A Book For Lucy

Sorry I ended my blogging streak so abruptly. My excuses are the holidays and a knee surgery. Both were planned. We went out of town for the holidays and then two days later I had minor knee surgery which has left me a bit out of commission for about a week now. Today I am seeing the light. It would have been a great time to catch up on all things blogging but the computer is actually the least comfortable place for me to sit in this condition. All is well and hopefully I will feel awesome soon.

Another thing that had me a little tied up was a present I was trying to make for my new niece Lucy. This baby took me a bit of time but I so loved it in the end. Now I am not going to guarantee that all nieces and nephews from here on out will get them but Lucy got one. I really want to make one for each of my girls because I so love the way they turned out. I did much of the work but I do have to thank Ryan for his drawing contribution to this project. He drew most of them. Here's a look.

Cover

L is for Love, Lollipop, Lion

U is for Umbrella, Up, Underwear

C is for Car, Crayon, Corn

I is for Igloo, Inchworm, Ice Cream

L is for Ladybug, Lightbulb, Lunchbag, Leaf

E is for Earth, Egg, Elephant

Side note: Her real name is Lucile so I used that instead of Lucy which is what they call her.

Game Night

Inspired by tonight's family game night, I've compiled my list of top ten games:

• Yahtzee
• Scrabble
• Nertz (neurts, nurtz?)
• Sequence
• Cadillac
• Dominoes
• Rummikub
• Boggle
• Scattergories
• Cranium

Any I missed?

Happy Craziness!

Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving. We need. We had cheese-ball, artichoke jalapeno dip, turkey, stuffing, rolls, cinnamon butter, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes (two ways), mashed potatoes, gravy, jello, canned cranberry, broccoli salad, sparkling cider and pumpkin pie cheesecake with whipped topping.

I am sure many of you had close to the same meal but I bet ours was more delicious.

Then we decided that we would try to brave some of the shopping crowds. Ummm. Are any of you crazy people doing that tonight? We tried to go to Toy R Us tonight. The line was absolutely ridiculous so we bagged that idea. We will be going out tomorrow to see what treasures we can find.

Hello crazy people! And Happy Thanksgiving!

A Recipe You Should Try

So I am making my famous rolls tomorrow for Thanksgiving and I always make a cinnamon butter to go along with them (also famous). So I thought I would share the recipe with all of blogworld. It's horrible for you but it is so, so delicious.

Cinnamon Butter
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1. Mix and beat all ingredients until smooth.
2. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
3. Eat with delicious rolls or by the spoonful. Make sure to set out to soften before consuming.

Another great part is that you probably have all of these ingredients in the fridge right now.

From her angle (23/30)

If you have ever been around Isabel with your cell phone, iPod, camera or computer you know that she is a techie, techy, teckie, technology freak, huge fan of technology. She will hijack said gadget from just about anyone. So today we took Adelaide to her doctor appt. for her 4 month check up (all was great. She is tall and skinny. 12.10 oz (26 percentile) and 24 3/4 inches (68 percentile)) and when I got home to take the pictures off the camera from another event (birth of Shelley's baby) these are what I found.

I'm telling her to put the camera away.

Did she listen?

No. But I am. To the doctor.

I love this one of Addie. And the doctor.

I must have been taking the camera away in this one.

That was fun.

A few stencils...

For those of you who knew me when I was a younger man, you know that an undying love for the Denver Broncos began early. I remember breaking down and crying bitter tears after one particular loss to the dastardly Los Angeles Raiders. My Karl Mecklenburg mesh jersey seemed to endow me with the legendary strength of that stout Dutchman when I put it on for a game with a bunch of other scrawny kids. I wore a hideous royal blue and bright orange Broncos Starter jacket in middle school when everyone else was wearing Georgetown Hoyas and Charlotte Hornets Starter jackets. Throughout high school, a towering poster of John Elway watched over me as I slept at night, his brilliant orange '7' shining through the darkness.

However, with poor performances from my Broncos week after humiliating week, I've hardly been able to make it past the first quarter, leaving me with a bit of time on my hands. So I cut some stencils. These are for the ladies, or men who enjoy the domestic arts.



You can find these, and many other fine products, in my Etsy store. Etsy is where ladies (and men who enjoy the domestic arts) sell their handmade crafts and jewelry and whatnot. Enjoy.

4 Months

Adelaide turned 4 months old today. I know everyone says this but I just can't believe how quickly the time has gone. Adelaide is such a good little baby. This week she learned to roll over from back to front although it still doesn't happen all of the time. She talks a LOT. I have a feeling that she and Isabel will have lots to tell each other one day. She started blowing raspberries all of the time. She loves pooping right during the quietest times at church. She is a really tall baby. Still super skinny. She doesn't like bottles or pacifiers. She loves chewing on her hand. She still doesn't love the way that Isabel tackles her. She REALLY loves me (and I LOVE that). She has lost most of her hair therefore looking a lot like her sister's hair situation at this age and two years later. She smiles a lot. She giggles sometimes but not as much as I would like her to. We mostly call her Addie. We love her a whole lot.

P.S. I am going to add some pictures to this post tomorrow because I ran out of daylight hours today to take some 4 month shots so to be continued.

P.P.S. Anyone have any great ideas of what else I should post about? I am running out of ideas. How do people do this everyday year round?

India.Arie

Do you know who this is? So today Ryan was watching some old Saturday Night Live thing on VH1 when I went downstairs to join him during Isabel's nap. So on came this song. You guys, this song moved me. I have never before felt so moved and empowered and touched by a song. I have heard the song "Video" by her many times but I have never REALLY listened to the words. Well, today I did. Wow. Ryan and I were both glued to the screen. I think everyone should listen to the words. It's for sure a woman song but so good for the men too. But let's face it, not many men read my blog anyhow (Hi, Uncle Gregg!). Plus, she is from Denver so even more reason to love her. So, I am posting the lyrics on here because I can. Read them if you like or go and listen to the song somewhere. You won't be disappointed.


Video

Sometimes I shave my legs and sometimes I don't
Sometimes I comb my hair and sometimes I won't
Depend on how the wind blows I might even paint my toes
It really just depends on whatever feels good in my soul

I'm not the average girl from your video
and I ain't built like a supermodel
But, I learned to love myself unconditionally
Because I am a queen
I'm not the average girl from your video
My worth is not determined by the price of my clothes
No matter what I'm wearing I will always be the india arie

When I look in the mirror and the only one there is me
Every freckle on my face is where it's supposed to be
And I know our creator didn't make no mistakes on me
My feet, my thighs, my lips, my eyes; I'm lovin' what I see

I'm not the average girl from your video
and I ain't built like a supermodel
But, I learned to love myself unconditionally
Because I am a queen
I'm not the average girl from your video
My worth is not determined by the price of my clothes
No matter what I'm wearing I will always be the
india arie

Am I less of a lady if I don't wear pantyhose?
My mama said a lady ain't what she wears but, what she knows
But, I've drawn a conclusion, it's all an illusion, confusion's the name of the
game
A misconception, a vast deception
Something's gotta change
but,Don't be offended this is all my opinion
ain't nothing that I'm sayin law
This is a true confession of a life learned lesson I was sent here to share with
y'all
So get in where you fit in go on and shine
Clear your mind, now's the time
Put your salt on the shelf
Go on and love yourself
'Cuz everything's gonna be all right

I'm not the average girl from your video
and I ain't built like a supermodel
But, I Learned to love myself unconditionally
Because I am a queen
I'm not the average girl from your video
My worth is not determined by the price of my clothes
No matter what I'm wearing I will always be the india arie

Keep your fancy drinks and your expensive minks
I don't need that to have a good time
Keep your expensive car and your caviar
All I need is my guitar
Keep your Kristal and your pistol
I'd rather have a pretty piece of crystal
Don't need your silicone I prefer my own
What God gave me is just fine

I'm not the average girl from your video
and I ain't built like a supermodel
But, I learned to love myself unconditionally
Because I am a queen
I'm not the average girl from your video
My worth is not determined by the price of my clothes
No matter what I'm wearing I will always be india arie


I wish all the young women of the world could hear these words and believe them. Older women too but especially those young folks, they need it most.

So this made me think about some of the songs that I love these days and I will say I am in a music funk. Anyone have anything that the love? Of course I love all of the Glee songs and Christmas songs and the old stuff I have but I am craving an awesome album (the entire thing) by some artist. Anyone have any recommendations? 

Labor

Not me. A good friend. Can't post anything else. Maybe I will have some fun pictures about this experience tomorrow. Not the labor part but a cute, sweet new babe. Peace.

Taking Bets

I am willing to bet with most of my readership that I have the clumsiest two year old on the planet (this week). What is wrong? I feel like there has been some change in force in the atmosphere or something. I mean, she is always pretty accident prone but this is just getting ridiculous. Tonight she split the bridge of her nose. At first I thought she was going to need stitches but it's looking lots better already. Side Note: I told Isabel we were going to put some Neosporin on it and she said she didn't want any "Neospaurus" on it. I think we've been talking a bit too much about dinosaurs around these parts.

The explanation.

One of the funniest faces I have caught on camera of her.

The solution for bedtime.

I've said it before... (17/30)

 ...and I'll say it again - These two little girls don't look a whole lot alike.

Adelaide's game face.

Isabel's game face.

Isabel and Ryan at kickball game.

I think Adelaide will be ready for kickball one of these days.

Isabel Drawing (16/30)

Isabel has made a very significant transition from just drawing lines all over a piece of paper to actually making the lines into shapes and objects. Ryan (being the artist he is) has been a little bit concerned that maybe Isabel has as much artistic talent as I do (just kidding, he hasn't been concerned at all). But, we did see some glimmer of hope yesterday when she drew her first person. She later admitted that it was a person even though it looked a bit like a monster. And today she drew the sun. And I am loving it and will treasure it forever.

Frivolous Teri (15/30)

My lady is one of a kind. After receiving a handsome sum of money from family members for her birthday last month, she was in the enviable position of choosing her own gift. So after we picked up Chinese food last weekend, we went shopping. What did she get, you might ask? The latest overpriced Apple product? A new pair of skinny jeans? No, she picked up one of these babies:





















That's right, a jigsaw. Awesome.

Annie (14/30)

(This post is especially for the Iowa family members who weren't able to come and see our little performer but I thought you would enjoy some pictures.) 

My little cousin, Megan, was in the musical Annie tonight at her school. We are so proud of her. She did such a great job! Isabel was so surprised to see her up there. I think that she thinks that Megan is actually a famous person now. She was star struck when she saw her after the performance. Megan played the part of Molly which meant that she had the first speaking part and sang quite a bit especially at the beginning. I think that she was really excited to be in the spotlight and I'm sure this will not be the last time we see that girl on the stage. Great job, Megan!

Scrubbin' that floor!

That is a very serious acting face.

Bossing those other orphans around.

This might have been right after "til this dump shines like the top of the Chrysler Building" was shouted.

More chores.

The whole company.

Starstruck Isabel and Megan.

It's been... (13/30)

... 332 days since my last haircut and I feel SOOO much better.

Before

After

Just a picture. (12/30)

Adelaide really loves being put in the laundry basket.

Cookies (11/30)

Tonight Isabel and I made cookies. I saw a delicious recipe on a blog that I look at and I could not get these things out of my head. I just had to make them. Let me just tell you - they are delicious. So I will warn you to not look at the blog unless you are in the mood to make some seasonal treats but I will tempt you anyhow.

Somehow Isabel's shirt came off in the process.

Here are the unfrosted cookies which are delicious by themselves.

But then you add this amazing cream cheese frosting to them and it just takes them to the next level.

And then you let your child have too many cookies and too much frosting and too much powdered sugar and this is what you get.

 I have a bunch in the fridge if anyone wants one.

Catching Up (10/30)

Peter, Isabel, Katie and Thomas at Anderson Farms.

So before Halloween happened we went to a pumpkin patch with our dear friends, The Krumholz Family. We love them. Isabel especially loves them. We had such a good time doing all of the many pumpkiny, fally, and halloweeny activities. We experienced the pumpkin launching, the corn maze, buffalo feeding and enjoyed the best hot dogs of our lives (not kidding). Here are some of the pictures from the day.

Isabel and Thomas walking together. So sweet.

I love the look of determination.

I'm glad I got a picture of her taking a picture. Too bad I don't have her picture to show.

Isabel and Thomas riding in the barrels. I think Isabel was squishing Thomas the whole time.

Gotta love a running in the corn maze shot.

I am not sure what this face is but she sure loved riding the big trikes.

The pumpkin I she wanted.

The pumpkins we came home with.

Adelaide almost fell off and got hurt while taking this picture all because I saw a great photo op. Sorry child.

 

And the whole family together on the ride back from the pumpkin patch.