Reflections on the New School Year

Well...we have officially completed the first full week of the school year. And while it certainly got off to a rocky start, thanks to my toe meeting up with the trailer hitch ordeal, it has progressed fairly smoothly from that point on. There is much good news. For one...I have two matching shoes on now. That's big news. As sexy as that black orthopedic velcro shoe is...I much prefer my own matching pair. I'm still taped up and bruised a plenty and am sporting quite an impressive blood blister beneath my toe nail (and yes, I do still have one...for now anyway!)...but I am mobile and matching and that's not too shabby considering where I was this day one week ago.

Clarabelle is loving Kindegarten. Her first little report came home all glowing with every "good girl" box checked! She seems to be making lots of friends...Haley, Haley and Kayleigh among a few of them. She is full of stories of her adventures through the day and is pumped up and ready to sell no less than 200 items in the school fund raiser so that she can earn a Wii game station (which I tried to tell her that we already have)! She's rather angry and exasperated with me and my lack of enthusiasm at going door to door across all of Southern Arizona to peddle her wares...but we'll work through that.

Ben is really enjoying his teacher...which is a really, really nice change for him. His best friend is in his class...again, which is nice for him. And he announced today that he would like to be in the band at school and play the clarinet. I'm glad to hear this...he is certainly responsible enough to handle the added activity and practice time. Would it be a terrible thing though...to push him towards the violin or the viola instead of the clarinet? I asked him what his choices were. He told me the trumpet (no thanks...the practice would NOT be fun to hear on that one), the trombone (same there), the bass, clarinet, flute, violin, viola...and I can't remember what else. Anyway...it's under consideration for him.

As for Max...today, finally seemed to illicit a smile from him. He came home rather pumped up about a dodgeball game in p.e. He also has his best friend over spending the night tonight...so life is pretty good in the world of Max. He has algebra homework over the weekend...that is something new for him...but he doesn't seem too bothered by that prospect.

I was able to accomplish much this week...once I got moving with my toe, that is. For one...I had my physical. That went just great. I had gone in a week prior for all of my bloodwork, etc. And the results? OUTSTANDING!!! That's right. Healthy as a horse. So healthy, as a matter of fact...that I don't have to have another physical for at least 3 years. Same for my pap smear. Oh...a word of advice on that subject (now that I brought it up). If you are having casual conversation with the nurse while she is digging in the speculum drawer looking for the right one and she passes like ALL of them up...then suddenly, mid sentence stops and asks you..."Do you have children?" Do not tell her "Why yes! We have three!" NO!!! Lie through your teeth and tell her "Nope. We don't have any...don't want any. As a matter of fact...we NEVER even have sex." Because I noticed that as soon as I said we had three children...suddenly, whatever speculum was closest at hand suddenly seemed just right. And I promise you...it was not the petite version that came to rest in the lukewarm cup of water on the counter. No ma'am, it was not. So...guard your answers carefully ladies when speculums are on the calendar. That's all I have to say about that. The rest of my physical was fine. I did, somehow...forget to mention my headaches...despite the fact that I had written the dates all down and made a point to put them in my purse and had them right there with me. So...there's that. However...when I added them all up and averaged them all out...it came out to be only one headache every 5 1/4 days. That didn't seem so bad to me. That's like practically only one a week. So...I pronounced myself normal. Now...moving on!

The rest of life is just good. For the first weekend, in like FOREVER...we have NOTHING to do. That is just like heaven...music to my ears! I imagine we will pop into the gym in the morning...and then Chris and I are planning a little excursion out shopping tomorrow afternoon and a nice little date dinner. Then early to bed with all of us...which seems to be a very central theme here lately. I won't be overdoing it in the gym...that's for sure. I was sure I was ready for a nice walk today...walked to Mandy's house...which is exactly right here in the neighborhood. That went great...but the way home might as well have been from Phoenix, as just around the corner. My toe was singing by the time I limped in the door and I was off my feet and on my butt for quite a time after my little morning excursion. Maybe NEXT week I will start my walk! Healing is such a slow process. Drives me nuts! Tests my patience to no end ! Oh well...slow as it is...life is good here in the desert!

My Baby Girl Turns Five

Today is my baby girl's birthday. On this day, five years ago, at 4:35 a.m. we joyfully welcomed Clara Elisabeth into this world. She weighed 8 pounds exactly and was 22 inches long. She had a head full of the most beautiful hair you have ever seen on a baby...and her dad and I were just overjoyed to finally have the little girl we had dreamed about for so long. She was perfect in every single way...just gorgeous. It's hard to believe it has been five years already. In those years Clara has lived in 4 different places, has attended 3 churches, has gone to both preschool and kindegarten (which her brothers never did since we homeschooled), and has become the princess of our family. She is the constant chatter and song in our home and the drama in life when things don't go right! She has a way of making us smile and laugh and wonder what we ever did before we had her. And she is just the most precious gift that we could ever have hoped for. The last five years with her have been such a gift...such an adventure...such a blessing. We could never have imagined what having a daughter would be like. How wonderful and how special and how truly...amazing. Thank you, God for Clara! Thank you for the gift of this child. For five amazing years. For blessing us in ways we never could have dreamed of. Thank you God! Happy Birthday, Baby Girl!

Gifts

This is my favorite picture from Saturday. Saturday was my Clara's day for gifts. Her party was scheduled...and the preparations had been hectic, thanks to my little toe breaking episode. We were expecting guests, so much had to be done...and I had fallen into bed late and exhausted Friday night. At 6:00 a.m., the phone rang. It was the hospital with a family who would like to have pictures done of their angel. Inwardly, I groaned. I was SO sleepy and SO tired, not to mention barely walking thanks to the toe. I took the information and let them know we would have someone there as soon as we could. I had every intention of calling someone else to handle this one. I was, after all, tired. And half cripple. AND...I had a million things to do to get ready to celebrate my daughters 5th birthday. So I hopped back into bed intending to snooze just a bit more and then get someone right on that call. Only...no snooze ever came. I lay there thinking about that family. And how they must be feeling right then. And I realized that they would never have a birthday to celebrate with their little girl, like I did. That amidst all of the celebration at my house that day, mommies and their little girls would be oblivious to this poor family across town grieving the loss of their own baby girl. And so I couldn't lay there a second longer. I limped myself into the shower and down to the hospital. I was slow, but I made it. And I found just the sweetest little family there. A family who was sitting there holding this sweet angel of a baby who had never taken a breath. And I was just struck, once again, by how fortunate I am and how blessed. And I worked that session and made sure to create the sweetest, girliest, lovliest pictures that I could for these parents...all the while thinking of my own sweet baby girl at home. And when I walked back into my house after that shoot...my precious little one ran and leaped into my arms singing out that "Here's your birthday girl, mama!" And even though it was definitely her day for gifts...I knew without a doubt that I had received the biggest one by far. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Lord for these opportunities where I am reminded just how awesome you are, and how richly I am blessed. Thank you for my own little girl and for the gift of knowing how fortunate I am to have her. Thank you for your many gifts, Lord. Thank you.

Obituary of a Rat

Einstein DaVinci Roberts, beloved hamster of Maxwell Roberts, whom had been a dweller in our home for a very long nearly two years, passed away peacefully in his sleep on the morning of August 10th, 2007. Einstein was a good rat...he resided quietly in his cage...sleeping nearly all the time, and only waking up long enough to shove ALL of his food in his mouth and go back to sleep. Despite his obvious aversion to exercise or any activity requiring any effort whatsoever, Einstein managed to live a remarlably long life. So long that it was often questioned as to whether or not he was getting just tap water...or some fountain of youth in that water bottle of his. His escapes from containment were only a couple (though I doubt I will ever forget them!) and his ability to sleep most anywhere will long be marveled. Einstein was presented to Max as a reward for improving his handwriting to something that MIGHT be considered legible...if only just barely. You might say he was the very last of the great bribes (his parents simply no longer care about his handwriting!). God was rather merciful in the collection of dear Einstein's life. He chose a time when Chris was in town to have our dear rat depart us...not like last time! And he was especially merciful in that he took...and we discovered, dear Einstein's demise early on the morning of trash day. The mercy in that was really more for poor mom...in that Einstein got to go straight on to the next world...wherever it is that the trash ends up every Tuesday and Friday...and did not have to make an intercessory stay in mom's freezer (which is what Dad insanely suggested should have happened upon the demise of our dear other rat friend, Smore, who did NOT happen to die on trash day...but instead on a Friday afternoon AFTER trash collection, and therefore did not get picked up for 4 days!). So we are so very thankful for the time we have shared with this dear rodent...who has pretty much slept his entire time on this earth away right here in our own home. We were blessed to have gotten to pour bag after bag of food down his greedy throat and watch his cheeks expand to the point of imminent explosion. We were blessed to witness his creativity in converting basic exercise equipment like his wheel for running, into quite the sleeping place! We are so glad to have been able to share this journey with our friend, Einstein. And we wish him the best wherever it is he has moved on to. We are so thankful for this happy ending with our dear friend. The end.

And Then the Heavens Opened Up...

...and God said "I hate you, Alfalfa." That is a line from the Little Rascals movie. And THAT is the kind of day I am having today. First things first...my toe is beyond painful today. I mean it hurts with the meanest kind of a hurt. It's angry, and purple and ugly and the slightest touch just makes it meaner and angrier. I had to take one of those pain pills within the first hour of being up this morning. And I have decided that that is the LAST one of those things I will take. They make me feel agitated. My mouth goes sticky, and I am sleepy...but not in a lay down and actually go to sleep kind of way. And I am over sensitive to light, and motion and everything. And nauseaus. HOLY COW! I had to have Jackie pull the car over on the side of the road this morning while she was helping me get my errands run. I nearly lost it...I can't remember when I have felt that sick before. I scrapped all my other errands. I just can't do them. I am too sick feeling and in too much pain. So...another day...little to nothing accomplished. Then to make matters even worse this morning...Max comes down the stairs in tears. His hamster is dead. So...I am trying to comfort the child...all the while rushing him out the door to the bus (which actually showed up today when it was supposed to). I don't dare ask how much worse a day can get. I already know the answer. But I am just really praying for a reprieve right now. A reprieve from the pain, and the nausea, and the dying animals....you name it. I just feel like crap. So...that's the day in a nutshell. I have definitely had better, here in the desert.

Broken!

Today was not my day. NOT AT ALL. First of all, Maxwell's bus did not show up. It was 8:00...his pick up time was supposed to be 7:40. We had been out there since 7:30. Finally at 8:00 I RAN home, got the car and Ben and Clara and all of their things and rushed Maxwell up to Coronado so he would not be late on the first day of school. Then I had to rush back to Painted Sky to get Clara and Ben to school on time. Of course...this being the first day of school, it was a total MAD HOUSE around the school. No parking ANYWHERE near it! But despite the challenge of parking (thank goodness we have a Gigi that lives right there so we could park a LITTLE more easily than others) we made it on time. Clara did not even give me a second glance as she bounded out onto the kindegarten playground. She has been eyeing it for two years now...and so she was NOT about to waste her very first chance to play on it with tears of goodbye! No ma'am. She was off...just like that. Of course... Ben had walked himself on to class...so that left just me. A friend and I walked over to the Welcome thing in the library...but we quickly bailed once we realized there was a whole line of people waiting to sign us up for grocery cards, pto and everything else under the sun. At that point I headed to Target to pick up a couple of things and then came home to get a good jump on cleaning. I lifted the tailgate of the Explorer to get out my purchases and that's when it happened. The trailer hitch for our camper came tumbling out of the back and down, down, down...directly onto my second toe on my right foot. That was at about 10:15 this morning. You might have heard my sobs of pain and hysterical crying all the way wherever you happened to be...even London! It was absolutely the way worst moment of my life. I managed to get myself inside the house. And after crying hysterically for an hour with no relief whatsoever in the pain department, I had to put in a desperate call to the dear hubby. He was an angel and came right home to my rescue. He drove my crying self to urgent care and sat with me and held my hand through the x-rays and what not. The doctors confirmed what I already strongly suspected. My toe is broken clean through. Instead of having 3 bones in my toe, it looks as if I now have four. It's swollen to twice the size of normal and is a lovely shade of blue. And I DO mean BLUE. I have spent the afternoon strung out on Percoset. I asked for an epidural (it really did hurt just that bad!) but they turned me down and offered the Perc instead. That's all fine and good, except it made me feel like I might throw up the rest of the afternoon. I have now managed to climb out of the drug fog. Trying to hold off on any more pain meds until I go to bed. I can't function too well with that stuff in my system and I have WAY too much to do to sleep these days. Anyway...that was my no good, very bad, terrible, horrible, absolutely painful day.

First Day of School!!!!

Today was the day!!! The first day of school! FINALLY!!!! They had backpacks! They had lunches! And it was out the door for the first day of school. Clara was a total chatterbox and was ready to leave shortly after six a.m. Max was a bit sullen and quiet...nerves I think about the whole middle school thing. The fact that his bus did not come did not help matters a bit. I finally threw him in the car after waiting with him for a half hour at his bus stop and took him up there. He found out from a friend that the bus did not come until after 8:00. So...we will try again tomorrow I suppose! Everyone came home excited and smiling. Not Max so much. I think that he was totally overwhelmed by all the new changes and schedule. It's going to be an interesting year for sure!

Grumbling

I have a client that is making me crazy. CRAZY!!!! CRAAAZZZZYYYYYYY!!! I am a fairly patient person. Especially with business matters. HOWEVER....this one....GRRRRRR. I am not sure how much of this I can take. This person is just as nice as she can be. Really...just lovely. But she is making me NUTS!!!! I am thinking that I am going to have to take a photography sabatical and just NOT be a photographer for a while. It is one thing after another...can I reproof the pictures because it's too hard to see them where the proof mark is...and can I print out a sheet of every single pose I did with her child so she can show her all the ones she DIDN'T choose one day???!!!! (what is UP with that?!!!)...oh...and can I switch every freaking single picture around on every single storyboard that I designed for her...just so she can come right back to the original and declare it the best?!. Oh...and we just did our second session (still haven't gotten the order for the first one!!!). She showed up on time...only NOT ready. Curlers in hair...NONE of them dressed. It was a FULL hour after her appointment time before we EVER took the first picture. There were curling irons all over my living room and half of a closet I think of clothes! But we got through the pictures. And today...TODAY...I get this list...this very, very , very long list of pictures that she would like for me to delete from her gallery...then REPOST her gallery online for her...so that it will be less taxing to look at?! But the fun does not stop there. NO!!! In addition...there is another equally long list of pictures with crazy order wishes...like can I make this child's eyes less red (see...mom did not want to wrinkle her shirt..so she instead let child cry for no less than a half hour at arm's length..thus the red eyes), and can I fix her child's mouth because she did not smile nicely...and can I switch heads out of like a MILLION pictures and put them on some others?! GOOD FREAKING GRIEF!!!!!!!! I am a photographer...not an artist OR a miracle worker. I cannot fathom how many hours it will take me to even begin to wade through her list...much less actually fix the things on it. I cannot even think about it right now. It gives me a headache. And I DO MEAN a BIG ONE!!! I was excited to get this referral before. This lady does pictures EVERY SINGLE MONTH THE FIRST YEAR! That's a lot of business. However...after just now finishing month 9 pictures...I have to say that 10, 11 and 12...well. I am weary already and I simply do not know if I can keep up this pace for another 3 shoots. Hell...I haven't even processed the first two! I hate to grumble. I should be so thankful for this business opportunity. Only...I just think of how wonderful and sweet and easy and delightful ALL of my other people have been...and I just am feeling a bit grumbly about it all right now. This woman is just nuts....and I am thinking it's contagious if you have to hang around with OR work with her too much! Because I am definitely feeling a bit nuts right now...and NONE too happy about these crazy long lists of hers. Is it SO hard to just pick your stupid pictures from the gallery? Noone else seems to have any trouble with it. NO ONE. The way I see it...you either like them...or you don't like them. Head bang, head bang, head bang...that's where I am right now...this afternoon. I imagine I have said just about enough about this. Thank you for listening. And remember...DO NOT harass the photographer. It just isn't NICE!!!!

Thankful

I spent Sunday afternoon at the hospital working with a family who is faced with losing their precious little one. As I left the hospital I was once again reminded of how very blessed I am to have three healthy children. And to have gotten them here into this world without incident. I felt so blessed to have been able to share and document a few precious moments of this child's life for this family. I realized how greatly God has blessed me with this photography and I am just so thankful that I have been given opportunities like the one on Sunday...and countless others...to use my talent in such a way that gives families precious keepsakes of their angels. I realized that these sessions are my real passion. NOT that I don't adore all the smiling (and often NOT smiling) little ones that come into my little studio. But there is something so amazing about being able to share what you know are just a few short moments here on earth with a child and their family. What an honor...to be allowed to share...even a few of those. I am humbled beyond belief each and every time I witness God's miracles and see his work in these tiny little lives. I never, ever leave the same person as I went into the session as. Each time I am changed a bit in ways I never could imagine. And each time I carry a little bit of that angel out with me. They stay in my thoughts and prayer constantly for a while. Those babies...and those sweet families who are having to say goodbye. This is my passion...to be able to place a tangible memory in these parents hands...a way to remember those moments that were just too short.

Headache

Got a nice one starting up here. Right side of head all the way. It's barely started and it hurts. Just for the record. See doctor next week. Now I have it all recorded and ready to discuss. Now I just have to remember to take my list with me!

Entertaining

Tonight was the night for our small little Happy Hour gathering. It turned out to be just HUGE. WAY huger than anything I could possibly have imagined. It was really just absolutely stifling if one most know the truth. I realize, that as Chris' wife, I am called upon from time to time to host these types of events...but they are truly out of my comfort zone for sure. For one...most of these people are strangers...at least to me...or even if I have met them casually a time or two...they are still strangers. LOTS of them. It is not a far stretch to say that I have some crowd issues. I avoid them at all costs. REALLY. I HATE it when someone moves into what I consider MY space at the gym. The aerobics studio is a big place, you know what I mean? Yet inevitably someone wants to stand right NEXT to me. UGGGGh. I hate grocery stores when they are crowded, rarely attend concerts, avoid 4th of July gatherings and don't even like school plays, etc. I really am not a crowd kind of girl. But tonight....crowd was the word. There were so many people standing around my kitchen that it was just disorienting. The night ended up okay. Although...it is stressful for me when so many people are around because when there are SO many people, it is just so hard to focus on any of them really. I found myself at the beginning of the night just visiting with a couple of folks that I already knew mostly outside of Ventana. But I knew that I had to move on from that and mingle with Chris' coworkers....hard as that is for me. So...I navigated my way to my favorite bottle of wine...because these things just require it...and jumped in and started working my way around. I talked with too many people. More than I can really recall. I made sure to hit the important ones...Chris' boss and his past one...though at one point I really wanted to snag the boss and discuss with him how I don't appreciate AT ALL him snagging MY hubby as one of the ONLY two in the whole darned company who has to go to Turkey here next month...but I resisted. Made meaningless small talk instead. Circulated some more...walked people to the door...circulated some more. All in all, when the door was closed to the last guest it was LLLLLLATE! And I was tired. I was just thinking at that moment of my little girl who was at her very first ever sleep over with a friend and thinking that "Wow! She really stayed over!"...when the phone rang. And it was my dear friend phoning to let me know that my girl was not really going to complete the whole sleep over thing and that she was on the way over with her! I smiled to myself...thinking she had ALMOST made it! When my friend pulled up both my girl AND hers were OUT dead asleep in the back seat. It's a whole 4 minute drive from my house to hers, so I knew our girls must have played so hard. She confirmed that they truly had. And as I carried my baby girl in the house she woke up just long enough to tell me that she "just couldn't bear to be away from me all night long". How sweet was that? I am choosing to truly treasure these days...days when my daughter would rather be here at home, with me, than off with any friends. That no matter what the world offers her (and tonight the offerings were pretty awesome) she prefers her family and her home. We had a sweet snuggle as I carried her upstairs. I had to admit that I too will sleep better tonight knowing that she is just at the top of the stairs. And that we will all wake up in the morning and start the day anew....together. Tomorrow...she just might be ready to head off into the world without me. But tonight...well, it's a sweet, sweet thing to have my baby close to home! Life is good in the desert! Crowds and all!

So Many Thoughts

Busy day here today. Almost too tired to think tonight. So many thoughts spinning in my head at this hour. Our small happy hour get together thingy tomorrow night has now become an expected 35. Yes...35 people have accepted the invitation...I asked Chris..."Did you invite 35 people?!" Apparently, he did and nearly all of them have accepted. So how fun is that?!!! So...there's the house to clean. That's the whole point really of this...or at least my advantage in agreeing to it...the house gets a really great cleaning. There's nothing like a little entertaining to force you to clean out those deep nooks and crannies! And then...thoughts of tomorrow lead me to thoughts of today. I grocery shopped. It was like being in senior citizen hell at Fry's this afternoon. It was like ALL of Sun City...and I mean EVERY resident, descended upon Fry's exactly at the time I needed to be there. I have to tell you that navigating around hundreds of the 70 yr old and up crowd really slows down a shopping experience. It was especially fun with 3 kids and one of those terribly obnoxious and impossible to steer car buggy things. I nearly lost my sanity in Frys'. Here's my meager word of advice...if you pull up to Fry's and see the Coyote Run shuttle out front...then RUN LIKE THE WIND!!! Forfeit any and all ideas that you might be holding about shopping. Just hang it up, drive to Safeway and pay the extra bucks. It will be worth it! Then my next thought...my 11 year old son hates beans...yes, we have had yet another struggle on that front. Next thought...we hung some new pix in my studio tonight...just one really...but it led to other small projects in there. And then we stood back and surveyed our work...next thought...I REALLY, REALLY need a young, pretty, and I mean REALLY pretty and attractive all American PREGNANT COUPLE in here for pictures. If you are reading this...and you know one...hook me up. I am IN NEED. And to clarify...I do not need women in their 9th plus month...who are just less than pretty. I'm thinking 7th, 8th month...pretty, glowing, happy, smiling. With an equally good looking hubby willing to smile for my camera. Next thought...I cooked tonight...Tomato Florenine Quiche...came out just yummy, and looked just like the picture in Southern Living. Next thought...the puppy had a bath and I think both doggies need to go to grandmas house during the party...next thought...Clara has her first sleep over tomorrow night. Next thought...need to get the weeds out of the yard before tomorrow night...next thought...what if it rains the whole time? Next thought...uggggh. I am too tired to think about anything else except that my feet hurt and I need to sleep now! Big day tomorrow. Fun, fun, fun!

In With the New!!!!

It's FINALLY in! Thanks to Chris and his brother, the stove got installed without too much trouble and only a little bit of blood! LOVE IT!!!!!

SO Close...but then...not so much so...

All four new appliances are currently sitting in my kitchen. Beautiful in all of their stainless glory! The dishwasher installed so easily. The microwave installed so easily. The new fridge installed so easily. The new stove...well it is currently sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor...NOT installed. Apparently, this stove we bought is part gas and part electric. Isn't that neat? Except...apparently, even though the stove requires electricity to work...it does not COME with a power cord with which to plug it in. Hmmmm. That's a new one for me. I've never bought any appliance that REQUIRES electricity that was without the cord needed to supply said electricity. And somehow...Home Depot failed to mention that it was a little extra accessory that we would need. Also...we paid a $50 installation fee...ONLY to find out that these people don't install gas appliances. So...we paid for...? What's just so funny (only not really funny at all) is that the lady told us that we had to make sure to purchase a brand new gas line because they won't hook up the new stove to an old line. So I have this brand new gas line sitting here on my counter for the installation people who don't actually install anything having to do with gas, but which I have paid them to install...I am thinking that somewhere, somehow, there is a very serious idiot factor at work right now! Chris will just have to step in here and do his man thing and fix this situation for me! I LOVE the new appliances...even though one is clearly NOT where it belongs. That aside...the kitchen looks amazing! I will post a picture once we conquer our little stove issues! In the meantime...my delicious, wonderful, Southern Living gourmet dinner (which I imagine I MIGHT be inspired to cook IF my stove was hooked up....maybe) is just going to have to wait another night!

Out With The Old!!!

Crackberries

My husband works for a company full of workaholics. They all work TOO many hours TOO many days of the week. Part of being an employee there with any value at all means that you get assigned a Blackberry for communication purposes (or "crack"berry as we wives have taken to calling the things. We call it a crackberry because it's so addictive...the pull of the vibration of the thing so strong that few are able to resist looking at the screen to see who has sent them some new news or assignment. I have mastered the discreet, yet still present sound of the vibration that results from each new message or phone call routed to that little machine. I hear it...and then I watch to see what my husband will do. How will he handle the temptation of the mighty crackberry? RARELY does he say "oh well...whatever it is can just wait until morning." No...usually, he pretends to ignore it...and then...when he thinks noone is looking, he quickly slides it out, just enough to get a peek, and checks to see if it is anything important. I bust him on it regularly. Even go so far as to point out to him that our silverware drawer (that's where he deposits it at night) is vibrating....AGAIN. He used to keep it in his underwear drawer...but the darned thing goes off all night, and my hearing is extremely sensitive...and so it had to be left someplace far away from my bed you see. Sometimes, I make a real point of watching him once he has received a communication...and he KNOWS I am watching him...and then it's kind of fun to watch him break into a sweat from withdrawal and try to think of ways to distract me so he can check it without feeling so bad. Often it just doesn't work...and he apologizes for just not being able to resist the mighty summons of the blackberry pull! And so we live with the allure of the crackberry...answering it's every beck and call. Catering to all the other workaholics there...not to mention the Europeans who are on a totally different schedule. Well...it's an all call, all the time...never a quiet hour on the crackberry...no siree. WHY am I blogging about the crackberry you ask? WELL...tonight, we sent out an invitation for an informal happy hour thing for some of the other employees. Chris really likes to do those from time to time...and I oblige because it's a GREAT excuse to get the house really, really clean. Anyway...the invitation went out around 9:30 p.m. and literally, within LESS THAN A MINUTE we already had 2 acceptances. Now...WHY are these people reaching for their blackberries at 9:30 p.m. I ask you? Does the work day NEVER rest? I am always amazed at just how many people reach for those....the fastest blackberries in the west! Nakil won tonight. His acceptance was nearly instantaneous! That's a quick finger I tell ya! Okay...enough on the crackberries. It's time for bed!

Marking Time

I take a lot of pictures. Obviously! However...fewer and fewer of them are of my own little ones. Most of the smiling faces that I see through my camera belong to others. Now, as a photographer, I would stress to parents that marking time is SO important and remind them that these little blessings of ours are growing and changing right before our eyes. And NOT just because I want to see them in here all the time so I can build my business! I just recently realized that my own daughter has undergone an amazing transformation, right under my nose, with me looking right at her every single day. And it's AMAZING to see. I did pictures of her just back at Easter...that's just over 3 months ago. And then the new batch I just did up in Showlow...well. It almost does not even look like the same child. I am posting them here for you to see for yourself. If you haven't taken your children somewhere for pictures recently...and I do mean RECENTLY...it is probably time! Seize the moment, mark the time. You will be glad that you captured a VERY fleeting moment of their childhood to have forever. Unfortunately, we can't keep them little, can't stop them from growing up. But long after our little ones are not so little anymore and are off in the world doing their grown up things...then we moms can still look and remember when they WERE those sweet little beings. We can look at their sweet smiles, their missing teeth, their funny little expressions...and for a little bit we can just remember how special it was to be blessed with these amazing and precious little people in our lives. Moms...GO MARK YOUR TIME! Three months doesn't seem very long at all! But just at the change in my baby!

Just One More

Photography Homework

So...I have had several people mention to me now that they would like to see me do more outdoor photography. This is a real challenge for me...as I just don't do that...so far. However...I have decided to embrace that challenge and start working more on it. The only problem is, it is SO hot here still. So it will be the fall before I can really get out there and hit it. However, while we were away this weekend I decided to embrace those MUCH cooler temperatures and do some outdoor shots. And so...these are for all of those who are setting new goals for my photography skills and encouraging me out of my comfort zone! Oh...and her face is SO red...not because of my exposure skills...but rather, due to quite a little sunburn she got out on the lake that morning!

Camping Adventures

This weekend our family went camping in Showlow, Arizona. We loaded up and headed out to one of our very favorite spots...only to find it was absolutely FULL!!! Oh no! But never fear...we just moseyed on down the road and camped at Showlow Lakes instead of Fool's Hollow. Now...Showlow Lake was lovely enough. It's no Fool's Hollow for sure...but it was nice just the same. We had some good rain while we were there...but nothing too terrible. It did keep us from having a campfire that first night...but it was really nice to lay there in bed and hear the pitter patter of that gentle rain hitting the camper. The favorite part for the kids was that there was a playground practically right in front of our campsite...so they got LOTS and lots of fun play time there. They also got to do some fishing, along with some boating as well. We ate awesomely! There is nothing like a thick, juicy ribeye hot off the grill while you are out camping in nature! Ribeyes, salads...yum! Oh, and you can't forget the bacon and eggs and pancakes for breakfast each morning! Our family had a wonderful time. The kids got along wonderfully. Everyone managed to stop the non-stop bickering that had been going on all week and just enjoy themselves. One of the best parts of camping in Showlow is the drive getting there. You go through the Salt River Canyon, which is just gorgeous. I like it way better than I liked the Grand Canyon. It is a sight that I find myself just glued to, trying to soak it all in and commit it to memory each time we go through there. So beautiful! Anyway...wonderful weekend. Very restful. Very relaxing. I am now officially ready for all these kids to go back to school now!

Victory!

Well, Ladies and Gentleman. The battle of the beans has come to an end. And it only took like 14 hours. Max chose to go to bed quite hungry last night. I KNOW he woke up hungry this morning...yet sat quietly watching everyone else eat their yummy breakfasts. He SAYS he was not hungry...but he was. I imagine that he might have gone most of the day hungry...except that I upped the ante a bit and mentioned that we MIGHT invite his friend to come along camping with us this weekend...except...oh yeah...he hadn't eaten his beans. Too bad. Well, that lit a fire under his butt and was all the inspiration he needed. He loaded those beans with blue cheese dressing and....slowly, but surely downed them. Of course...what was maybe a bite and a half of green beans became no less than 6 bites...the point is that he ate them and lived to tell about it! Who knows what veggies will be on his plate tonight at the campground? But we will see!

Battle of the Beans

The battle lines have been drawn. It is the beans against Max this time. When we were in for Maxwell's 11 year old check up his pediatrician was MUCHO unhappy about the fact that Max eats neither fruit, nor vegetable. She said that at his age, it is time to eat them....or else. And took QUITE the hard line against it. Her instructions were, specifically, that Max is to eat 4 bites of vegetable BEFORE any of the other courses are offered to him. So while everyone else can dig into their steaks and what nots...Max must first tackle his broccoli or whatever else is served in the vegetable lineup. The other night was, in fact, broccoli. You could tell he was miserable and there was much drama over consuming that one whole little broccoli top. In addition to the veggies first rule, there is also the stipulation that if Max, for any reason, decides to throw up, then the mess is to be cleaned up (I vote by him!) and he is to be served the same vegetable again. Now, honestly, this is a scenario that I TOTALLY see happening in our house. We will see. Tonight we had dinner at grandmas. She too, has been informed of the rules and had several nice veggie choices available to Max. I quickly knocked off the two easy freebies (potatoes and corn on the cobb), which left the choice of okra and tomatoes medley or green beans. Under great duress he chose green beans. I gave him a whopping TWO of them. Long story short....Max passed on dinner (which the doctor assures me is JUST FINE). And so now...it is green beans (with ketchup at this point) for breakfast tomorrow morning. I just can't wait to see what tomorrow holds for us. I mean...such anticipation...NOT!!!!!! I imagine my day will start with a healthy dose of vomit...which will mean making Max clean it up...which will SURELY NOT be to my standards...which will mean I have to clean it up myself....AND mop the floors...just to be sure. Oh yeah...big excitement tomorrow coming our way. These are the real moments of parenting that you could NEVER have imagined when you pictured what raising children would be like. I mean....sucksville...big time. Worse yet...I KNOW without a doubt that when I take Clara in for HER checkup in two weeks, the doctor is going to ask me about Max and the veggie quest. And it will totally suck to have to admit that my child is still a veggie virgin. No siree...that is MOST unacceptable. Thus...we press on...and it's green beans for breakfast. Let's hope the battle is won right there. We are going camping tomorrow and I really, really don't want to pack this baggie of green beans to take with us! Pray for us! Pray for me! Pray for a spirit of compliance and a real tempting and craving from the holy spirit for greenbeans!!!!

Two LONG Weeks

School starts for us two weeks from today on August 9th. Right now I am sure that this will undoubtedly be the LONGEST two weeks of my life. My children are driving me NUTS...to the point that they are being regularly banished to their rooms for long periods of time and so that I can regain my own control and not beat them! Max and Clara cannot even seem to be on the same FLOOR of the house without arguing. Clara is the QUEEN of drama...and I just don't DO drama...so that's a problem. They have all lost their video game priviledges, with the exception of Ben...who has managed to keep a very low profile through all of this. It has been a pleasant summer to this point. But this week has been a slippery slope into a very bad, place behavior and attitude-wise with my children. They have been mouthy and rude, inconsiderate of one another and argumentative. In addition, after repeated warnings about his lack of practice, Max has officially lost his guitar lessons. I refuse to pay for any more wasted lessons. It takes a chunk of cash and a chunk of my own time each week for these lessons...only to be completely forgotten about until the next week. So there is virtually no progress at all with him. And I am DONE. Of course, Max is VERY sorry (he tells me) and is begging for just one more chance. But he has already had one more chance several times and I am just done with it. Cancelling the lessons that he obviously is not really interested in will be a savings of $92 a month...which translates to a total of $1104 over the course of this next year(and THAT total is consevative as it only accounts for 4 lessons a month, even though some months will have 5)...not to mention the gas money I save on top of that. At the rate he is going, I might as well just flush the $1100 right on down the toilet and never even set foot out of my home. Needless to say, I am MAD, mad, mad about his lack of practicing and dedication to something he begged for forever. So...there is that.

I am ready for school to start. I am nearly desperate for the doors to open and take in my children and begin the education process for the year. I am pulling out my hair and to the point where I am just not liking them too much at all right now. It doesn't help that I am only TOO CRANKY about this stupid hip flexor injury that is totally keeping me from getting even one little bit of decent exercise. I am not a sitter. I am a doer. I have been sitting since Sunday...well, Tuesday...but still. It has been hurting since Sunday and I have officially been resting it for almost 48 hours now with NO exercise (considering it really hurts to even walk). I went into the gym and lifted some weights this morning...all upper body. But nothing fun. It stinks. This afternoon I am alternating ice and heat trying to get a hint of relief from it. Hopefully TOMORROW I will wake up cured. Honestly, ever since I turned 35 in September it has been one injury after another. If it isn't a herniated disk, it's a knee. And if it isn't a knee it's a hip flexor. And if not that, then it is a migraine. I have had just enough of this! It's like my whole body is just on strike since the big 3-5 arrived. Geez!

On a high note (those are few and far between right now), we are going camping this weekend. Destination: Showlow to Fool Hollow Recreation Area. We have been there before and it is really pretty. Huge lake...awesome campground. NICE showers...oh...and the best part...temperatures only in the 70's for the highs and 50's for the lows. That should be a delicious treat. The forecast is for scattered showers...but we are having those here anyway. At least while it is not showering we will not all be cooped up here together staring at each other. The kids have really enjoyed the lake in the past and I just think the getaway will be great for all involved.

Oh...one more high note. All of my new appliances get delivered on Tuesday!!! Hooray. I will have a whole new kitchen by Tuesday night! Wa-hooo! NO MORE WHITE STUFF! If anyone needs some lovely white appliances for their home, now would be a great time to contact us! And those of you who know me, know that the stove has BARELY been used!!!!! It's practically brand new! ha ha!

Must go get ready now for the last guitar lesson. I would have already cancelled,except it would be rude not to give him notice. After all...he will be there waiting on Maxwell. Should be a fun afternoon. Can't wait.

Middle School

Today was registration day at the middle school where Max will be a sixth grader in two short weeks. It was exciting (and a little scary) to see where my son will be spending the next three years of his educational life. Today's process involved getting his picture made for his i.d. card and the yearbook, signing up for parent newsletters, finding out about and registering for the bus schedule, getting his class schedule, buying yearbooks, purchasing p.e. uniforms (which, according to his schedule he would need), purchasing school spirit t-shirts, getting lunch cards loaded, and getting checked off with the health office that all immunizations, etc were up to date. Then we got to actually walk his schedule and try to find all of his classes. We located all of those, along with his locker. Opening the locker proved to be quite a challenge for Mr. Max! In addition to just being a new experience for him (the combination lock thing), there was a bit of a trick to it. It took several attempts to get it open and then we were successful only with the help of a veteran student. Once we were let in on the trick, I had Max open it about 10 more times just to be sure he could do it! When we left I think he was feeling fairly confident about it all. He found out while we were there that one of his best buddies is going to be in the first 5 of 7 classes. And there lockers are only about 3 or 4 apart there...so the two of them are planning to stick together! That makes me feel a bit better about it all! I think he is really excited...a bit nervous, but really excited. In addition to the new school, will come the added challenge of riding the bus. To make it more exciting, he will ride a different bus home in the afternoon than what he rode in the morning. To tell you the truth, mom was just stressed out over so many complicated changes...but Max seems to be either pretty okay with them, or just still currently oblivious to them. Anyway...it was a good and informative morning. I'm not sure I am any more relaxed about the start of the year after it...maybe just the opposite! But either way the big day is fast approaching!

Headache is all gone today. It persisted right through 5 p.m. yesterday. A very long and drawn out episode for sure. I had to do my first photo session ever with a nasty migraine going. That was interesting and I wondered for a time if I would be able to get through it. But alas, I did! I pretty much lived on ibuprofen yesterday...but I got through it. And the family that came was so totally fun and their pictures were SO good. They will be appearing on the website VERY soon. I actually have quite a bit that needs to go up and change out! I'm sure Chris won't be too excited about it...but I sure am. I LOVE some of the new stuff that is going up!

And while my headache is better, I have definitely injured something in the front of my leg. Not sure if it is a quadricep or hip flexor or groin muscle...but it has been singing painfully now since Sunday. Pretty much every step I take really. really hurts a lot. So...no running today. Heck...it took 4 ibuprofen just to be able to walk around the campus with Max this morning at registration. There might be a couple more quiet days here in my future...though I would be overjoyed to wake up and find it cured tomorrow morning!

The rest of the day is somewhat busy. I have pictures tomorrow for one little one that I am very excited to see. She has the funniest little expressions and I hope she will be up to sharing them tomorrow morning! I am off today to buy a goldfish and bowl for her shoot...something I want to try with her. Hoping it will come out precious! After that I have another couple of errands to do...and THEN...I am going out on a date with my hubby! We are going appliance shopping tonight! Hooray! When they built our house, the original owners put white appliances in...even though the countertops are very nearly black and we have black iron hardware on all of the cabinets. It just doesn't look right. So tonight we will begin the process of looking at some new ones! HOW exciting!!!! Then after that is a girls night out at Applebees...so I gotta figure that one out too! Anyway...lot of fun and excitement tonight! Can't wait!

So that is what is going on in our house today! Life is good here in the desert!

Headache

Woke up with this one. It's a doozy. Intense. Very painful...right side, sharp stabbling pain, pressure behind my right eye. I am nauseas when I move around and the light is just painful. Something interesting though...I noticed last night that I was having trouble focusing on Chris while I was talking to him. I finally took my glasses off, it was so bothersome. I felt like he was too close for me to see clearly...but I was on one end of the couch and he was on the far other end...we weren't really that close. Having trouble with it this morning too...but the house is flooded with light and using my eyes is just painful all around right now. Getting the kids set up with what they need and then I have to go back to bed. Three ibuprofen taken a while ago are not touching this, and I have SO much to do today and a picture appointment at noon. I do NOT have time to be incapacitated today. Got to get a handle on it....like NOW. So...back to the dark...for now.

That's My Boy

Here are some of the latest pictures of our Ben! Nine...going on ten here shortly. Fourth grade...sweet as they come. That's my boy!

Counting Down the Days

It is exactly 2 weeks and 5 days until school starts. Our summer has been just wonderful. Full of some fun and awesome adventures, times with friends, swimming, reading, and relaxation. No complaints here! But alas...all good things must come to an end in exchange for even better things...like school! I tackled the VERY dreaded back to school shopping list a couple of nights ago. Target had all the schools lists out so I grabbed it (since I keep forgetting my copy at home) and started fulfilling the appropriate grade level necessities. $80 later...and that is STRICTLY the supply list...I am happy to report that three backpacks are full of supplies and ready to go. Three backpacks are NOT included in that $80 total. No...that would be an additional $50...and we haven't even begun to tackle the back to school wardrobe! It's an expensive season, to be sure! Still to do...haircuts for the boys (that's a MUST), clothing update for the boys and a couple of other items for Clara, new lunch box for Max...since he's a big middle schooler now and can't be seen carrying a babyish basketball looking lunchbox anymore...and registration day for Max next Tuesday. Apparently they will be doing yearbook pictures and everything THAT day...before the school year even technically starts. Interesting, to be sure. Of course...I really have no interest in school pictures. The yearly "mug shot" is something I have been passing on now for several years...for obvious reasons. Those pictures rarely look like my kid...and I have to buy an outrageously expensive package of like way too many....I just always get better ones of my kids myself. And somehow...even though I never order a package, I STILL end up with at least a couple or three of their school picture anyway! I think their teachers get a few for projects and what not...but rarely use them all...and so they come home to me! I have had several folks complain about the school pictures and I have fixed more than a couple of picture disasters...I think I am going to do a back to school special for those parents wishing to bypass the generic mugshot...something like 1/2 price units...pick your pose...something. I still have to think on it some, but I have had enough requests that it would seem a good idea. Not to mention that I just hate to see folks stuck with "the mug shot". Those school pictures are often the only professional picture done of the child that year. But...enough about the picture business...for now. As the "big" day, August 9th approaches, feelings are all over the board in our house. There is total excitement by Clara. She is SO ready to go to school and to have some homework. I think Max is fairly excited...really looking forward to the pre-algebra math class he has been placed in. He's vowed that he is going to be extra organized (LOL!!! Bless his heart...it will interesting to see his efforts!) Ben is not especially excited about school. He never is. Although, the knowledge that his best pal will be in his class with him for the third year running is boosting his spirits a bit! And as for mommy...well it's a mixed bag. I am excited for all three of my kids and the adventures ahead for them. I am excited about the possibility of having a clean house that stays that way most of the day. I am thinking that I will most definitely cherish the calm and quiet...to a point, but am pretty sure I will miss the sweet cloud of never ceasing chatter that comes with my dear girl. She and I are quite tight...and I fear it is her absence that I will feel the most. I've tried not to think too much on how I will be setting her off into the world of school and about how she will now spend more of her day with others than with her dear old mom and siblings. The thought that others will be privy to all of her smiles and laughter and chats and goings on...and not me...well. That's when the tears start flowing. And so...on that note, that is probably enough for today.

I HATE THIS THING

And that's all I have to say about that today.

Migraine

Woke up at 3:30 a.m. with this headache. It's one of the worst ever I think. My head hurt so bad I can't even describe it. Mostly the top, right side of my head...but everywhere is being drawn in, if that makes sense? I was up looking for ibuprofen just before 4 this morning. I thought I would die before I got to bed and got still again. Then the dog's breathing was bothering me, and Chris was in the shower to catch an early flight to Europe, so that was excruciatingly loud, and the hum of the ceiling fan...you name it. It is backed off a little bit this morning, but it is ramping up again as I sit here. I am nauseas as all get out and just miserable. It is nearly time for more ibuprofen. Ben is pushing the buttons on the toaster oven and it is SO LOUD...all those little beeps. I have a feeling that this is going to be a very, very quiet day for us! Got to find somewhere dark now. No small challenge on this very bright and sunny day!

And She Runs

Running won out in the exercise scheme of things yesterday. Only because when I got to my Bodyjam class the schedule had changed and the class was now at 5:30 instead of the 5:45 I showed up for. And I HATE, hate, hate being late. So I just came back home and did a short 5 mile run. Felt pretty great. NO problems. No real soreness. Could have run more I'm sure...but dinner was ready then! Oh...and no yuckiness afterwards! So that was greeat!

So Here's Something Funny...

I am actually sitting here comtemplating a run a little later today! I must be out of my fool head! Tonight is usually my Bodyjam class...WHICH I adore always. But I am sitting here and think that even after that nasty experience post 10 miles on Saturday, I might like to hit the pavement (or actually, the treadmill) again. Hmmm. Must be the heat getting getting to me! We'll see what the day holds.

Puppy Training-Week 1

We started puppy classes with Oscar last night at PetSmart. There are only 3 puppies in our class...two of them being my own and my mother in law's. Then there is Bailey, who is a 6 month old Scottish highland terrier thing. There was supposed to be a lab joining us as well, but was a no show. So just the three musketeers last night. We all got introduced and started working on a few basics. My thoughts on this whole thing thus far? I HATE that clicker thing. What a pain in the butt! I dreamed of clickers last night. Click, click, click, click, click, click, click. Not to mention that you almost need like extra hands to do it. NOT to mention the mental challenge of just making sure you click the stupid thing in the first place...and at the exact right moment on top of that. So...I'm feeling clicker challenged this morning. Despite the fact that I hate the clicker...I have heard good things about clicker training and this class and has witnessed firsthand some amazing transformations of good behavior because of it. And so...we will stick with it. At this point, I am wondering though if I can perhaps expand it to work also on my children. I mean, as long as I am clicking and training. Though I doubt they would do much of anything for a liver treat. No. I'm afraid I'd have to be dropping dollars into their little hands each click instead of liver yum yums. Too expensive. Besides that...I'd need another hand. One for the clicker, one for the liver snacks and one for the dollar dispensing. Okay....so clicker training the kids is officially off the table now.

Speaking of the kids...they are making me nuts! I am very certain that I am NOT the only parent saying that this summer, however, they really are just stepping up the "make mom insane" behavior here this past week. We have actually had a really great, easy summer thus far. But the past few days have yielded a whole new level of bickering and WHINING!!!!! You may or may not know this about me, but I simply do NOT do whine. And boys tend to do WAY less of it than girls do (though I did not KNOW that until we had Clara). I always thought that the fact that my boys were not whiney was due to my outstanding parenting skills. Then God smacked me right down a notch or two by blessing me with Clarabelle who can, at times, be the world's most skilled and most annoying whiner. Which, just really makes me nuts. We are in whiney mode here as of late...and DRAMA! Oh my! Clara actually told me just last night that we just don't understand how hard it is for her and how much tougher life is on her. We simply don't get it...the hardships of being a whole 4 years old. Clara is currently learning to roller skate. Chris brought the infernal things home with him the other day after Clara went with him supposedly to get a haircut! Along with these skates, she had also wrangled a new helmet, new set of knee and elbow pads (complete with water bottle) and a set of wrist guards. Now...I would not really be opposed to Clara getting the skates...IF she could skate. However...she does not. Not even close. So it requires the assistance of yours truly. WHICH might not be such a bad thing IF it wasn't 106 degrees...are you following me here? So we have been hitting the culdesac out front rather early each morning in full roller skate safety attire and it pretty much happens like this. I drag Clara by the arm and she complains that I am going too fast (even though my speed is like....hmmm...BARELY moving). I mean, it's taking like 15 minutes to go around the little traffic island there in front of the house. ONCE! Yesterday morning we were out skating and we started down the sidewalk and Clara nearly lost her footing and she shouts out "Mom! THINK of me!" The way she said it was SO funny and so dramatic and so out of nowhere. Then I got to laughing so hard that I did not think I was going to be able to hold the child up! All this while juggling my morning cup of coffee (GOT to have that!), which, is coming dangerously close to being WORN isntead of consumed due to laughing hysterically and trying to hold up Clara with my other hand. All of this happening, of course, right in front of the peekers house. The "peekers" are my VERY annoying old neighbors who have a closed circuit camera system monitoring everything that happens in front of their house (including the sidewalk we were standing on). They watch everything. Then they also tend to peek out of their blinds at my kids if they are racing around the outside of the house and climbing over OUR wall and what not. I'm pretty sure they can't stand my kids and we have probably single handedly removed several years from their life just in the worry caused that perhaps a child might actually TOUCH an edge of their property. That's FINE with me. Needless to say, there is NO love between me and the neighbors. Although, I'm sure they thought we were insane as this whole skate/coffee/ hysterical laughing while trying to hold up the child happened right in front of their little camera thing.

Okay, so enough commenting on the drama and whining in our house. Life is good. We are rocking along. Oh...I have nearly recovered from my 10 mile run. Can I just say that the hours following that run sucked most horribly?! It felt great WHILE I did it! But man...once I stopped...NOT fun. I was in a state of extreme YUCK for several hours post run. I'm really not sore at all from it. A little bit tight through my hip flexors, but not really sore too much. Not much planned today. Got to take my Max to the doctor for his physical! Fun, fun, fun! More on that later! Life is good here in the desert!

Headache

Okay...first day of my cycle...another annoying headache. More left sided this time. However, this one stayed fairly mild and responded well to ibuprofen. I tried to outrun it with my ten mile run...but when it was all said and done...it was still there. So...took MORE ibuprofen and just pushed through the pain as they say on the Survivor Tylenol challenges! Pretty much gone right now as I type this...but I am going to head on to bed before it comes back again!

I Ran Ten

Miles that is! That's right...I said 10! Feel free to leave your congratulations in the comments section below! I have NO idea what got into me. I just hopped onto my trusty treadmill for a quick spot of exercise and next thing I know I am rolling right over the 10 mile marker! It is amazing what you can do with some great music playing in your ears! I felt like I could have just run and run...which I did! It was QUITE an accomplishment. The first time this gal has run that distance, for sure. And while it felt great to do it...I will be the first to admit that it WON'T be happening tomorrow...or even the next day...or maybe not even this week again. Heck...it might not EVER happen again! It took forever to cool down from that run...and my body has been in a state of "What the hell was THAT?" ever since it happened. Can't say I'm feeling particularly fantastic right now since I've finished. No siree. Not fantastic at all. As a matter of fact, I have been downright nauseas since I got done! So...going to sit and suck down some serious water now and recuperate from my fitness quest of the day.

Dazzling!

This little beauty opened up in Jackie's yard this morning. SO gorgeous! So dazzling that I had to share!

Headache

Okay...it's a good one. Knocked somewhat back with ibuprofen...but by no means knocked out. I am due to start my cycle this weekend, if that counts for anything. Right side of my head...my skull...all the way up the top of my head into my hair and across right side of my forehead. Noise was hurting it worse earlier...along with movement, temperature...breathing...life just pretty much sucked there for a while. I am up and moving right now, but am by no means comfortable. Still hurting lots on the right side. Already looking forward to bedtime tonight and quiet!

Portrait of a Puppy
I have a new backdrop in the studio and I just had to try it out...on SOMEONE!!! My kids sure aren't volunteering! So I snagged little Oscar for his first ever, official portrait session! All in all, it went very well. He's a good little guy...very patient! The fact that he can't jump off the things I put him on yet and run away helps too!

Cardboard?!?

Okay...so I just got off the treadmill from doing my morning run. Thanks to the humidity I only managed 6 miles instead of 7 today. It's just too thick and sticky. Anyway...while I am running, I am watching t.v. I watched a little of this and a little of that...nothing really held my interest for more than a few minutes at any point this morning. However...I was watching the commercials and the new Tampax commercial comes on talking about "Time for an upgrade". And it shows a girl's blah blah boring closet turned into a super huge store sized closet with all sorts of glamorous stuff in it. It also shows a girl working out at the gym and her view is this big ugly guy...but then "it's time for an upgrade" and her view changes to this gorgeous hunk of a guy. Then it goes on to show tampons and says "time for an upgrade" and then I'm expecting something new and unique and they show "Tampax Cardboard". Cardboard? Cardboard is an upgrade? We're talking luxury closets and hunky men...and that's on par with cardboard tampons? What the heck is THAT all about and who is the marketing genius behind that one. Ooooh cardboard...those sound comfortable. And the box is ugly too...it's the usual TAMPAX in white letters on the blue box...but in a HUGE bright yellow box in huge letters it says CARDBOARD. Anyway...this entry pretty much has nothing to do with anything. Other than to say that that commercial does NOT entice my desire for cardboard tampons. I like the ones that say something like "Pearl" or "Comfort" or "Satin" or "Princess"...NOT cardboard. Cardboard may be the latest and greatest craze...but I'm going to have to go with the old lousy NOT cardboard ones. I want the ones in the pretty box that promise me comfort and freedom and everything else under the sun! Just my two cents.

Conversations With Clara

C-"Mom, my foot is really, really hurting."

Mom-"Oh? What did you do to your foot?"

C- "Well, remember when I kicked Ben? That's when I hurt it."

Mom- "Clara, if you hurt YOUR foot kicking your brother, then how does poor Ben feel?"

C- "OH! It didn't hurt him at ALL...he's just that much bigger than me!"

Another One Bites the Dust

Well folks...this morning we say goodbye to another green (or used to be green!)friend. His stay with us was short (as are the stays of all green things in this house!) and sweet. Clara brought me this little plant for Mother's Day this year. I made it ALMOST two months. That's pretty amazing for me! The past week he has been looking sadder and sadder...droopier and droopier. No amounts of sunshine or water seem to help...or lack of water. This guy is just ready to depart this world. I did my best (which rarely counts for anything in the world of plants!). So farewell, my plant friend. Happy travels!

Monsoon Arrival

We had rain tonight. Nothing really to write about...but then, rain in the desert is ALWAYS something to write about I suppose! It's been muggy and sticky all day. Working out this morning was just sticky and gross...felt like I was trying to do my step aerobics under water. We got in a nice afternoon of swim. The Newmans came over to swim with us, along with Vicki and her girls. It was a nice afternoon by the pool watching the clouds build. Then this evening I began to hear the first rumbles of thunder. It was actually pretty exciting. It sounded like we were maybe in for a good little shower...but then...not really. The lightning was impressive, as it always is here in the southwest. So of course...I feel the need to head right out into it with my camera to see if I can "capture the moment" so to speak. Didn't happen. But it sure was fun trying. Afterwards, I thought that that might not be the wisest choice of photography...lightning storms...but it was a real thrill tonight! A whole new challenge...right up there with the two year old challenge! But for now I am going to stick with my little kiddos...they still have my heart and make me smile! Anyway...the sky was really cool during my attempts to snag the lightning. It was cool to see the edge of the storm!

Headache

I'm dying here. Had a very, very mildheadache the past two days...so mild that it really almost wasn't even a headache. Today...it is significantly amped up and I am miserable. Right side of my head is throbbing. I can literally feel the veins in my forehead throbbing with my heartbeat. Was okay when I got up this morning. Ran 7 miles. Took a shower...and now PAIN. Also have horrific heartburn the past two days...another wonderfully unpleasant sensation on top of my nearly exploding head. No fun on the fourth! It's a painful day here in the desert!

With Reality Comes the Victims

Okay...so I have been in TOTAL denial now for a couple of months that my dear friend was moving away for a year. I was just SO sure that it was so NOT going to happen. I just did not even break a sweat or waste a worry over it because I just knew it would be wasted since she wasn't really going to go. Even though we talked about watching her house and a gazillion other details...it was just conversation to pass the time because I just knew it WASN'T going to happen. My daughter went to her daughter's going away party (which was just silly since she wasn't REALLY going to go away!) And another friend and I took the dear one out to dinner as a "send off"...which again...was just silly since I had no plans to really "send" her anywhere. But reality hit home yesterday as final plans really finalized. And I really had my first inkling that she might actually leave for real when she showed up on my doorstep with...her plants. It was like someone knocked the air out me. The plants are like the FINAL final detail. Especially since this friend KNOWS I have a thumb blacker than any other found in the wide west. All things resembling foliage in my own home are silk. I simply wash the dust off of them every other month or so. But other than that...NO maintenance and they live FOREVER! My friend is not so cursed and manages to grow a great many things in pots both inside and outside the home. And so...she shows up with FIVE plants for me to kill for her while she is gone. And there is no sense pretending that anything other than that is a possible outcome! And it all just hit home that my friend actually intended to get on that airplane and LEAVE...and for a whole year at that. So it's been depressing around here...looking at all of these stupid plants that are SO out of place here in my house! I think they know they received the ultimate death sentence and are already looking paler today than when they arrived yesterday. It's a stark reality reminder that my favorite friend and walking buddy is no longer just around the corner...that I can't just call her and ask for "hypothetical" directions when I might be hypothetically lost...that I don't need to call and ask what she's wearing so that we don't show up in the same place wearing the same shirt (since I hooked her onto a particular favorite one that we both own a ridiculously high number of!). It is weird to think that it might be months and months before I see her. She has been my walking pal, my bible study pal, my mexican food pal, my dearest confidant and friend in the time I have been in Tucson...I think I may just be lost without her and her sweet smile. She left today...and I don't quite know what to do with that. I have managed to keep especially busy today so as not to think about it too much. My neighbor was kind enough to come over and swim for a short time with her little ones this afternoon and the distraction was SO needed. But now the day has come to a close and it is quiet and calm and all of my thoughts have turned to Mary and her long journey that she is even now on...and I miss her already. I would have given her a huge hug today...but she has an aversion to that sort of thing! So I have hugged her in my heart and will be holding her ever so close in my heart and prayers for the next 12 months. I am going to make a concerted effort not to kill her plants...but she knows better than to hope they will be here in a week or two...let alone a year! Happy travels, my friend. I will be missing you terribly here in the desert!

Here are more pictures of our Oscar. I keep taking a whole bunch because he is growing SO fast. He's still a teeny little thing...but there is definite and noticeable growth in the two weeks since he came to be a Roberts! These were taken yesterday. Before and after bath. Oscar wouldn't look at me anymore after a bathed him. Ignored me for a good two hours at least. His message was loud and clear! Not a water dog, this one! No sireee!

Remembering

Tonight has been an interesting night for me. My kids are off at a birthday celebration with a wonderful family...which has left me with...what's that foreign word my mind is reaching for?...oh yes...FREE TIME! Chris is out of town...and I have NOTHING requiring my attention...so it truly has been free time. I WAS a good steward with the time though and as soon as I dropped them off I headed straight to the grocery store and did two weeks of grocery shopping. I hate grocery shopping...but I REALLY hate grocery shopping with 3 kids along. So I really had to go while they were otherwise occupied. But then I got home and got all the groceries put away and it was SO quiet! So...I proceeded to put on my iTunes praise music on the computer and jam a bit while I took on a project or two. One of those projects was cleaning out my spice cabinet. Now...I know that those who know me probably think that could only take all of two seconds since I don't cook. But see...because I don't cook...I never know really know what I do and don't have...so I have way too much of everything up there! Like three salt shakers...all at different levels of fullness, and two full extra boxes of salt. Same with the pepper. And food coloring! I mean...how much food coloring can a girl have?! I counted 11 bottles. ELEVEN! Then there was the double ground mustard (two of those)...oh...and the vinegar! Holy cow. I think there are 7 or 8 bottles of vinegar in there. I just bought another tonight at the grocery store (just in case!). So...my spice cabinet was just out of control. Anyway...I set to work cleaning it out and organizing it. And it was while I was sorting and organizing that I found my thoughts returning to a very frequent obsession of mine lately...death. Don't know why...but I seem to be just thinking about it all the time here. Day and night. And absolutely everything seems to make me think of it. Today...it was the music I was listening to. First was I'll Fly Away by Jars of Clay (one of my favorite songs). I just love that tune. It is upbeat and joyful and just a good one. Then the song Remember Me came on. Another that I like...but really got to thinking on today. And then I got to remembering as well. And I thought about my grandmother and all the things that I remember about her. Like her snow white hair and her grin and the way she always made the BEST homemade pimento cheese. And tea cakes. My grandmother made tea cakes that were so amazing and light and delicious. I have the recipe. NEVER ONCE have they come anywhere close to resembling my grandmother's tea cakes. Heck...the darn things have barely even been edible the past couple of attempts. So I am now going down this remembering trail and I start to wonder what MY children and grandchildren will remember most about ME. I am PRETTY sure it won't be my mouth watering cooking (though those pizzadillas WERE quite the hit the other night!) or baking skills. It WON'T be for my love of sports. It WON'T be for my talent with a sewing machine. It WON'T be for my love of ALL God's creatures great and small. They are perfectly aware that there are 3 or 4 that I have some pretty intense issues with. I could guess all day at what it WON'T be they remember me for. But what WILL it be? Will it be my obsession with exercise? Or my need to have the house clean before bedtime? Or my total intolerance of laziness? That would be a bummer, but could really be reality. Reflecting on all of this has really made me think tonight. My kids are still young. I'm not sure that what I would HOPE they remember is what they WILL remember. And I realize that if I want them to remember certain things about me, then they really need to see those things played out in my life. If I want them to remember me as a patient lady...then by golly, I have some work to do! If I want them to remember me as a prayerful lady, then I need to spend a lot more time praying WITH them and not just FOR them. There are so many ways I would HOPE to be remembered. But if I died today, I am not at all sure they would remember me the way I hang my hopes tonight. That said...I would hope the most important thing they could remember, was that behind Jesus...there is noone else in this world that loves them more than their momma does. Noone! And that no matter what...no matter how messy they are, or how slow they move, or how they try to push boundaries and buttons...I love them so much my heart could just bust. I know that I FEEL all these things...but I am not sure that my children KNOW that I feel like that. I am not sure they know how I treasure and adore them and how great a blessing in my life I consider them to be. Tonight...before they go to bed...they will know. They will know without a doubt that I think they are so special and so precious and so unique and so very dear to me. I hope I don't die tomorrow (I need some time to work on this!) ...but if I did...at least my kids would know THAT. And with the REST of my days...however many God has recorded for me, I plan to work on the things that I HOPE my children will remember about me. Life is good in the desert. Thank you Lord for the sweet whisper of the Holy Spirit who brings me back on track...once again!