December 4, 2007

7:15 Drop off

7:30 Ariel started off on the wrong foot (grumpy foot?) but eventually consented to eat oatmeal. I tried to change it up today and offered her scrambled eggs as well but she abstained.

8:45 Went to Stroller class for the first time in a month. It was an easy class but pretty hard on me. I was punished for my slacking. Ariel did a lot of walking at the mall.

10:30 After class we met Ellen and Mae and Sam. We went to the creepy Croc kiosk and got fuzzy Crocs for Alex and Adam. Alex picked a Blue jibitz for each of them, which I thought was very sweet. I just hope he's not teased at school for it. I would have gotten some too (Crocs, not jibitz) but they didn't have adult sizes yet and going to Macy's seemed like too much work. Maybe I won't get them afterall... Anyway, no pictures yet, I'll save that for Thursday when Ariel wears her pink ones.

Ariel insisted on wearing Adam's too big ones with Clue! and tripped several times on the way to the food court. I packed Alex a lunch and Ellen got Mae and Sam cheese on a stick. I had no idea such a thing existed and probably I should stay away from them, especially after working out. But processed cheese food! Deep fried! And Ariel approved, she said, "Sammy, bite please" and he shared some with her. Sweet boy.

11:15 Left the mall, a tad too late. In Parade magazine this week, Marilyn vos Savant said that perpetually late people aren't rude, they are just creative people less aware of the passage of time. See, I'm creative!

11:37 Picked Adam up.

11:45 Dropped Alex off.

11:50 Got home, Ariel was asleep and went into her bed.

1:15 Ariel woke up. When I went into get her, she said, "Dee-Dee, what happened?" And I said, "I don't know Ariel, what happened?" and then she showed me she tried to take her sweater off and got stuck.

After getting out of bed, Ariel had lunch. Cheese and some baby food I found in the pantry.

2:25 Started to get ready to pick up Alex. I was unable to find one of Ariel's shoes. I looked and looked and could not find it so eventually (and much to Ariel's protests) I put on one of Adam's old shoes.

2:35 Went to pick up Alex. It was very windy today. The wind made Ariel crazy:







2:50 Got home. Then we all went to the store.

3:00 Got to the store. When we opened the car door, a gust of wind blew out a paper airplane that had been sitting on the floor for over a week, since the boys had a playdate with Gabriel. This caused Alex much pain and suffering. First he was upset that he lost a plane that he apparently didn't even remember having, then he was worried that it would get run over by a car. Much drama.

First, we stopped by the yarn store so I could get the community knitting pattern. I have 3 days to knit a pair of mittens, so I think I should stop blogging and get to it.

Next, we went to the grocery store where cookies were had by all. And, yeah, I bought some groceries.

4:00 Got home.

4:30 Pick up. Ariel did not want to stop her game of "Chase the remote car" she was playing with the boys.

Happy Hanukkah!

I made my first batch of latkes (ever) and they were yummy!



And Alex shaking his first present to make sure it rattled like legos.



"Oh. My. Goodness. It's the battle droid pack that I've been asking for for months!!! How did you know???"



Thank you Grandma!



Adam liked his transformer too!

December 3, 2007

Hello. I'd like to apologize right off the bat for not having any pictures today. So, I'll have to show you pictures from last week's sessions.

On Wednesday, I took pictures of Kyleigh:



Full session is here.

And on Saturday I photographed baby Skylar:



Full session is here.

Otherwise, we had a non-eventful weekend. Alex went to two birthday parties and Sunday school. Adam went to one birthday party (with Alex). Jeremy went to zero birthday parties and I attended one (with Alex and Adam).

7:20 Drop off

7:30 Breakfast - hot cereal

9:15 Left for the grand adventure - Starbucks! We met Ellen and Mae at 29th street mall. Ellen and I enjoyed the gingerbread lattes, which I have had several of now. Ellen nailed the flavor down, chai-like but less in your face about it. Ariel saw Mae's donut and insisted on one of her own so I shared one with here.

10:10 Second adventure - checked Macy's to see if they sell kid's fuzzy crocs. My kids are still insisting on sandals this winter so I figure they would at least wear warm sandals. And no, Macy's does not have kid's fuzzy crocs, in fact they don't sell kids shoes at all. Isn't that strange?

10:30 Third adventure - "storytime" at Borders, which was really just a sing along with a slightly strange Gymboree guy and one small book. It was aimed at the under 2 set and Ariel had an ok time. Alex looked at a Stars Wars book and Mae was not impressed.

11:15 Left Borders to go pick up Adam.

11:30 Picked up Adam

11:45 Dropped off Alex.

Came home, Ariel had some mac & cheese before going down for a nap.

2:30 Woke Ariel to go get Alex.

The kids played again after school. Ariel swung some.

3:00 Got home. Had a big snack since Alex's lunch consisted of a Starbucks rice crispy treat. Ariel had some cheese.

3:30 Put on Blue's Clues.

4:20 Pick up.

November 30, 2007

Adventures with... Hannah?

Laura needed an emergency babysitter, so Hannah joined us today.

7:15 Ariel drop off

7:30 Hannah drop off.

7:45 Ariel breakfast - hot cereal.

Hannah is a freakishly easy baby. At 9:00 Ariel was whining and rubbing her eyes to I put her down for a nap (she fell right asleep). Hannah sat on the floor and watched Alex build a pillow fort for an hour. Then she sat at the table while I worked on holiday cards and Alex made his friend a birthday card.

See her cute raspberry hat that I knit?





Crissy didn't know I had a Santa hat prop. Oh, but I do. Every good Jewish girl needs a Santa hat:



Oh, the only thing Hannah accomplished this morning was taking off her shoe and sock.

10:30 Hannah made a noise so I figured she was hungry. I fed her all the orange goo. Then she slowly had 1/2 a bottle.

11:00 Ariel woke up in a better mood.

11:20 We all had to leave to pick up Adam. Hannah's car seat wouldn't fit in the empty spot in my car (the way way back) so since Ariel is still rear facing in my car, I put Hannah in Ariel's seat, Ariel in Adam's seat, Adam in Alex's seat and Alex in the booster. The boys thought it was hilarious.

11:40 Dropped off Alex. Instead of going straight home, we went to the grocery store so I could get some flour for the challah tonight. I put Hannah in the sling and Ariel and Adam in the car cart and it was surprisingly easy. I guess I've already taken 3 kids to the grocery store before.

12:10 Got home. Hannah finished her bottle.

12:30 Put Hannah down for a nap. I sang twinkle twinkle, laid her down and shut the door. She said, "eh eh eh" and then was quiet. Five minutes later I checked to make sure she was still breathing, it was so easy. Seriously, if my kids were this easy I might even have more (or drink less ;) )

Here's Ariel with a balloon a Get Fit Mommy friend gave her. She had LOTS of fun with it today, and picked up a new phrase, "Can't reach."



1:00 Made Ariel some mac & cheese but she didn't eat it. She did eat a cheddar baby cheese though.

1:50 Laura picked up Hannah, who she had to wake.

2:30 We picked up Alex. The kids played outside today even though it was 20 degs and then ended up crying because they were so cold.

3:00 Got home, we had some hot chocolate and brownies that I had made for Adam's 1/2 Birthday today. Actually, at the store I was looking to buy a 1/2 cake but they only had pies and German chocolate. Oh well, Adam is happy with brownies too.

3:30 Ariel was flipping out again so I put her down for a nap.

3:40 Pick up.

November 27, 2007

This evening, I found myself reminiscing over the objects I asked Ariel to remove from her mouth today. Off the top of my head, I've come up with

1. The Blue's Clues video box
2. A crayon
3. Another crayon
4. Her shoe
5. My shoe

Never a dull moment with that one.

7:15 Drop off

7:30 Breakfast - oatmeal again.

8:15 Our friends came over, with coffee!!!



And I just had to take this picture, look how long and curly Ariel's hair is getting. Do you remember her a year ago?



And a year ago:



We thought the poor thing would never get hair.

Here's an accidental picture of Sam:



And a picture of Sam wearing the hat I made for him.



See, by age 4 they just put things near their mouths.

Ariel had some snacks with her friends... pumpkin bread, graham crackers and a baby cheese. Baby cheese is our new over priced snack item - you know those waxed Laughing Cow ones. Adam loves opening his, but rarely eats it. Oh well, more for me.

10:45 Our friends leave.

11:25 Drove again to pick up Adam. And for the record, I picked him up while still wearing my PJs. But I didn't get out the car so I don't think anyone knew.

11:45 Dropped Alex off (in my jammies)

11:50 Got home. Asked Ariel if she wanted to eat lunch and she said, "NO" and so she went down for her nap. She was asking for sleep puppy before she got into the room, I think she was really tired.

Adam and I ate lunch and then I took a shower AND got dressed. Yay me! Then I did some photography work while Adam laid on the floor talking to himself.

2:30 Ariel woke up and it was time to get Alex.

2:45 At pick up, Gabriel wanted Alex and Adam to come over for a playdate, but he didn't have enough carseats so I drove them over. Then Ariel and I went home. Ariel woke up cranky and didn't want to eat much. She had some yogurt then watched Blue's Clues.

4:30 Pick up.

November 26, 2007

Happy Monday. I hope everyone had a nice break. Mine was just ok. Grammie took the boys to her house Tuesday so Jeremy and I could go skiing, but between Jeremy's debilitating pink-eye and my slightly less debilitating cold coupled with the fact that there's still no snow, we chose not to go. We spent our 3 day break lazing around the house and ODing on Heroes (we are almost caught up with this season).

Ariel came by on Thursday and finished up her 2 year portrait session, here.

We did spend Thanksgiving at my parents house with Hannah and Ariel. Pictures are here.

And on Saturday we drove down to Grammie's house and then had Thanksgiving Part II on Sunday. Perhaps someday I will be adult enough to at least bring a dish to one of the many Thanksgivings we frequent, but for now we are still acting like 12 year olds. Pictures are here.

And here's one of all of us:



7:15 Drop off. Blech. My cold is still hanging on and I'm not sleeping well.

Breakfast - oatmeal.

9:00 Alex went next door for a playdate. Josh called me when it was time for Alex to come over and it took my brain 15 seconds to realize I was talking to a 5 year old and not a non-English speaker.

9:30 Ariel and I went to the post office so I could mail a photo order and then we did a full shopping trip (complete with Cookie!). It was super fun.

10:45 Got home, put the groceries away.

11:10 Alex came home and had a quick lunch - tomato soup and cheese. Ariel just had cheese.

11:30 Drove to pick up Adam.

11:45 Dropped off Alex. Came home and Ariel took a nap. I took a little doze too.

1:45 Ariel woke up.

2:30 Picked up Alex from school.

2:45 The kids wanted to check out the snow on the way home. Ariel didn't bring a jacket today so she borrowed Adam's. The hat used to belong to Gavin and then Adam. I liked it on the boys and I like it on Ariel, it's a silly hat.



For snack, Ariel had snow.



Is it good, Ariel?



And who did she learn to eat snow from?



Got home and the kids wanted to watch a new Blue's Clues. Ariel watched for a bit and then wanted her mac & cheese that I had offered earlier.

4:30 Pick up.

November 20, 2007

Today was an interesting day, as Jeremy stayed home with a debilitating (but hopefully non-lethal) case of pink eye.

7:00 On time drop off.

Breakfast - gogurt (yay!) and hot cereal (eh)

8:00 Drove husband and 3 kids around Boulder. Jeremy needed to take his car in for its 60k tune up but was not fit to deal with the public. I followed him over there, then dealt with the public and drove him home. We also stopped by the grocery store to fill a pink eye eye-drop script (sadly, not the morphine Jeremy was begging for) and the bank. I got to deposit $325 cash in non-counterfeit $50s from selling my lens on Craig's List last night (and yes dad, we met in a public place and I didn't get murdered). But the universe works in mysterious ways and the estimate for Jeremy's car was... you guessing it(!) $325. Sigh.

9:00 Got home. Ariel had gotten bored in the hour long car trip and had taken off her shoes and socks. I didn't put them for the 3 foot walk into the house and Oh the dramatics rivaled Jeremy's.

Decided that it was a good time to take Ariel's 2 year portraits. I've only looked at a few, but this is the best of the bunch. She was having a hard time staying not only on the backdrop, but in the same room as the backdrop (and I'm out of duct tape):



10:00 Packed up the kids, they are spending the rest of the week with Grammie!

11:30 Put Ariel down for a nap with JJ in charge and then drove the boys down to Park Meadows to meet Grammie.

12:30 Got to Park Meadows and enjoyed a lunch with Grammie at PF Chang's.

2:00 Left the mall sans children.

3:00 Got home. Ariel was awake and kazooing. She had been up for a while and had already watched Blue's Clues.

3:15 Jeremy hadn't done much else so I changed her diaper and fed her some mac & cheese.

4:30 Pick up.

Have a happy Thanksgiving and see you Monday.

PS - Ellen, Jeremy loved the cookies and quote-end-quote "Ellen is the best!"

November 19, 2007

Hello everyone. I hope you had a nice weekend. For once our weekend wasn't too crazy. The boys and I went to Tot Shabbat Friday night, which was extra special because it was Ellen's first cantor gig. She did a great job!

I took our family/holiday pictures on Saturday. I won't spoil our family shot because it's on our card, but here are a few of the boys:







7:30 Late drop off. Breakfast - Ariel wasn't that excited about my fresh Bisquick waffles.

9:00 We finally all got our acts together and got ready for the activity of the day - playdate at Riley's house. I'm not even sure if Alex likes Riley much (she a girl) but the do play together fine and I like Riley's mom. And it was a beautiful day (must have been 75 degs) and the kids all played outside for a while.

11:45 Got home and shoved some mac & cheese in Ariel so I could put her down for a nap.

12:00 Laura and Hannah arrived for Hannah's picture session, Ariel went down for a nap and the boys watched Robots.

Here's my favorite of the day:



Hannah's full session is here.

2:45 Ariel woke up.

3:45 We rode out bikes to the grocery store (sadly the trailer had a flat but I pulled it with Adam and Ariel anyway) so we could pick up dinner (frozen pizza) and cat dinner (uh, cat food)

4:30 Got home. Becky beat us home thought aliens had kidnapped us.

November 16, 2007

7:00 Drop off

7:30 Breakfast - yogurt and pancakes.

7:45 We opened Mae's birthday gift to Ariel. Ariel was super excited, even Jeremy commented that she seemed more shrill and loud than for anything she opened on her birthday. And the funny thing is, Mae chose my #2 gift that we were looking at when we were at Target. If I wasn't so cheap, I was going to get Ariel both the stuffed animals and the Blue DVD. But alas I am cheap, so Ariel just got the DVD.

But I think Alex was even more excited about the gift than Ariel. He immediately decided that he could have Sprinkles and Ariel could have Blue and then they played a rousing game of Blue's Clues. Alex put clues all over the house (on the window, a book and Sprinkles), wrote it down in his handy-dandy notebook and then solved the puzzle. Blue wanted to read a Ten Little Ladybugs with Sprinkles by the window.

So here's Alex (or Steve as he decided - is it weird that I have a small crush on Joe?) reading the book to Blue and Sprinkles. Ariel had lost interest at this point:



And look what Alex drew in his handy-dandy notebook:




He even came up with how to spell Blue on his own, though when he told me it was in the right order.

So thanks, Mae, for the great gift. This was one of the least whiny mornings in recent history.

9:00 I put on the new Blue DVD so I could take a shower. They watched "Steve Goes to College" which was new to Alex and therefore VERY exciting.

10:00 Time to run some super fun errands. First I went to the bank and deposited 3 weeks worth of checks (sorry people who write me checks and I never deposit them, uh... Becky and uh... Laura). Then we stopped at the ski store so I could get my board tuned and my new bindings put on. They had a week wait on the tuning so I just got the bindings on. And they only charged me $5 which was a great investment for not having to mess around with tiny little screws. While we waited, we went to Taco Bell. Ariel had half a cheese quesadilla.

11:30 Picked up Adam from school.

11:45 Dropped off Alex

12:00 Got home, put Ariel down for a nap. Ariel didn't think she needed a nap and it took her a while to fall asleep.

2:35 Pick up, Becky had to wake Ariel up. And Adam and I had to run to Alex's school to pick him up, but luckily we weren't late.

Good luck at your doctor's appointment, Ariel (and boy am I glad I'm not the one taking you).

November 15, 2007

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ARIEL!!!

Ariel's birthday was yesterday and we had a family pizza party last night. Ariel was tired and sick but still had a good time:





All the pictures are here. And familyrino, we are trying an experiment. I think you can print directly off of flickr to Target, you can get your prints that way.

7:15 Drop off.

7:30 Breakfast (shared with Dolly) - hot cereal.

Another lost morning. Alex and Ariel watched Blue's Clues while I did Wendy stuff.

11:00 Lunch - mac & cheese.

11:15 Rode out bikes to Adam's school. Adam greeted us with an orange poked with cloves tied with a blue ribbon and no note. Um, a room freshner?

11:45 Dropped Alex off at school.

11:55 Got home, Ariel and Dolly went down for a nap.

1:30 Ariel woke up, a bit early I thought.

2:20 Rode quickly to the post office before picking up Alex from school.

3:00 Went to the CU Museum. I was going to meet Rachel and Lilianna. We never found them, but we had a nice afternoon at the museum. Alex found a rock and stone grinder and told me how the Indian (they can say that!) used it to grind corn. They liked playing with the animal puppets and skins. We also looked at the dinosaurs and some of the new mayan exhibit. And it turns out Rachel was waiting for us at the Boulder History Museum, located 3 blocks away and of which I've never heard of. Oh well, now I know.

4:15 Left the museum.

4:30 Pick up.

November 13, 2007

7:20 Drop off

7:30 Ariel requested breakfast. I forgot that we finished the oatmeal yesterday. So I gave her mac & cheese and she was fine with that. Adam also opened and then didn't touch a yogurt so Ariel happily finished it for him.

We had another boring morning. Yet again I didn't go to stroller class. I think at this point, there's not many days of November left so maybe I'll wait until December. Of course, working out to Christmas music for 6 weeks can get a little old.

Oh, I did manage to make banana bread out of our black bananas. Ariel did not care for it, even though I put chocolate chips in it.

I took Ariel out to play with my news lens:





11:15 Left on bikes to pick up Adam.

11:30 At Adam's school I saw chocolate on Alex's face and wiped it off and noticed he had eye boogers. Then I remember that he had complaining that his eyes itched. I took him by Adam's teacher and she confirmed it looked like pink eye. I think Ariel might have it too, so we went home instead of taking Alex to school.

I tried to take a good pink eye picture but it's not very bad looking without the boogers. However, this is one of the best tack-sharp eye pictures I've ever gotten. Thanks, new lens :)



So when we got home I had to call Alex's school to excuse him, then call the doctor and then Becky. Blech.

12:00 Down for nap

1:30 Ariel woke up, sopping wet again (and the reason for the lizard pants). I think she's holding her bladder better so she can go down for a nap dry and then pee a ton when she wakes up.

2:15 Left for the doctors

2:45 Doctor appointment. First, let me just say that Ariel has an extreme case of doctor-phobia. She was a bit nervous when we were out in the waiting room, but as soon as we were lead back and she saw the scale she got hysterical. She cried for about 5 minutes while I held her and kept telling her Alex was seeing the doctor. Finally she noticed that the doctor was ignoring her and she stopping crying.

And Alex's pink eye - the doctor didn't think it was pink eye for sure, even though I've never seen Alex's eyes do that. He said that pink eye is often caused by the cold virus so he doesn't always get drops. He said to just watch it and if Alex's eyes got really bad looking he gave a script for the drops. He also said Alex could go to school and if anyone asked to say that Alex is under the care of a doctor.

3:00 Got down with the doctor. And just so you know Becky, we waited about 2 minutes in the outer waiting room and about 1 minute in the inner waiting room. Iz a good office ;)

And coincidently Becky had a doctor's appointment at the same building so we hung out and waiting for her. First, we went to the cafe and split a cinnamon roll. Then the kids ran around outside until Carl met us at 4:00

November 12, 2007

It's a very funny thing, but somehow I've become to busy. I had a lot of family sessions this weekend as people are ready to get out their holiday cards. I can't believe it's already that time and I need to get working on my own.

Anyway, I was back in the mountains on Sunday shooting this cutie's family:



And on Sunday Ellen had her family session (I really did get some good pictures, but this one cracks me up):


So that means this fall, I've had 10 sessions and that turns out to be too many. Between the session, the proofing, the ordering and getting prints back, I've created quite the part time job and yet I never have a day when I have a block of time without kids. So, I'm cutting back to 2 sessions per month. Maybe that will just make my work seem that much more exclusive and exciting :)

7:10 Drop off. Becky sure was surprised that not only was I awake, I had SHOWERED.

7:30 Ariel had yogurt and hot cereal for breakfast.

And then we did stuff, but I don't remember what. I know I made a batch of waffles, bread and did two loads of laundry. Oh, and then I get Ellen's pictures ready to print. She's a fast orderer.

10:30 Ellen came over to babysit, as I managed to schedule a session on a day that I had no other backup. She just had Mae and according to her notes they:

Watched Blues Clues. Ate cheeses sticks and apples and PB&J (except for Adam, who has J&J sandwiches and save the PB for apple dipping). Pooped. Watched Baby Einstein.

My session was just ok. Mom had forgotten about me and wasn't there so I hung out with the nanny for a while. We got a few shots in before the baby was d-o-n-e.



12:45 Got home. Ariel finished watching Baby Einstein and then went down for a nap.

2:30 Ariel woke up and got out of her pack-n-play again. At least she didn't fall but I know she didn't use the table so I guess it's time to figure out an alternative napping situation. Sigh.

4:00 My lens showed up. Very exciting!

4:30 Pick up. Here's a not very good example of my new lens:



It's a big one. I think it makes me look official.

November 9, 2007

7:15 Drop off. Breakfast - yogurt and hot cereal.

We had a very loud morning. Alex and Adam were fighting and when Alex gets hurt he makes an awful theatrical wounding animal noise. Adam and Ariel are also enjoying sparring, but Ariel is developing a defense mechanism of sceaming, "GO AWAY" when either boy gets in a 5' radius of her. Anyway, as I was saying it was loud. And also, there was no school today and I was trying to plan a grand adventure.

9:30 Finally got enough energy summoned to get all the kids in the car for our adventure - the zoo. But first, Starbucks for fortification. I got a mocha and treated all the kids to donuts. Ariel ate her donut the Adam way, which is to say she ate the frosting off the top but left most of the cake. I also had to pry the rest away as she'd been at it for half an hour and I didn't want her to take any in the car.

11:00 Arrived at the zoo.

Ariel, our tour guide. She's saying, "Hmmm, I thought the monkeys were over here."



Not every day you see a bear in a tree.



Alex giving his best elephant shrew impersonation:


And me fooling around with shooting directly into the sun. I had my cheapy kit lens on today and I can tell it's cheap now:



Adam also giving an elephant shrew impression:



I could tell Alex had been to the zoo recently. At one point I said, "Let's go over here and see my favorite monkeys, the gibbons!" and Alex said, "Mom, those aren't gibbons, they are squirrel monkeys."

All of the kids walked most of the way around the zoo loop. We saw the primates well but skimmed the elephants and giraffes. We had a yogurt/graham cracker lunch around 12:30. We finished up the day with Tropical Discovery. Ariel was pretty excited about the komoto dragons and was getting one to chase her hand though the glass. Kind of disturbing to see when you know that dragon would eat her in a heart beat.

2:30 Left the zoo. Ariel (and Adam) fell asleep in the car.

3:15 Got home, Ariel remained asleep.

4:00 Pick up.

And, in exciting camera news, I ordered a new lens tonight. I guess this is probably for Toni - 24-70mm f/2.8 L. Did I mention, L? Mmmmmmmm, it's going to be sweet.

November 8, 2007

I'll apologize in advance for no pictures today. I'm still recovering from my vacation.

7:15 Drop off. We surprised Ariel today. The boys and I were hiding in my bed and when Ariel came in the bedroom we all jumped out and said, "Surprised!" Ariel thought it was pretty funny.

7:30 Breakfast, oatmeal AND yogurt.

I was supposed to go to stroller class today, but it was so nice and I have so much to do, I figured I could take Alex and Ariel for a walk and still have some morning left. But Alex thought he'd rather go for a bike ride and that seemed like too much work and then we sat around and read a bit (Alex is really starting to read, albeit slowly) and then we didn't have much time.

We did manage to walk up to the store to buy a few staples and some ingredients for tonight's dinner. The highlight of the store must have been the cookies, they were orange and brown instead of the usual. And Halloween was how long ago?

10:30 Got home, had lunch.

11:15 Biked to Adam's school.

11:45 Dropped Alex off on time.

12:00 After a quick bite to eat, Ariel went down for a nap. And I showered. Which was good since I hadn't showered or even bothered to change my clothes for 2 days. And yes, I just admitted that on the internet.

1:00 I had so much to do and most of it work related that the only possible course of action was to take a brief doze on the couch. Which wasn't too restful since Adam wasn't dozing with me.

But I did get some work done when I woke up.

2:25 Ariel had just woken up when it was time to get Alex.

We stayed all afternoon at the school, until the sunset (yes, at 4:10). I was prepared today and had graham crackers and water for everyone.

4:30 Pick up. And oh yeah, Ariel pooped a lot today, too. And still has baboon butt.

And Ellen, I made the black bean pumpkin soup today and it was good. Jeremy's comment was, "It's a bit bland" but I figured that's why you like it. Not everyone needs chipolte peppers every day. And hey, Alex ate his whole bowl in addition to the broccoflower he picked out at the store, so it was a good dinner all around.

November 7, 2007

Well hi, I am alive and back from my wonderful vacation and completely forgot to blog yesterday. My trip was fabulous, lots of girl time and even a day away in the city.

Crissy has a new baby in her family. Dewey is a fancy green parrot that only bites occassionally:



THE capital (and not the white house, as I like to call it):



Washington monument at sunset (why yes, we were in the city after dark):



The haunted subway:



I also did Crissy's family portrait session, you can see them here.

Anyway, about yesterday... Ariel pooped, a lot. By the 4th or 5th diaper change she was getting a bad case of baboon butt. She ate a big breakfast of oatmeal. In the morning, Ellen and Mae came over. Ariel got put in her first official DeeDee time out when she unapologetically wacked Mae on the head.

Before picking up Adam from school, we swung by Michaels for some picture frames for a client. And then we picked up Adam in the car, which was a shame as it was a beautiful day. Ariel took a decent nap, and after we picked up Alex from school we went to the park with Gabriel and played until 4:00. Some 8 year old girl asked if she could play with my baby and I said yes, so I could sit and talk to Tatiana while someone else got roped into pushing Ariel on the swing.

And at 4:30, Becky watched all the kids so Jeremy and I could go to Adam's conferences. The meeting was very lovely. We heard about a very nice sounding child who is, "Shy, respectful and quiet" among other things. His teachers didn't have a negative word to say about Adam. Sometimes I wish our school kids lived with us at home occasionally too. We got home at 5:15 at which Becky said, "How do you do this all day long?" "Ha ha, lots of BEER!"