surprise!

this arrived in the mail today...

not so much the baby as the sweet, sweet costume.

the awesome part of the story, though, is that this was the only one left in the united states of america.  the sad part of the story is that its too big, so she can't look this fall on your face cute until next year...but, dang...that is one cute costume.

meet the fam...

be careful though.  what follows are some seriously cute pictures of some seriously cute people.  don't scroll down if you have a tendency to pass out at the sight of pure awesomeness.

don't say i didn't warn ya...

thank you katie for needing guinea pigs!  yes, that is the only time any of you will ever have permission to call me a pig.

a look back

so, somehow i missed the entire weekend...and monday.  oops, maybe i really wasn't cut out for this blogging everyday business.  it has been fun though and i can't believe the month is almost over.  tomorrow, i'll be going to a giant corn maze with the youth group from my church, so expect some fun photos of that.  can i get any cooler?  seriously people.  while your anxiously anticipating that colossus of fun, i thought i'd ring in the season with a little reminiscing from halloween past.  oh man, those are some cute kids.

fabulous finds friday 2.0

hey, surprise!  i'm actually here for the second week in a row.  i guess i really do have some secrets (that might not be so secret, but still awesome nonetheless) to share.  this week's installment is all about food, the eating out aspect of it, and the awesomeness that is having your children be involved while you do.

unfortunately, today's deal is only accessible by those of you that live in the vancouver/portland region of our great united states.  without further ado...

yes, that does say BREWING CO. at the bottom of the restaurant title, but that isn't all it is.  in fact, it is probably the most kid friendly eating establishment in the northern hemisphere...okay, i won't go that far.  it is, however, the best place to take kids in this area.  if you'd like to know the specific locations, go ahead and comment and i'll let you know!

the specifics:  awesome food, and get this--awesome kid play area!  oh yeah, you heard me right.  while you're sitting with your man, or woman, or friends, or yourself with a good book and a hot chocolate...your kids are playing in a (semi) supervised area and are completely out of your hair!  i only say semi because you can see them, but you don't have to pay too much attention because they're having way too much fun to bother doing anything harmful to themselves or others :) so, you actually get to eat an entire meal without forcing a toddler into their chair, forcing food into their mouth or forcing yourself to not get up and leave because you're so annoyed with the fact that your food is cold and all you've done is wish you were somewhere else.

in conclusion-this place is awesome and to top it all off, they have a great happy hour.  the menu is pretty extensive and there is nothing on it over 4 bucks.  plus, it goes until 6:00...cha ching!

so go out, enjoy, and make sure and call me to tag along because, that's right, its awesome!!

in other news, apparently my son's preschool has a blog and i found this little treasure on there this afternoon.  love this little dude.  don't be surprised if he discovers the ancient city of atlantis someday.  pretty sure that is what he is so concentrated on in this photo...

here comes the sun...

doot n doo doo.

is everybody singing yet??  i know i was this afternoon when the sun came out and the air was a "balmy" 70ish degrees.  it was beautiful, and absolute perfect weather for this:

                                                                        
and this:

and lots of this:

and definitely some of this:

this is the face of...

the future?  no

the military?  no

this is the face of "lack of motivation..."

yes folks.  that is, what i like to call, lunch for dinner.  i know most of you probably indulge in ye olde breakfast for dinner every once in awhile.  waffles, bacon, eggs, hash browns, probably some fruit and milk.  pretty nutritious and, dare i say, delightful.  lunch, however...is it nutritious? yes...i did include all the food groups and that is wheat bread in case you're wondering.  is it creative? not in the least.  no thought process or yummy ingredients went into our family meal this evening.  no, just plain old, "we've pulled out every puzzle, cut and glued paper for the sake of 'doing a craft,' sung every disney song in our repetoire and flew around like airplanes for longer than i care to admit.  tonight's dinner was solely the product of me not wanting to do anything that involved a stove or more than 3 ingredients.  sorry luke and sofi.  i hope that one day you can forgive me and my lack of imagination.  look on the bright side, maybe tomorrow we'll have dino nuggets!

collective sigh...

in other news--why did i go to a washington school?  it makes it really tough to be a "coug forever!"  as they say.  at least my husband is an honorary ute, so at least there's some hope there.

fabulous finds friday...

i know super cheesy, but this is an experiment and, as with all experiments, the beginning is a little rocky and the title is bound to change.  anyway, as i was washing the dishes today, i put away several sippy cups and decided that there are a few precious nuggets of information that i have that i would like to share with the general public...or at least, the choice few that read this blog.  i know there are millions of blogs out there that literally specialize on everything i will share here, but at least it will give me something to write and maybe something that will be useful to you or someone you know.

as with all goals of mine, i'm not promising anything.  i can't pinky swear with all of you (or, any of you really) that i will be here every friday with an idea or item that will save your day or your child if you happen to find yourself at the end of your proverbial rope, but i will try and trying is half the battle...or was that knowing?  whatever...anywho, on to my first installment...

if you are a mother of toddlers, or older kids who tend to spill...or, lets be honest, if you are constantly tipping over your water cup like i do and you don't currently own at least 3 of these, go out and purchase them now!  if you can't leave now, make a note, take a picture...do whatever you have to do, to add them to your shopping list:

tummy tickers.  otherwise known as the nirvana of sippy cups

i usually buy them at walmart, but i'm pretty sure they are available at winco and most likely, fred meyer and super target. i know for a fact that they are not at safeway, but who shops there when you're looking for deals anyway?   they come with juice already in them, so if you have food stamps or coupons...that's right, they're free!

moms, run out and buy these.  they really, seriously, honest to goodness, do not spill.  every single other cup says they don't and make huge promises like they're the last cup you'll ever buy.  don't believe them.  believe ME!  these are awesome.  my sister in law told me about them and ever since that day, i've never gone back to anything else.  plus, they have really fun lids, so your kids love them and so will you.  i promise, i pinky promise even.  don't ever leave home or stay home without them.  

here is said sippy cup in action.  well, sort of.  the real action is happening with the oatmeal, but you get the point.

t minus 5 weeks...

7 down, 6 to go (miles, that is)

running...again

Oh boy

its somebody's birthday, i wonder who...

first of all,  a big FAT thanks to everyone who thought of me yesterday.  it really lifted my spirits and, even though i feel like i've come a long way as far as insecurities are concerned...you know, i don't NEED recognition, but i so appreciated every single fb note/text/phone call...yay for turning 31!!  

second of all, thank you sweet, sweet husband for this:

and this:

i really brought out the jealous streak in all who crossed my path yesterday (as you can see from sofi's expression of longing.  don't worry, she got her share...she makes sure of it).

yep, you heard (or saw rather) right, i've been made an official member of the "in crowd."  i, along with justin long am officially...a mac.

i guess being a member of the 30 crowd is nothing to shake a stick at.

Aftermath

as i sit here mulling over what i should write for today's installment, which actually sort of counts for the past couple days, i found this draft, which actually really isn't a draft because it only had a title...anyway, i realized that i never really discussed hood to coast and all its glory/misery.

for those of you have never heard of it or are wondering what is it really like to run for 30+ hours on about 3 hours of sleep with quads that burn with the heat of a thousand suns...i'm here to tell you.  the experience as a whole, was really awesome.  i know i sound like one of those crazy people you see on tv that are like, "i love the pain!!" but, seriously, it was incredibly empowering to be with a team and accomplish such a great task that most of us have never even dreamed possible before boarding the 15 seat van and heading up to the top of mount hood.  yes, we started this crazy train at the top of mount hood and slowly (but surely) made our way out west to the pacific ocean by way of hwy 30 and some other hardly ever traversed, narrow back roads.  my first leg was all down hill for about 5 1/2 miles.  i was pretty nervous about it because i had never run that far straight down before.  i worried about my toes and my quads, but other than just being a tad monotonous, it was good and i made better time that i ever had in my almost 31 years.  one down, two to go...

the next five hours or so was filled with cheering and honking and eating power bars.  then, we met up with the other van (which was actually a suburban with the other half our team in it) and handed off the magic blue bracelet.  they had basically been hanging out waiting for us to get there, so now it was our turn to hang out and wait for them to finish their legs.  one of the members of our team was able to acquire a hotel room near downtown portland so we headed there, cleaned up, and got ready to take off again...what?  run again?  are you serioius...you're asking...yes, i'm totally serious.  it came time to run another almost 6 miles.  i waited for the first leg to finish and then grabbed the blue bracelet and took off again.  that leg was great.  i went a little faster than i probably should have and, as it turns out, tied my shoes a little too tight so as to crunch my nerves and tendons together into a ball of extreme pain that wouldn't subside until the end of last week...hence the aftermath title.

anywho, that run felt good and it was now close to the middle of the night.  we finished our legs and headed out to a random field to hunker down for the night...or two hours.  we woke up and headed to the meetup place.  at this point, my body is telling me in the most gentle way it can muster that there is no way in hades that it is going to run another 5 1/2 + miles.  no way, i tell you.  maybe 3ish, but not more than 5.  i knew it was going to take a miracle and all i wanted was to switch with the girl ahead of me, but i didn't think it was possible, so i didn't even ask.  second fatal mistake.  note to self-next time, just ask.  sheesh.  anyway, i get on the road and take off feeling alright...for about 3 miles.  my feet were done, my legs were done, my mental state, done.  it was one of the only times in my life that i seriously considered that i was just going to sit on the side of the road and be...well...done.  i honestly didn't know how i was suppposed to be able to finish, but i had to.  i mean, it was pitch black outside, i was in the middle of nowhere and everybody and their sister was passing me like i was standing still (which, lets be honest i basically was).  i went really slow, i had to stop and walk several times and i felt completely defeated. 

i struggled when i got back to the van.  i felt like a failure.  it was really difficult for the pride level to know that i was one of the actual "runners" and i finished the slowest out of everyone.  i learned some valuable lessons. 

1. for goodness sake, do not tie your shoes too tight...what are you, dumb??
2. ask lindsay to switch legs.  she's great...she'll totally do it!  duh
3.it doesn't matter how fast you finish, it matters that you do.  i know that sounds cliche, but i learned that its really, actually, totally true. 

now that you've been to you know where and back with me, i hope you're still there :) i want you to know that after all the heartache.  after all the actual ache.  crossing the finish line with the whole team together was one of the most incredible feelings i've ever experienced.  watching mark small climb the steepest hill i've ever driven a car up for more than 3 miles was breathtaking.  coming together from so many walks (or jogs) of life, to accomplish a common goal was awe-inspiring. 

i don't regret it.

i'll do it again...not so much in a heartbeat, but definitly in a year or two.

the team at the triumphal end.  aah...good times

ps the feet pain?  toms shoes saved my life...well, at least my feet.

Insert picture here...

Imagine, if you will, an extremely charming version of my firstborn standing by the the door of his brand new preschool on his very first day.

You'd better have a fabulous imagination because that's the only picture you're going to get. As it turns out, one needs to transfer one's photos from their broken iPhone to one's home computer before taking it in to get fixed because they will return home with a bright, shiny, new iPhone that does not come standard with said pictures.

Yeah, I was "the one" in this scenario that didn't realize I was going to be given a new phone (which is awesome) but i hadn't downloaded my photos or music (not awesome).

Moral of the story: buy a real camera and use it. Often. The end.

when harry met sofi...

so, yeah...i suppose you all know by now that i've missed a couple days.  i've decided i could look at it as a complete and utter failure and quit or i can just pretend that those days don't count because i was "out of town" and move on like i'm still awesome. 

i'm going to go with-still awesome...

for labor day weekend, we took a hiatus (from luke...i mean, home) and headed up north to visit our old buddies, the payettes.  in order to celebrate the "gorgeous" northwest weather...yeah, it was overcast and rainy...we decided to Ride the Ducks.  for those of you that have never partook in this glorious pastime, i'll fill you in on what it entails.  apparently there are 16 amphibious vehicles--basically boats with wheels--left over from world war 2 and they are now used to transport tourists and locals alike around the emerald city for an hour and a half to the tune of such classics as we will rock you and hammer time. 

it was really fun and quite the experience to be riding along the freeway and then sail off into the sunset on the lake.  we rounded out our evening by hitting up root beer xxx for a burger and root beer the size of my torso.  good times were definitely had by all.

gettin ready to board.  as you can see, we're all really "feelin" the experience.

harry and sofi respectively...the celing was done exceptionally well, he just couldn't take his eyes off it

the view of lake union from the boat, i mean car, i mean...

harry's makeshift turban/blanket hat.  lets just say we weren't as prepared as should have been.  nothin like a little creativity to spice things up a bit!

sorry andy...

i think i've found my TRUE soulmate...

i'll go in to how these totally "saved" my feet at a later date...but for now, go ahead, bask in their awesomeness with me.

before and...well...after

my daughter is adorable, as everyone so obviously knows, but something was happening, that, if left unchecked would have led to nowhere good...that something was a mullet.  since she is a girl, however, and since pigtails really are the next best thing to fabulous, i let it go much longer than my normally good reason allowed. 

finally, i held my breath, took the m&m's out of the cupboard (to keep her busy during the hair removal and to act as chocolate therapy for my nerves), and watched as sofi's flowing locks turned into nothing short of a bob (pun intended). 

without further ado...

do you see why i had to do what i had to do?  yes, that is an official rat's nest.  poor baby.

lets all say it together...aaahhh

man, do i love this girl and her sweet little haley mills haircut.

ready, set, blog-a-thon

could i sound any cheesier?  that was for all those chandler bing fans out there.  yeah, you know who you are.  so, this is all amy nielson's fault.  i read her blog and now i will attempt to write something (hopefully semi-meaningful) in this blog everyday until i pass out on october 1st from sheer finger exhaustion.  i know this really does seem crazy since my updating has been less then consistent, but who knows, maybe i'll surprise us all...that's right, us. 

i'm not promising a novel everyday, in fact, some days will be a picture with maybe a caption...if you're lucky.  i'm hoping i'll kill two birds wtih one stone...why do we say that anyway?  its so gruesome to be talking about killing birds.  what are we gonna do next, knock a baby off a tree limb?

anyway, some days will be witty banter, while other days will be pictures that will show my newfound skills that will be acquired thanks to clark college.  so, i guess its see you tomorrow?  oh boy, what have i done?