Thank you veterens...

As you can obviously see by Liv's dress, it was Memorial Day. A quote (I obviously don't know who said it so if it was you, please take credit) I like says, "Friends are family you choose."  I hate not being by family on holidays but I am learning to be so thankful for good friends, especially when there is a day to celebrate (ie Memorial Day).  

We went to "palm tree park" with some phenomenal families and did the traditional BBQ.

Liv wasn't feeling too good but she did love the tube and swings.  She is a swing addict. Ash was obviously enjoying his swing as well...

 You can't have a BBQ without hot dogs.  I love this little boy. Anytime someone is crying and he is around he says,  "I didn't even do ANYTHING!" Liv loves both these boys and they are good at tolerating her back.

These two are what I call the dynamic duo.  They are so opposite it is funny that they can ever coexist but that is what makes their friendship magical.  They have literally changed and blessed my life more than they will ever realize.

No, Stephen was not invited to this photo even though he invited himself....

 Even though Liv doesn't look excited, it was an exciting Memorial Day.  Good burgers, good park, good people. It was a memorable memorial day for all.

Vegetarian fun...

I love meat. A lot. I'm like a cowboy from the wild west because there is nothing I love more than a Texas Roadhouse steak and potatoes (I would like to say however that is the only similarity because I hate camping, I am scared of spurs and I would never give birth next to a wagon wheel).  So when Gar told me that he had invited a resident and his wife to dinner that were vegetarian I was at a loss. I was baffled at what to cook. I didn't know if I should grill up some grass or order some tofu from Japan or what in the world vegetarian even means. 

Fortunately I found out that vegetarians are just as nice as carnivorous humans such as myself.  We had alfredo, asparagus, garlic bread, Italian sodas, some fancy salad that Gar's mom makes, and brownies.  Grace may be a vegetarian one day so I am using that segway to post this pic (mostly just because I am crazy about her). 

 

  They were such a fabulous couple even though they beat us at "Are you Smarter Than a 5th Grader" on the wii.  I hope they come back because it was such a fun night, asparagus and all.

Number one season is here...

 Bievenidos Summer. I've been waiting for you, since, well, last summer. I love summer. I love flip flops. I love sun and being a park rat. I love green otter pops, garage sales, barbeques, the smell of fresh cut lawns and sun screen, and random sprinklers hydrating the sidewalks as you walk around the block at 8 pm and it's still light outside. I love the streets looking like an orphanage because all the kids are just playing with dirty faces and no shoes and everything just feels happier. 

 I think I may need to invest in some good picnic pants. I love picnics. I love eating outside. I need to wear pants. This could be the solution.

Liv lives outside now. I think she feels like a mole or an mushroom in the dark if I make her stay inside.  The air inside feels used and smells like a nursing home compared to the wonder and glory of being outside.

Liv has been ready for summer for a long long long time...

So far she's more of a pool observer than a participant.  When I put her in the pool for the first time she cried and said, "No pool. Pool too WET."  You know, she's got a point. 

Her friend Ashton has the opposite feelings.  This face is accurate in depicting his pool delight. 

Liv just finished her red otter pop and I think its time for a blue one.  Welcome summer. I hope you stay a long long time.

Van, Garden, Baby. (In that order)

So when we said we were going to plant a garden I thought it would cost us around $10. I mean dirt is free, water comes out of the sky/hose (also free), the sun shines when it feels like it and I can't really buy that anyway so the only thing left to buy was some seeds and all the packets were less than $2.

 (Liv and her ponies modeling the garden boxes and the fact that she is not underfed)

  I was basically ready to start sewing my own clothes because I was feeling so pleased about my summer garden vision and imagined eating nothing but juicy fresh fruit and vegetables from our bounteous daily harvest grown for just pennies. This dream is false.  This year the most expensive thing we have bought is our van. The second most expensive thing WAS Grace.  Because we have sweet insurance, we walked out with a brand new human being for only $200. 

For $23.52 per pound we came out with the best investment of my life. I say that she WAS the most second most expensive purchase of the year until the garden. Apparently I had no idea what a garden cost because my jaw dropped like a cartoon character in Lowes when I saw how much the wood for the boxes, the starts, and dirt cost.

Apparently dirt is not free. Apparently trees are really expensive. Apparently the only thing that wasn't costing us money was the sun and the oxygen.  Apparently we need to produce $225 worth of quality fruits and vegetables to break even.  I would say however that Lowes is our new family hang out. We had a fabulous time (until the lady announced the price).

  

Gar wouldn't go for the tacky flamingo or the official gardening hats (maybe next year), but it was so fun to look at all the options and feel hip with the gardening crowd around us. 

Now we will just wait to see if the second most expensive purchase brings results.  If anything ever does come out of the ground and is big enough to eat, please don' t be offended if I charge you per bite.   I am expecting our $17 investment of Miracle Grow to do just what its name suggests...grow a miracle because so far all I see is dirt...

Uncle Jeff Time....

 Liv has always loved my brother Jeff even before she could express it.  When she was smaller and her vocabulary was limited to grunting she would say, "Fffff" when Jeff was near. So all her dreams came true when Uncle Jeff came to spend the night before going to fire camp here in Colorado.

Liv insisted on eating right next to him and being near him every second he was here.

You can see the intense love in her face. She has to close her eyes because there is so much joy surging through her veins with Jeff and her favorite dog all in the same room.

We introduced Jeff to a Chipotle burrito and Liv was more than willing to help him with his guac and chips.

Jeff was an invaluable asset in gaining tickets at Chuck E Cheese. We could do more games than we thought because we only had to put in one token for all the driving games since Liv had no idea she wasn't really playing. Jeff has always been the baby whisperer and Liv has always loved him.

 After we dropped him off at the airport Liv said with her lip curled down, "I want MY Jeff." After I broke the news that Jeff was going to be thousands of feet above our heads in a few minutes she said, "My sad." (My is the only pronoun she knows and uses it for I, me, Liv etc).  When we came home I told her she needed to pick up her crayons if she wanted fruit snacks. She can't, "My can't do it." I said, "Liv why can't you?" She said, "My too sad."  

I admit I could relate because I felt sad too when he was gone. Jeff doesn't judge. Ever. Anyone. He is so easy to talk to and genuine through and through. In a family where everyone is an attention black hole, Jeff is content to just be himself and let everyone do the same. Jeff is a good listener. Jeff has such a fun personality that makes you feel comfortable no matter what is happening in your life. I'm so glad to be his sister forever.  I love my brother Jeff.

High five....

 I want to invent something. Not like electricity or something really complicated, more like an original phrase or action. Let me give you an example.  The other day I heard someone say, "Like a BOSS."  I had no idea what that meant but have since heard it several times. How in the world did that catch on? Who was the very first person to say, "Like a Boss," and how did it make it all the way to Colorado? Think about it. I mean someone had to say it and then there had to be enough people that wanted to copy it that it becomes a common phrase for all mankind.

 Phrases definitely have a destined season of coolness before they are put to rest in the archives. For example, if I was to "raise the roof" right now, that would only show how not cool I am. Even giving "bones" is fading away like the squeezits and giga pets of the past. Somewhere, someone had to be the person that thought of closing your fist and running it into someone elses. It's not that hard but they should be feeling pretty proud.  The other person I want to meet is the originator of "yolo," let's get real, that one is a lame and an excuse to not take responsibility for your actions but you get my point.  Where are these people that are marketing hip phrases and how can I start one? 

Some have a much longer shelf life than others, for example the classic high five. I even did a little research and found out from our friend Wikipedia that:

"The first high five occurred between Dusty Baker and Glenn Burke of the Los Angeles Dodgers, on Oct. 2, 1977 in Dodger Stadium. It was the last day of the regular season, and Dodgers leftfielder Dusty Baker had just gone deep off the Astros' J.R. Richard.  It was a wild, triumphant moment and a good omen as the Dodgers headed to the playoffs. Burke, waiting on deck, thrust his hand enthusiastically over his head to greet his friend at the plate. Baker, not knowing what to do, smacked it. "His hand was up in the air, and he was arching way back," says Baker, "So I reached up and hit his hand. It seemed like the thing to do."

So there you have it, perhaps that is how these phrases start, simply because in words of Dusty Baker, "it seemed like the thing to do."   Grace is demonstrating proper high five positioning.  I think it's time for the high five to make its second surge of popularity, like a boss. 

Plant the seed...or at least build a box.

I have an announcement. We are planting a garden. We are garden people. (I love when a noun becomes an entire species, for example when someone is a "cat person", what does that even mean?) Ok, technically I can't say we are garden people because the above photo is just what showed up on google images; in fact all we have is 3 boxes with dirt but hopefully they will soon be a gardenlicious wonderland of bounteous harvest that is worth the money we donated to Lowes to buy the wood.

Stephen (aka our professional garden consultant) came early Saturday morning with his big boy tools and there was a lot of manliness going on in the driveway with sawing and hammering and other manly building like activity.

 Liv decided her pet dog needed some sun so she brought him outside to enjoy the rays while G admired his handiwork and I dreamed of garage sales going on all around me.

Grace was not as pleased with the sun and felt like she was having a first vision because it was so bright she could not open her eyes, but if she could have opened her eyes, she would have beheld the glory of the garden boxes...  This is phase one, more thrilling garden news to come. Please stand by. 

Just an idea...

Admit this is a good idea. Maybe not for the main stairs if you're trying to have somewhat of a classy home but just consider it for the basement stairs. Genius.

Happy mom day.

I am what you call holiday high maintenance. I'm not proud of it. There's also no denying it.  I like celebrations. I love gifts. I like to have a memory. I've never been one of those humble birthday people who lets you know a month later that they had a birthday. No, no. I start telling people months before so they can be prepared for a proper celebration.  Thus, I've been absolutely thrilled about the addition of this new holiday known as mothers day.  This last Sunday was my third mothers day observed. Each one has been very significant. Let's take a trip down mothers day lane:

Mothers Day 2011. Lehi Utah. Exploding with motherhood even though Liv was still getting her finishing touches in utero just a week before delivery.

Mothers Day 2012. Bluefield, West Virginia.  My favorite blue pajama "Virginia is for lovers" pajama t shirt and and berries.

Mothers day 2013. Aurora Colorado. Same Blue pajama t-shirt featured in 2012 and fresh berries but double the offspring.

As you can see, it has been an eventful 3 years.  Every year for three years Gar has made one of my favorite rare breakfasts...Able Skeviers which are like fluffy pancake balls dipped in butter and powdered sugar with berries. If you haven't had them, make reservations now to join us for Mothers Day 2014. They are worth your time.

As much as I protest flowers, and ethically think they are the biggest waste of money in the store, I would be lying if I said I didn't love getting them. Lilacs and lilies are my favorite. I love how they look but even more than that, I love how they smell.  What's the point of having flowers if they don't smell good? That's like owning a cow that doesn't give milk.  Pointless. I love lilies. Please take a moment to consider the lilies...

G knocked it out of the park with the most supreme dinner of all three years. I'm talking a dietary grand slam.  It was unbelievable with all my favorites. Steak, cherry limeade, corn on the cob, garlic bread, spinich salad and rocky road ice cream for dessert. Please try not to lick your computer screen while looking:

There was even a surprise appetizer of shrimp which is like dessert from the sea. I go crazy for shrimp. Thankfully Liv didn't get into it which meant more for me. She just stared and thought they looked weird (which they do but that doesn't take away from their goodness) and that cocktail sauce did not taste like ketchup. She loves ketchup so she felt a little deceived.

The meal was so divine that I felt sorrow when I took my last bite. I love good food. I love that G was so thoughtful and made everything that I love. I loved just coming downstairs and having dinner on the table like the ultimate magic trick had just taken place in my kitchen.

However, there is something I love even more than the shrimp (which are hard to top). I love the reason I got to celebrate. I love Olivia Mae and Grace Corinne Seibold in a way I never knew I could love.  They really are my whole world. I loved not making dinner. I loved rocky road ice cream and cherry limeade but more than that I love that I am a mother. Nothing has ever been harder or more worthwhile in my life. Nothing.