are going to punch him in the face. It makes him feel bad!

Benson: But Mooooooom! I'm just making a deal with him! I told him if he doesn't give my CTR ring back right now, I'm going to punch him in the face when I get up in the morning, but if he gives it back I won't! That's fair!

Me (laughing so hard but trying not to): Ben, you need to go in there and explain the significance of threatening to punch his brother in the face over a CTR (Choose The Right) ring because if I go in there I'm gonna laugh and they'll never learn.

Why is this so funny to me? It kills me.

And yes, I have tons of bangs (fringe) now. My hair was postnatally falling out by the handful and it called for drastic measures. Plus, fall just says "bangs" to me.

this is what i am doing

2010-09-03T09:42:00.000-07:00

Doesn't Roman's hair look like a toupee? That kid has SO MUCH hair!

Sometimes, just for a brief moment, I forget what I'm doing here. I'm not furthering a career, I'm not biding my time until all the kids are gone and I can do my own things. I really believe I am doing the most important work of my life right this minute, and when I remember that I truly love my life. I saw this magazine on Design Mom today and this quote from there struck me to the core:

Our lives are the sum

Of each moment and interaction.
Each day we work, eat, laugh, teach, play, read, remember...
And work at it all again the next day.

Within seemingly small moments we find opportunity
To build relationships, develop character, find joy
For the price of our time.

Life's most essential possibilities are realized at home.

Where we share, teach, grow, learn, serve, give
Our best without praise or fanfare.
Because every effort, every moment matters
In the development of a person.
Nothing is really routine.

-Seeing The Everyday

What a true and beautiful statement.

3 dollars for the cleverest title

2010-08-31T18:21:00.000-07:00

My thoughts are buzzing around in my head these days at a million miles an hour, and really aren't related. But in the spirit of This American Life, today I'll attempt to bring you three stories on a common theme. This post's theme is hilariousness. This is gonna be awesome. Let's pretend!

1. While up to my elbows in dishwater this evening I decided to forgo the usual pandora in order to listen to the music in the other room. Wipe Out has something very humorous to children and husbands approximately every 8 seconds. I counted between their bursts of laughter. It was pretty hilarious.

2. As Ben was clearing the table after dinner I asked him if he would finish med school if we suddenly won a million dollars a year for the rest of our lives. He said yes, but he would buy a really nice car (and I even know which one without him saying so). I said that's fine, because the first thing I would do is buy this dress:

to the tune of about 2 grand. And i'd probably go for the bag while I'm at it. And then we proceeded to laugh for the next 5 minutes about how hilarious it would be to get a million bucks a year. That's $83,000 a month. hahahaha I just laughed typing that!

3. We had strawberries and cream in crepes for part of our dinner last night (which Banks REFUSED to even try... I think his buddy Ambrose is sending him anti-food vibes from across the ocean:) ) and then I made up the rest of the crepe batter at lunch today. THEN I left the bowl with a few small strawberry remains on the counter under the open window and went to take a sweeeeeet nap (yessssss!). When I woke up (to my alarm-- gotta go get Benson) I wandered into the kitchen half asleep for a drink of water. I noticed the bowl of strawberries and wondered how all those poppy seeds got into the bowl. How odd.

Fast forward to an hour later when Ben discovers a trail of ants from the window to the bowl exactly like you'd see in a movie, or a painting of a picnic, and the bowl is swarming with, uh, poppy seeds. My lack of sleep for the past 4 and a half months is nothing if not hilarious.

And that's the post for today. I hope you enjoyed it!

2010-08-27T10:37:00.000-07:00

(he did get off the bus!)

Oh my gosh it's friiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiday!!!! I can't wait until 5 o'clock; I've got a hot date. YESSSSSSSS!

I am so thankful for the weekend this week. WHEW.

HAPPY WEEKEND EVERYONE!

kindergartener

2010-08-25T10:10:00.000-07:00

Before

After

ow that the fourth day of kindergarten is nearly over, I should probably get around to writing down my thoughts these last few days. What an experience to hand your first child off to another person, to be molded for 6 hours a day by a near stranger... The only relief that first day was knowing that some sort of divine intervention landed him in the best class at his school.

We actually requested and got another teacher initially, on the recommendation of an acquaintance, but after meeting her I was very apprehensive. She just didn't seem to be the kind and loving person I imagined and frankly, I was scared. After meeting her Benson said, "I hope she doesn't yell at me," and I got the same vibe. By some miracle we got a voicemail later that day from the sweetest woman, who is now Benson's teacher, saying there was some sort of mix-up and she hoped we wouldn't be too upset about the change into her class. Oh the relief! I'm so grateful for the "mix-up" as I couldn't imagine a better teacher for Benson. He loves her and so do I.

I've now entered the stage of annoying mom, as I grill him on absolutely everything that happened during the day: What did you eat? Who did you play with? What did you learn? and on and on and I usually only receive the most casual answers: Oh I don't know mom, not much, I don't remember, I had to visit the nurse because I got my finger smashed (!) like this is all no big deal and he's an old pro at kindergarten now.

My favorite thing from the first day was after he came home Ben asked if he missed us and he said without skipping a beat, "Nope. I was too busy having fun to even remember you!" Which is probably the best thing he could have said.

And Banks is on cloud nine, in case you were wondering. He doesn't miss Benson a bit, and it's crazy to see the change in his personality. He's outgoing! And social! And sweet! This is going well so far. And I only cried 3 times the first day, 0 times the next few days, and once today as Benson got on the bus for the first time. I was like the person in those movies where they chase after the bus (or train) and fall in a mess in the middle of the street after it's out of sight. I just hope like crazy he actually gets off the bus when I go to meet him in an hour!

rub a dub dub

2010-08-19T07:11:00.000-07:00

three boys in a tub. Cute and squeaky clean and I just wanna smooch em.

2010-08-10T08:38:00.000-07:00

Pretty sure Benson will be the only Kindergartner in his class to know the branches of the Brachial Plexus.

We register him (for reals this time) on Thursday, as this is his last full week before school starts. Please have the end of the world before then. I'm hyperventilating.

dear summer,

2010-08-05T13:34:00.000-07:00

We're through. I just can't take you anymore. Sure we've had some good times, like

playing basketball,

and swimming lessons,

and visits with family,

and baby blessings,

and concerts in the park to listen to ridiculous "celtic" music all about beer and potatoes and brides,

And batman shirts from Grammy,

but seriously, we're done. You are too hot and dull. Please send in your oh-so-attractive friend Fall. He's always been my favorite anyway.

~~Love~~Regards,
Carrie

ps. I like you much better in Michigan. Let's meet there next summer and see if we can rekindle this romance.

white coat! woo wooo!

2010-08-01T13:15:00.000-07:00

I have typed and retyped this entry 4 times now, and nothing sounds right. I guess I can't really put into words how proud of Ben I am. He has accomplished so much already, and now is just starting down the really difficult part of the path but is so excited to learn e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g there is to know about bodies. It's seriously crazy how much he is has to memorize, even in the next 10 weeks. Crazy. I'm sure at some point it will get really tedious, but for now we hop into bed early every night and watch dissection videos and powerpoint slides, just to get a head start (and a stronger stomach) on the coming weeks in the cadaver lab. We are already planning a date night around a tour of the cadaver lab so I can really understand what he's doing every day. ha. I'm sure this makes me sound like I'm nuts, but I'm excited to learn along with him (but not have to actually have the stress of med school). Anyway, tomorrow is the beginning of the next four years for us and although I'm secretly terrified that I'll be too frequently lonely, I'm excited and proud and cheering my Ben on. GOOOOOOO DR. TRACY!!

2010-07-22T12:27:00.000-07:00

Playing in the rain

July has finally started to cool a bit (if you can call 90's down from 100's cool) and thank goodness. Our last house had AC and so I always thought the weather here was so mild... not too hot in the summer and not too cold in the winter. I realize now I only thought that because my thermostat kept us at a balmy 72 all the time and never went outside because all we had were rocks in our yard. Ah, those were the days. Now we really live the heat. 95 outside = 90 inside. We spend a lot of the day sitting and sweating. It's gross.

Anyway, it is getting cooler and we are even occasionally getting some cooling rain in this "monsoon" season as they like to call our month of a few 10 minute rainstorms. The other night we sat on the front porch and actually watched the storm sweep at us from down the street, creeping closer block by block. It was amazing to see, and reminded Ben of his childhood, watching storms with his family as sheets of rain swept across the lake until it finally reached them and soaked their heads. I've seen it once there too and how I wish my own children could grow up with that scene. It's really quite spectacular.

And in other news, now that I'm not absolutely dying from the heat I decided I could bear to make snickerdoodles and discovered that a tiny spider had set up residence in my mixing bowl. It's been a while since I cooked something I guess. And then I pulled a Rachel (from Friends, did you see the one about the English Trifle? ha ha) and made half a batch of sugar cookies and half a batch of Snickerdoodles, and THEN I dropped the cream of tartar all down the front of me and all over the floor. It really has been a while since I've been in the kitchen. May things go a little smoother when it comes time to put them in the oven. I'm kinda scared.

just lovin

2010-07-19T14:51:00.000-07:00

Love. this. face.

And the hair.

The end.

gumdrops

2010-07-18T16:21:00.000-07:00

Ah. So obviously I took a little breaky break from the bloggy blog for a while there, but I'm back! And hopefully going to post more often then once a week (crossing my fingers).

We have been soaking in the last of our summer togetherness this weekend. Tomorrow Ben starts med school and in one month Benson begins his formal education with all-day kindergarten. We are all excited and nervous for all of the above but trying not to think too much about it as we enjoy laying in the shade and eating giant gumdrops. Happy summer to all of you!

ahem, father's day

2010-06-24T10:17:00.000-07:00

Look! Look! I did something crafty!

Holidays have become so sad around here... I have seriously woken up surprised on the day of any given holiday in the last year and felt so badly because, as it turns out I'M THE MOM and it's my job to make holidays special and I didn't do it! Again! And father's day was really no exception, though I did take my sleepy self to the kitchen and make waffles and green chile chicken sausage for my children's father and Benson and I whipped up the above little shirt on Sunday afternoon while Daddy napped. And again, I swore that next year I'll do better. I'm sorry dear, my lack of planning is not reflective of your fatherlyness because we all know you are the best dad on Earth. It's true. I'd stake my life on that claim. And now for something completely different:

I have this song

playing over and over in my head this morning, which would normally be very annoying but today I'm just exciiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiited because it's in there cause I'm going on a trip to Mormon Mecca soon! I've never been so excited to embrace my Utah roots! Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

mini x 3

2010-06-17T14:50:00.000-07:00

I kid you not, my mind has been blown by my status as mom to three at least 300 times this week. I even went all the way back to I can't believe I'm married mind-blowingness. Seriously, how. did. i. get here?! Madness I tell you! Anyway...

The yearly reminder of my children's tininess was today and I'm happy to report they are as skinny as ever. Benson was a whopping 36 pounds, Banks a whopping 25, and Roman tipped the scales at 9lb 14oz. The best part of it all was that in trying to assure me that my kids were fine, my doctor (who I love) told me a story of a patient he recently saw who weighed 27 pounds at 9 months. All I could think was, "I gotta get that mom's phone number!" If I could get my kids to eat half of what that one does we'd be set! My poor little skinny kids.

Speaking of skinny kids, have you seen More Than a Game? That little Dru gave hope to my husband that maybe even our tiny kids will be awesome at basketball. And I have to say, it was a great documentary. Definitely worth a watch if you are even remotely interested in basketball, and it will make you love LeBron. I found him to be cute and witty and all around a nice guy, and if nothing else you'll see he is, as Ben says, "a beast of a man."

2010-06-15T07:36:00.000-07:00

Guess who slept till 5 am yesterday?

Wahooooooooooooooooo!

life is a bowl of berries

2010-06-09T20:25:00.000-07:00

This is the very face we all had as we strolled through the market today. Blueberries and raspberries were on super sale and consequently we bought a whole cart full of them. We are the easiest bunch in the world to make giddy with excitement. Give us some good fruit and we are all pleased as punch.

And after we scarfed our bowl full of berries, we spent the afternoon making origami monsters. Well, Benson and I did as poor Banks fell asleep right on the table waiting for me to finish with my "What the!?'s" and "Seriously now what the!'s" and fold his little vampire bat. It took faaaaar to long to figure out, but eventually we conquered the monsters! Benson's is some sort of flying thingymajig that I'd probably know the name of if I read comics.

The thing that's so fun about doing stuff like this is that Benson is usually so amazed at my skills that he spends the whole time saying, "Mom, I feel sooooooo lucky to have such a good mom. You are so talented at making monsters." And will often even though in a "You look so pretty when you are folding the paper like that." He knows how to win me over every time.

life on the farm

2010-06-02T17:18:00.000-07:00

A few days ago, Ben and I were talking with a friend and he remarked (having also recently moved from the west side to the east side of our fair city) that really there are two different Albuquerques. The west side can best be described as this:

(source)

But since moving to the east side we've seen life! We have already sort of adopted some critters that just wandered into our yard. Meet ninja:

Notice the grass!!

And here is LooShoo (named and even spelled by Benson) and her new kittens, which we just happened upon one day in our shed.

Here is where we do not mention that with all of this life we also discovered that our dirt moves at night with an unmentionable amount of cockroaches. I'm seriously shivering just thinking about it. Is this normal? Should I stop worrying if they are just outside (which they mostly are, thank goodness)? Or should I go out and mercilessly destroy like I want to?

And just so you don't have to end this post thinking about all those cockroaches, here's a little something else.

Sometimes baby Roman cries, even though he's laying on the softest blanket ever, so lovingly made by his mommy...

but most of the time he looks like this. Which is to say milk-drunk and pretty pleased with life.

carry on

2010-05-24T07:51:00.000-07:00

We are in full swing family-of-five-mode now. It's pretty crazy to be mom to three boys, and that is noted pretty much wherever we go. I get a lot of "you don't look old enough to have 3 kids!" which is funny because I'm never sure what to say... I'm really not old enough I suppose!

Roman has started to sleep more *hooRAY* so neglected hobbies are beginning to resurface and find a place in the daily schedule. Knitted blankets will be finished, and dresses will be sewn. Ben bought a peony plant for me this weekend and I planted it right outside my dining room window so I can look at it 1.5 million times a day. I love it so much I want to marry it. Seriously my heart is actually swelling right now just thinking about it. And a friend divided her irises and gave me a bunch so now I'm going to have a forest of irises. I'm stooooked. I can't wait to be a master gardener so I don't kill all my plants.

Anyway life is good and having a newborn (and two other kids) is craaazy. But at least Benson never ever tires of holding and loving Roman, so it's nice to have help. And it's about the sweetest thing in the world to watch big brother bounce and shush baby brother to soothe his cries.

sleepy time

2010-05-14T09:32:00.000-07:00

By the looks of our last few imports, you'd think we are getting a lot of sleep around here. Well one of is:

and he is one month old today. Happy 1 month little Roman noodle. Time is flying.

dear carson daly,

2010-05-06T11:51:00.001-07:00

Thank you so much for having a show in the wee hours of the morning. I don't know how in the world there are enough people to watch at that hour to justify production costs and your salary, but the 3 minutes I caught last night were amazing and sounded like this (click on the "walls are coming down"):

I love this song and it's my new favorite for now. So thanks for having them on so I could hear it and put it on repeat during dish washing time today. Hearing the song definitely made my 1 am date with this guy all the more enjoyable.

Yes, he likes to sleep during the day and not so much at night. Thanks so much for asking, Carson.

Your Newest Fan,
Carrie

Ps. Do you still paint your nail(s) black? Last time I saw you you were dating Christina Aguilerra and paintin the nails. Just wondering.

PPs. Did you know I have other children beside this little baby? I do! And they are still cute but harder to photograph. Soon I'll stop posting pictures of just the baby and put their mugs back on le blog. Soon.

PPPs. DID you also know that blogger automatically saves your posts as drafts? HOW COOL IS THAT? A person like you may never know the joy of this feature, but as my children pushed the off button on the power cord seconds ago and I thought I'd never see this post again, people like me are pleasantly surprised that just like magic the unpublished post lives on!

getting lost and loving the babe

2010-04-30T14:35:00.000-07:00

We've been trying to take pretty photos of the little baby, but it's proving exceedingly difficult as we have very filtered light in our house, and even that we only have for about 10 minutes in the evening. We'll keep trying!

Today has been such a nice day. We got lost. Like, 30 minutes of driving in who-knows-where-the-heck-we-are lost. But we were together, and listening to sweet lullabies, and snacking on grapes and it was kind of nice to just drive around randomly. And eventually we found the house we were looking for and bought our big kid (now registered for Kindergarten!) a real bike, which he is now out learning to ride in the snow(!?). Sniff.

The other news of the day is that not only does this sweet Roman love to snuggle, he is soothed to sleep by singing (a first for my babies). And so I've been singing this beautiful song today, but I haven't been able to get all the way through it without my voice cracking from overwhelming love yet. Babies are so much work, but somehow baby work just doesn't feel taxing like it probably should. He cries and poops and barfs all day (and night) but I love him all the more in his neediness. The words to the song really say it best:

Go back to sleep now

My darlin

And I'll keep all the bad dreams away

Breathe now, think sweet things

And I'll think of all the right words to say

Grow up now

My darlin

Please don't you grow up too fast

And be sure, darlin

To make all the good times last

Because we made you

My darlin

With the love in each of our hearts

We were a family, my darlin

Right from the start

And although it's hard to be without sleep, I look forward to many more nights of singing lullabies to my babe in the quiet of the night, with just the two of us. Because soon enough he'll be big and smart and won't find my voice to be the soothing comfort it is now. I've got to take advantage of my captivated audience while I can.

(song source)

brought to you by choosing to post rather than shower

2010-04-22T10:55:00.000-07:00

It's probably time to pop my head out of my newborn baby bubble. My live-in nanny just walked out the door (oh, sister... move closer), and now I'm thrown into the daily grind, sink or swim. Giddy up.

I'm finding it very difficult to articulate exactly how I feel about bringing this new little boy into the world. He is so unlike my other boys, I am treasuring every minute of getting to know him. Even his birth was a little gift to me--- I was finally able to have the birth experience I've always wanted, going into labor like a normal person, walking (IV-free), squeezing Ben's hand through it all, and finally knowing the feeling of this person emerging simply because my body knew exactly what to do and did it, before the doctor could even get there to catch him.

My house is a wreck most of the time, there are boxes still packed and waiting patiently, dozens of emails to be read, and hundreds of posts in my google reader, but this is the third, and I know how quickly they grow. And so our days are filled with holding this baby who loves loves loves to be held, rubbing his fluffy hairy little head, popsicles for the rest of us, and walks to the park, hopefully squeezing a nap in there somewhere. We are lucky to have a sweet little person to make us all slow down and enjoy every minute of babyness and childhood and family time.

Oh and that newborn smell! We are drinking baby Roman in.

Roman James Tracy

2010-04-14T13:16:00.001-07:00

2010-04-12T07:31:00.001-07:00

Moved in. No baby yet. Unpacking boxes.

xoxo

one a penny, two a penny

2010-04-02T08:58:00.000-07:00

Hot cross buns.

Happy Good Friday to everyone, and a very Happy Easter!

We will be doing lots of this:

yay!

checking the list

2010-04-01T13:48:00.000-07:00

done.

done.

not done.

nooooot even close to done.

yikes.

banksy birthday

2010-03-31T07:36:00.000-07:00

Surprise visit to ABQ jump! They now ask every day if we can go back.

Waiting for Daddy to come home to open presents is always so torturous, but makes for a happy boy when the time finally comes.

Brothers.

Sailboat for the bathtub. He asks to take a bath 3 times a day, so it's really perfect for him. And it's not plastic so I love it!

Famous "smile, Banks" pose.

Somehow we don't have a picture of the cake which is really too bad since it was one of my greatest masterpieces... ha! I made marshmallow chocolate cake (which tastes amazing) but Banks wanted a t-rex on top so I washed some of his plastic dinos and plopped them on top. Poor kid! Next year I'll have more energy. He didn't eat a bite of it anyway, he was too busy playing with his toys. Overall, despite my lack of energy, I think he had a very happy birthday. Kids are really pretty easy to please.

2010-03-29T19:19:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday to my sweetest little 3-year old muffin. You are an absolute delight and I just love you to pieces.

It is such an interesting experience to be the same amount pregnant with this baby (their due dates are one day apart), and knowing that I was exactly this far along when Banks was born. Funny thing too, is that this baby is already nearly twice the size Banks was at birth. He will always be my tiny little snuggle muffin, sweet and small but so strong. I can't help but wonder if I will start to let him grow up more when I have a new baby to care for.

oh, hello there!

2010-03-26T07:30:00.000-07:00

The kids cried for a tree house recently, so we improvised (having no trees in our yard). This picture will sort of tie in later. Oh and Benson is dancing and that face is a happy one, believe it or not.

I'm pretty sure I completely forgot I have a blog this week. So sorry, little blog. You have been so neglected.

Remember how I'm going to have a baby? He's supposed to make his appearance in 3 weeks. And because those three weeks are just sooooooooo not tiring, I think I'm going to move before then. Yes! That's a great idea! Let's pack up my house and move it in 2 weeks, just for fun!

Really hoping some extreme nesting kicks in pretty soon and I can get going on that whole putting the entire house in boxes thing.

But all complaining aside, we are really excited. Benson wished for a tree for his birthday and he's going to get it. There's even a lilac bush for me. Ben will bike to medical school, and I will only be 9 minutes from the fabric store, instead of 26. We will be a bit cozier than we are now, but I'm hoping the whole zen, uncluttered, essentials-only picture is really as lovely as it sounds.

So, big changes ahead for us, blog! Which probably means that you will continue to feel the sting of neglect for a bit, but I'll try to pop in more often.

xox, Cat

i forgot to mention..

2010-03-19T07:59:00.000-07:00

that Ben got accepted to medical school!

You know, at the beginning of the application cycle (clear back in June of 09) I tried to convince Ben to not even apply to our state school because at the time I was so lonely for green I thought I might die. I thought he would surely be accepted to at least 3 schools and that we would have our choice of green locales in the East. And all of this would happen by November.

ha.

Life doesn't always go as I plan, and I guess this was a good lesson. We have been waiting for months and months and months for word of acceptance and it has been a very annoying time for us. I can't say it was challenging, because really it's just a career and we have all been healthy and happy and this pregnancy has gone SO much better than anticipated so I really cannot complain, but it has certainly been annoying to wonder what our future holds.

BUT now we know and we must say ten thousand times a day, "I'm/you're going to be a doctor." I'm just so excited that I can have a plan now. I'm such a nerd... nothing makes me happier than a life plan. And so we are now (genuinely) excited to be citizens of New Mexico for 4 more years.

And how nice of UNM basketball to get really good just in time for us to be really proud of Ben's alma mater. :)

waiting

2010-03-15T07:00:00.000-07:00

(Benson at the front door, asleep in Daddy's jacket and hat, waiting for his car to turn the corner)

There is no one in the world these boys love as much as their daddy.

All day long they wait

and wait

and wait

for the garage door to open so they can greet Daddy with hugs and stories, and "come see this!"es.

I used to feel a little jealous, but now I just feel lucky.

Lucky my kids have a dad they love so much, and who loves them back even more.

And lucky that I feel the same way as they do.

There is no better sound than the low rumble of the garage door opening.

brought to you by sunday afternoon naps and guard duty

2010-03-14T15:45:00.000-07:00

2 types of popcorn + one really terrible movie somehow still = the perfect friday night in

Have you seen Where the Wild Things Are? Worst. Movie. Ever. More than once I wanted to just turn it off and just read the book already. Maybe you liked it better than I did, though?

little perch

2010-03-09T07:45:00.000-08:00

Thanks so much for all the nice comments and constructive criticism. We would have never noticed that hand cut off (although the elastic bugged me too), the bathroom flooresqueness (wow, good word!), and even the overexposure. And if you feel the need, scroll down to number seven and notice the absence of a particularly annoying light and banner. I'm learning.

Number 2 is the winner (which, for the record, was my favorite) and will hold its place of honor over to the right on ye olde profile.

We've had some rather murky weather of late and I've taken advantage by cozying up by the window and feverishly working on a little something for the wee one. I have to get it done before he comes because after he's outta there I'll lose my little perch for the cable stitch holder, and it's ever so convenient to have it so close at hand, resting comfortably on baby's bummy.

let's take a vote

2010-03-07T20:17:00.000-08:00

EVEN though I promised my friend Alison I was not going to put pictures of my pregnant self on my blog, here I am. We took the photos after we realized the other day that I don't have a single photo of my belly when I was pregnant with Banks. And although I felt a little weird pretending to be a model in front of the whole downtown crowd Saturday night, I know someday I will be glad I have something to document this time in my life. Anyway, Ben and I cannot agree at all on which I should choose for my new profile picture. So I leave it to you, dear readers, to vote! And do vote so we can settle this. Ready, go. Oh and if you have a good reason for your choice, do share.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

Oh and for those of you keeping track, I am 34 weeks pregnant or 8 1/2 months. Only 6 weeks to go!

big 5

2010-03-04T07:53:00.000-08:00

Started the day with a surprise trip to to the dinosaur museum (called NUseum by Banks)... Here Benson is showing the effects of bounding into his parents room at 6 am. My siblings will now insist that this is my payback for waking everyone up at 3 am on Christmas morning every year. Ha. This kid is my clone.

Five seconds later, he discovers where we are and cannot believe this awesome surprise! Seriously woke up in sheer disbelief that we weren't at Walmart or Target, but the DINOSAUR MUSEUM! Best mom moment ever.

Finally opening the presents that have been taunting him all day. He got a t-ball stand and bat from dad and legos with wheels from mom, and after opening he immediately forgot about his cake and ran upstairs to put the truck together.

His favorite dinosaur is the Argentinosaurus. He wants to be a paleontologist when he grows up (right now anyway).

Pretty much summarizes the day. And then the camera ran clean out of batteries. Dang it!

And this little gem is brought to you by the letter h. For how HUGE my belly looks in this dress. And don't worry... We relit the candles and tried again. Want to know Benson's wish this year? To move to a new house with a tree he can climb.

5 year olds are so fun. I can't believe I'm the mom to an almost Kindergartner. Benson woke up the next day and picked up his basketball to practice dribbling and said, "Wow, Mom! This is so light now! I guess I got bigger last night because I'm 5 now." I guess you did, buddy. I feel it too.

stop the presses

2010-02-23T16:25:00.000-08:00

Bluebell is coming to Albuquerque. I'm never leaving. The end.

Ps. Do you think this is an answer to my prayers that I learn to love the idea of living here for the next 4 years? (and no, this is not an announcement of med school yet. Tune in March 15th for that one) Because I kind of think it is. Thank you, Heavenly Father, for sending me Bluebell.

harem pants a la benson

2010-02-23T07:55:00.000-08:00

My son could be a budding fashion designer. The other day he created homemade harem pants. And now I know why those pants really look ridiculous; it's just a long sleeve tee on your legs.

on coloring trucks

2010-02-19T14:11:00.000-08:00

Ability to draw garbage trucks and tractor thingies (that's the technical term) is not a requisite for being mom to (almost) three boys. But they sure think you are cool if you can.

2010-02-17T08:02:00.000-08:00

one

each

please

Pretty sure I've never been this excited about shopping in my whole life. Saving my pennies for March (um, early Mother's day, maybe?) Mom, this is the maker of that $40 a yard fabric I've been talking about!

seven

2010-02-15T07:13:00.000-08:00

The war would now be over.

We would be just coming back from tibet.

Our bad luck from that broken mirror would end today.

That chapter 13 would finally be gone.

All this if something else had happened 7 years ago today.

But thankfully none of that did, because instead we were busy getting ready to spend the rest of eternity together.

Someday 7 years will seem so few, but today I am amazed. 7 years! And although it's cliche, each one has truly topped the last.

7 things I love about being married to you, love:

You let me warm my freezing feet on your warm legs any time I want to.

I can cry whenever I need and you are always there to tell me things will turn out okay. Even if I cried about that same thing yesterday.

When I make dinner, you do the dishes! (usually)

You never make me feel bad about taking a nap when I have ten thousand other things I should be doing.

You don't get mad that I move your movies down in our Netflix queue so I can move the Coco Chanel movie to the top.

You think I'm awesome because I make hot fudge and bread from scratch.

You are my perfect other half. All that I am not, you are.

xxxxo

squash pasta (don't be scared)

2010-02-09T11:29:00.000-08:00

Squash covered pasta. What can I say? I was scared to try it frankly, and anticipated cold cereal for dinner following this culinary disaster. Boy was I wrong. THIS STUFF IS AMAZING. Amazing! So good that Ben (extreme squash hater) took it for lunch the next day, and the children (don't get me started on their hatred for all things vegetabley) thought it was macaroni and cheese and had second helpings. You do not like squash in any form? Try it try it, you'll conform! (wow that was clever)

Squash Pasta (adapted from Giada's Kitchen)

3 Tbs olive oil
1 lb butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt (I use Kosher)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
3/4 to 1 cup whole milk
1 lb pasta (I used cellentani)
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil (very optional-- I didn't use it but it would be pretty for color)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (again, mostly for garnish and I actually preferred it without)

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Add the squash, garlic, the salt, and the pepper. Saute until the squash is golden and tender, 5-7 minutes. Add broth, bring to a simmer, then cover and cook until squash is very soft, another 5-7 minutes. Transfer to a blender (BE CAREFUL, I've had hot things explode in there too many times) or food processor and puree until very smooth.

Cook pasta in salted boiling water until desired doneness.

Combine pasta, squash mixture, and 3/4 cup milk in a large pot. Stir to combine and heat through if necessary. Add remaining milk as desired to loosen the consistency. Add basil and cheese (if using), season to taste with salt and pepper and serve! I served mine with parmesan focaccia and green salad.

if i had $90 to spare

2010-02-04T14:32:00.000-08:00

I waaaaaant this dress. Look at the profile view of it here. That mannequin has the cutest baby bump.

cupcakes of all kinds

2010-02-03T11:14:00.000-08:00

These are the best homemade cupcakes I've ever made, without question. You MUST try them.

Key Lime Cupcakes with White Chocolate Frosting
{adapted from CuisineNie, adapted from Food Network}
Makes about 18
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp grated key (or regular) lime zest
1 1/2 Tbsp freshly squeezed key (or regular) lime juice
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup buttermilk

The Frosting:
5 ounces good quality white chocolate, chopped into small chucks
3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
Pinch salt
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 Tbsp lime juice (bottled or freshly squeezed)
1/4 cup sour cream
lime zest or candied lime peel for garnish

* Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla extract, key lime zest and juice and mix well. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In 5 parts total, alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry. Mix until just combined. Line a muffin pan with paper liners and fill each liner almost to the top with batter. A spring loaded 1/4 cup ice cream scoop works great for this and ensures the cupcakes are all the same size. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the tops begin to barely brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Remove cupcakes from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then transfer cupcakes to a baking rack to cool completely.

FROSTING: In a small heat proof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, carefully and slowly melt the white chocolate. Remove from heat and let cool until just slightly warm. Meanwhile, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, gradually add the powdered sugar until well combined. Add the salt, vanilla extract, key lime juice, and sour cream and mix until very smooth. Add the melted white chocolate and mix just until incorporated. Frost the cupcakes and garnish with a bit of grated lime zest or candied lime peel.

And speaking of cupcakes, this one is measuring right on target and looks like he won't give us the grief that Banks did. And I'm already to my semimonthly appointments! Best part of the ultrasound today; seeing what appears to be the same pointy and dimpled chin as Banks. It was so so cute and I can't wait to meet this little guy.

Oh and ever so sorry for the photobooth photos of photos... ye olde scanner died 3 days after we turned down our free printer with computer purchase option. Thanks a lot Murphy.

2010-01-29T08:09:00.000-08:00

Meet Jane, Josie, and I-forgot-her-name West. They are taking care of the farm animals at our house now, after being rescued from the toy bin at the Bargain Box yesterday.

I also bought this little beauty. I'd link it but Anthropologie doesn't appear to sell it online. And I bought the last bottle at my store, so don't go looking for it here. I am now a walking temptation... People go running for vanilla cupcakes when I come near, and they don't even know why. Mmmmmm I'm a giant cupcake...

These two are a sample of the retail therapy that took place yesterday. We are STILL waiting to hear our future decided and it's taking its toll. I'm trying to be patient, to know that everything is going to work out, but I must say this application process has been very humbling for me. I cannot imagine why Ben doesn't have 15 acceptances right now! I'd let him in because he is totally amazing! Anyway, perhaps you've been wondering what's going on with this process and that is it. Nothing.

And just because these two insisted on a photo in their jammies this morning:

dreaming of green beauty... again

2010-01-27T08:42:00.000-08:00

If I could have a wedding reception again this summer (which would be funny since I got married in February), I would totally do it just like this one. Oh and the dress! It's so pretty and perfect for this setting. Maybe someday I'll just have a party like this. Oooo my artichoke party would be perfect here!

Images via a cup of jo, one of my favorite daily reads

no girls allowed (except mommy)

2010-01-24T16:02:00.000-08:00

The other night we had some friends kids over, and I must say that they are delightful kids. But on this particular night the girls came up with the brilliant idea to form a "girls only" club where, as the name might imply, NO BOYS WERE ALLOWED.

Which is firstly, hilarious, and secondly quite surprising to Benson who hasn't really experienced gender discrimination yet. So he told us about it tonight at dinner, and while Ben was beginning his diplomatic, "how does that make you feel?" speech I immediately helped him plot revenge. Thus the founding of the "Boy's Club."

Now apparently even if you don't understand genders yet, you do automatically know that with a club comes signage. So Benson wrote up this little sign (with spelling help, of course) and found an envelope to send to his friend with instructions about this new club. Here is the letter exactly as dictated:

Skyler,

This is only for boys. Don't tell any girls. But you can tell them, "Have fun in your girl's club." (that's my favorite part) But you'll have fun with me and we'll plan out things. What about your mom? You can tell your mom.

Your Friend,
Benson

I hope this doesn't cause too many problems the next time they get together. Although, the girls did start it. :)

disneyland

2010-01-18T18:56:00.000-08:00

Looking down the driveway of our hotel--- Benson said when we came up to it, "Mommy, are we staying in a sky scraper?!

SO excited waiting for the shuttle to Disneyland

Would not look at the camera for anything. There's a train!

If you could only see Benson's face...

Looking pensive over pepperoni

First of about 6,000 rides on the teacups. We were this excited every. single. time.

Did you even know Disneyland had a carousel? They do. Kids love it.

This is what I got for prompting him to smile.

I don't know why but this photo makes me want to say, "MMMERP!"

Big thunder mountain. Benson loved this one (as shown by the hand raised in the air and not death gripping the seat belt thingy).

Banks would not go into the whale's mouth for anything, so Benson and I went alone.

Bubbles at the Pixar parade were one of the highlights of the trip. Bubbles!

Banks was very enthused about Sea World. See? That kid is EXCITED!

And last but not least, this one is entitled "What I Wouldn't Give to Go Back In Time and Tell Myself to Turn Back on the Auto Focus." Blast! It gets published anyway for the amazing potential of actually having both kids looking at the camera AND smiling at the same time! It was never meant to be, I guess.

So, I finally got around to editing and posting pictures from our trip. I went a little nuts on the editing of some of them, but I was feeling artistic tonight. Anyway our little holiday to Cali was our first real family vacation. It was awesome. I'll spare everyone the deets and just give a few highlights:

I have never seen our kids more excited to stay in a hotel. We could see the pool from our room and they thought it was the greatest "skyscraper" ever.
having to hold our hands over the kids ears and eyes so we could go on Pirates one more time
both kids screaming in absolute terror at the 3D movie about bugs, and running from it 3 minutes in because they were screaming so loudly
Benson's excitement at going on his first roller coaster and loving it
Banks giggling and shouting on the tea cups
the seagull who dive bombed me, bit my thumb, and stole Benson's pizza at Sea World, as well as the 5 who preformed a Monty Pythonish skit by working together to fly off with our whole bag of popcorn
Banks saying, "I like this!" one second and then the next shouting, "I do not like this!" because he got scared
the magic of the whole thing. Best. Vacation. Ever. Taking kids to Disneyland is one of the best perks of parenthood.

2010-01-14T07:39:00.000-08:00

As it turns out that nap I needed has turned into 4 days of sickness, so I still haven't had the energy to edit/convert all the photos from our trip.

But.

I had this little gem in my reader this morning so I though I'd pass it along. It's the top 10 cutest things of 2009, and it includes Emo Bun up there. I had a good chuckle over the list this morning and I hope you do too. Here's to hoping I get better soon!