17

 This young lady is seventeen years old!

We are having a birthday week for her.

Yesterday we went to Matta's for a birthday dinner, followed by Coldstone for dessert.

Tomorrow is the actual birthday!

Then on Friday we are having a party with her friends from school.

Life doesn't get much better than that!

Here is what we love about Haley Baley Doodle Bug:

Quinny - I love that she plays with me and she shares her Kindle with me.

Robyn - She is generous, has a good memory, and I like her dresses.

Mom - I love that she gets up in the morning happy and ready to go.  I also love that she is a good helper.  Whenever I ask her to do something her reply is a quick sure!

Dad - Haley is very generous with her money and things.  She shares and is not selfish.  I like that she has lots of interests and learns about them so she can share them with people.  This makes her an interesting person to talk to.

Mimi - She always helps Addi and Me, like when we need to get things off of a high shelf.  She plays with us.

Eric - She is always cheerful.  She never says bad things about other people.  She is not a gossiper.

Happy Birthday Haley - We love you!

popcorn popping on the red plastic cup

Our microwave is the worst at popping popcorn.

Burned popcorn smell abounds when someone has used it for this purpose.

I tried a new technique yesterday.

I have seen my mom do this many times.

She elevates the popcorn bag with something.

The key to this method: the something has to be microwavable.

It turns out that red plastic cups are not.

I thought the cup was melting into the bag.

Luckily it didn't.

On to a new method.

growing up

It happens eventually with all of them.

You go from carrying them around on your hip day after day after day.

Then one day you realize they are too big to tote around in this fashion.

When was the last time I carried Haley, or Robyn, or Eric?

I don't remember.

However, today was the day that I quit lifting or carrying Mimi.

I went to wake her up this morning and she wouldn't budge.

Usually I just pick her up and start getting her ready for the day, awake or not.

That's what I tried today.

With stark clarity, I realized I was not going to be able to move her.

In the end, I dragged her out of bed.

Literally, I dragged her.

Once we got to the bedroom door, Mimi heard the sound of the shower.

This jolted her out of her fake sleep.

She announced, with the passion of someone who has been awake for hours, that she was going to take a shower tonight - NOT THIS MORNING!!!!!

My mistake.

I'm down to one kid that I can carry (or that will let me carry them).

My arms and back are thanking me.

 I couldn't find any pictures of me actually carrying Mimi.

Strange.

Believe me, she was carried.

The thing I love about this picture is that we are standing right in front of Mt. Rushmore.

Eric told me once that he never got close enough to actually see it.

He must have backed up to have this picture taken and never turned around.

This one is the best!

Haley - crazy face.

Robyn - throwing out her hip in an effort to carry Mimi.

Mimi - disheveled hair.

Eric - firmly holding the "glue stick" pose.

Haley & Eric - glasses.

 I said to Robyn, "There's no way you do that now."

Wanna bet?

Q wanted to be in the picture.

robyn's hike

Robyn got to go on a hike on MLK day.

I wasn't able to go that day.

She sent me this picture which sent jealousy throughout me.

I love hikes.

What a beautiful day!

zoo days

Quinny and I headed to the zoo to spend some time with our friends the Delaps (Daryl, Alison, Elizabeth, and Dallin - Daryl didn't go to the zoo that day).

They are moving soon.

I am sad they are going.

We met the Delap family in Ohio.

They were living there so Daryl could study law.

He finished up and they happened to move to Arizona right around the time that we moved.

Now Daryl has joined JAG, and they are relocating to the east coast.

It has been an easy friendship that I will greatly miss.

Here is Hole in the Rock.

It was and still is one of my favorite places in the Valley.

 Quinny and Ellie were just beginning a nice friendship of their own.

 Aren't the eyes on goats really creepy?

We had a beautiful day full of play and talking.

Q was spent by the end.

how do you get around?

1/19/2012

Not only does Quinny think you can drive with the phone, but she also believes you don't need to steer or have review mirrors.

Every time I adjusted the mirrors, as shown below, she would readjust so they were facing in.

Also, you can get anywhere without going in reverse.

Don't text and drive.

 You can't go anywhere without a burpee.

As she is racing down the road, she checks to see if her burpee is still safely on the back step.

It is.

The race can continue.

Allison was yelling, "Slow down, Quinny!  Slow down!"

funny things

1/13/2012

 Haley and I went to lunch yesterday.  

I spotted this sweet hood ornament.

Eric brought home this test yesterday.

We had to review with him how to answer a true/false test.
(Eric, I'm just kidding!)
It is a real test, and he did write down 15 for a true/false answer, however, I did NOT have to explain to him the rules of the test!

days

1/10/2012

The days are long, but the years are short.

That's what they say when referring to parenthood.

I had one of those long days today.

And yesterday.

And kind of the day before that.

You know, the kind of day where no matter how much you pick up, clean up, wipe, or scold, the day just keeps on going, going, going.

Luckily, each of these days are usually sprinkled with a little nudge from one of kids reminding me that what I am doing is important.

Mimi came home the other day from school very excited that her teacher was reading the book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

She thought this was fabulous because at home we are currently reading Matilda by the same author, Roald Dahl.

This got us talking about the author.

She asked if he was Chinese.

We read the back of the book to discover that he was originally from England, but had moved around.

I keep thinking he is Chinese, she said.

Nope.

I then suggested to her that we read James and the Giant Peach next.

She told me she wanted to read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory next.

But Mia, I said, you are reading that at school.

I know, she said, but I want to read it together.

Ah, the little reminder after a long, long day to let me know that these days are worth it.

"So Matilda's strong young mind continued to grow, nurtured by the voices of all those authors who had sent their books out into the world like ships on the sea. These books gave Matilda a hopeful and comforting message: You are not alone."

- Roald Dahl (Matilda)

short people only

1/6/2012

After cleaning up and putting away the chairs and tables the other day, I realized I was missing two folding chairs.  I didn't even notice I was also missing a table!  Anyway, I asked Robert if he knew anything about the absent furniture.  He said he didn't and agreed with me that it was very bizarre.  As we were having this conversation, I looked out the kitchen window and it dawned on me - Quinny's house.  So I asked her if the chairs were in her house.  With a triumphant grin she said yes!  This all happened last night, and I was much too lazy to go and put the chairs away.

She didn't tell me about all of the other things she had squirreled away in there.  

That was just my little surprise when I went out there to pick up some things.

I love that Q and Allison drove the scooter and plasma car up to the front door.

The rose petals are a nice touch, too.

She asked if she could sleep in her house.
I said no.

Obviously they are not going to starve.

I'm not even sure how she got everything in there.

I'm pretty sure Mimi helped her, but I have no idea how she fits!

clouds

1/5/2012

  Mom, come look outside.

What is it, Quinny?

Come outside.

Look up.

Right there.

The gray clouds are pink.

Do you like those clouds, Quinny?

Yes.

I want to live in those clouds!