might I have a bit of blog?

2008-12-05T10:53:00.000-08:00

To go to my current blog themommylane.blogspot.com follow the link. Thanks!

2008-12-02T15:13:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I visited my local Do It Center and picked up an herb growing kit made by Ferry-Morse, with these cute little pots. This is something I've been wanting to do for a while and because of laundry, a two year old, t.v. shows, dinner duties (and lunch and breakfast), nail biting, and many other nobel distractions, have put it off until now.
The kit included basil, oregano, and parsley and I purchased a packet of mint because I couldn't have an herb garden with the tasty and aromatic mint!
Anders had fun watching me put the seeds in the dirt and even sprinkled a few himself.
Now let's just hope they sprout! If not we'll try the experiment all over again so that I can revel in fresh herbs!

2008-12-01T15:48:00.001-08:00

As I re-did my blog I began thinking about Christmas and what it means to us. I've been reading Luke and in Chapter 1 verse 67 an old man named Simeon rejoiced when he saw the baby Jesus and said,

"Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, A light for the revelation to the Gentiles and for the glory to your people Israel."

The Holy Spirit had come to Simeon and promised that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ the Messiah. What a remarkable day for this man to see the promised Messiah!

It's amazing to me that not everyone would know the power of this moment in history (They soon will!). To many people the story doesn't pack the same punch as it should. This little baby would become the last sacrifice. The lamb that was slain for the forgiveness of our sins. The whole purpose of Jesus coming to earth as a baby, was to not only experience what we as humans go through but to be the perfect sacrifice that was needed to heal the relationship between God and man.

This is good news!

2008-11-26T10:58:00.000-08:00

This is our first real rainy day of the season. Anders likes to climb up on the window seat and watch it pour. According to Chris this is just a light rainy day in Cincinnati!

2008-11-24T21:44:00.001-08:00

Since this blog also is used for documenting Anders life I had to sit down and think about what he has been doing lately and what I want to remember when this stage has passed.

In the last couple of weeks, I've been giving him a bit more freedom to ride his tricycle up and down the walkway in front of our door while I'm cleaning or cooking dinner. I can see him and hear him and I leave the front door wide open. I've set some boundaries as to where he is allowed to go etc.... next to the path is a little hill with ground cover plants on it. There are usually swarms of happy bees pollinating the flowers on this hill. But in the late afternoon they've gone back to their hives and there aren't any bees on the hill. So, a couple of days ago Anders was hitting golf balls around and he happened to hit one up the hill into the foliage. I was watching this from inside and I saw him contemplate going up and then looking back to see if I was going to shout some directions to him.

He wanted the ball but was unsure about entering unknown territory especially with all of my strict guidelines about where he could and couldn't go. He didn't see me so he started doing something else. I thought about how I want him to be a bit adventurous and how good it is for little boys to feel like they accomplished something dangerous, so I wandered out and suggested that he go up the hill and get the ball. I climbed halfway up and then spotted him as he climbed up. I could tell that he was trilled to be able to do something kind of adventurous and to step in all of those plants! It's a steep little hill so of course I told him to come and get me when he has to get another golf ball so I can watch him. The rest of the afternoon he was hitting "slap shot" balls up the hill. Eventually the tricycle was re-discovered and I could get back to vacuuming.

Here are a few funny words or phrases that I have to document for my own purposes.

Honey dew melon - "blum blum"

Blueberries are still "baboos"

Milk is "mulk"

Water is "wawa'

He says "lovely", "darn", "shoot" "poo poo cow", and "oh noooo baaaad!" about anything off kilter.

Lately before bed he starts demanding "wii time! wii time!!" He is a good audience and cheers us on. If we are playing Tennis he'll yell "love!" or "deuce!" And golf gets the cheer of "birdie!!". He always claps for us as well. We're trying to teach him but it hasn't quite caught on yet.

Tonight I was looking for a dvd of a fireplace that we like to break out around Christmas (sad apartment living). I couldn't find it but Anders would go over to the various places we keep dvd's or cd's and with much enthusiasm say "Flower place, Ohhhh found it! Wow...... hmmmmm nooo". I guess that's what I sound like when I'm looking for things!

The fun of being two has brought on new words like "lettgo!" and "no mine!". my favorite is saying "share" while clutching the item tightly to his chest and glaring at the poor person he doesn't want to share with.

Our friends have nine kids and Charlie who is one, is the youngest. She and Anders have a special relationship where they are either hugging or fighting. I hear a lot of "Chalie, noooo hit mmm push noooo." We are really working on being nice to our friends, sharing, not pushing or hitting or kicking. This really is a fun age.....

Chris and I are getting a lot of cuddles which is VERY pleasant. Anders likes to be read to while snuggling up on the couch next to either of us. He likes being "cozy" and playing rough. He likes to be all together on the weekends and prefers for both Chris and I to put him down to bed. He asks for "desus" (Jesus loves me), "tar" (twinkle twinkle little star) and "b" (abc song). One night he asked for "moon" song so Chris and I started singing "moon moon moon moon, moon moon moon moon" starting out slow and then getting progressively faster. It's not a classic yet but he still asks for it.

We love our little red head!

2008-11-21T22:11:00.000-08:00

Here is an interesting article I found while googling "tips from living through the Great Depression".

I was talking to my mom this afternoon about frugality and my Grandpa's mom (Edna Seelye). She and her sister Anna Bell were so careful and frugal and creative at the same time. They made it through the Depression and seemed to thrive while doing it. They created beautiful things around themselves and knew how to make a lovely meal (always with some kind of dessert) on very little.

I personally am a person of excess. I have never liked or looked for the challenge of making something out of nothing. I don't like crafts or sewing very much and in makes me squirm when I have to make a budget. Of course that has changed a bit over time because a budget is a neccessity and now that I am no longer a free wheeling single gal I have come to understand a little better the value of money. I learn most everything the hard way and money issues are no exception.

But.....there is a part of me that really likes an adventure. Even if it's uncomfortable it's something new. I like "something" to be happening. It gives me a thrill to move, change jobs, start projects learn a new skill etc.... I also have a deeply buried desire to survive.... to work for what I eat and live on. It quickens my spirit to scramble a bit, to feel like I need to pull off something important, like daily living.

Lately Chris and I have been discussing different options for our finances. One of the options was for me to work a bit and try and pull in some extra cash. I am now working on Saturdays cutting hair. The other option is to sell one of our cars. It would eliminate a car payment and it would enable us to put some money towards some unwanted debt. This plan is still in the works but the more we think about it the better it sounds. As good as it sounds I realize that it would be inconvenient(said in a sing songy drama voice).... I am not very used to inconvenience.

I figure that it will be a good opportunity to nurture my deeply buried survivalist instincts and maybe awaken a bit more creativity.

hmmm maybe I'll hide some chickens on our patio and start weaving tunic style dresses out of hemp....

2008-11-08T19:59:00.000-08:00

For any of the women that may read my blog, I just stared a new "beauty blog" where I review products and discuss beauty related topics. The address is ggbeautyblog.blogspot.com.

I have always been a product junkie and so I figured that I could put all of this expensive knowledge in one place and maybe help someone else find just the right thing!

2008-11-07T13:37:00.000-08:00

Chris' Grandpa passed away today. He was a good man who I was so lucky to get to meet and spend time with. He was an electrician and after Hiroshima he went in with a number of other good men to re-wire the whole city. He was 90 years old on October 12, the same day as Chris' 36th birthday and luckily Chris was able to have a good conversation with him that day.

We will miss you Grandpa Thompson.

2008-11-03T07:59:00.000-08:00

I added a couple of blogs to my blog roll. Before I did this I wondered if I should because they are more on the "controversial" side of things. I realized that if I knew about these blogs, I've been following them from brother-in-law Will's blog, then I needed to make these known to those who I care about. I would encourage you my esteemed reader to have a look-see especially at Constance Cumbey's blog. She has been a researcher of the New Age movement since around 1981. Constance is a lawyer from Detroit and has a knack for digging up interesting information about well.... you'll see.

I think that now is a good time to see what is happening in the world and how that will possibly affect Christians. I had a thought recently, it was in regards to Prop 8 but it applies to much of the anti-Christian sentiments lately. I realized that "the noose is tightening" around Christians necks. Saying that there is only one way to God through Jesus is becoming quite upsetting to the world. It always has been an uncomfortable reality but as of late strength is building against that belief and anyone who believes that there is only one way to God and it's Jesus, is seen as narrow minded, judgmental, etc.... I'll post the link to the you tube video of Oprah one more time as an example of New Age thinking and it's impact on Christians. (Warning: Super cheesy tone to this video)

In John 14:16 Jesus said "I am the way the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father but through me."

Scripture warns us that this Gospel would be offensive to many.

So, in the words of a popular roller coaster ride announcer "Hang on to your hats and glasses folks! This here is the wildest ride in the wilderness!"

2008-10-31T16:08:00.000-07:00

Anders was loaned a tricycle from Grammy and PaPa (my Grandparents). He has found a way to ride it without sitting on the seat or pedaling. Pretty inventive and cute looking!

2008-10-28T20:56:00.001-07:00

So, we have a boy that likes things to be just so. If we say we are going to do one thing and then the circumstances happen to change, watch out! If I am driving and need to do a U-Turn I can expect a royal freak out from the back seat. Every once in a while I pull into a parking place and then see one open up closer, or I will need to adjust my parking job so I have to back up for a second. Instant drama.

I looked up the term "unwavering" and some of the other descriptions were, "steadfast, resolute, determined, persistent".

2008-10-21T16:48:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while I'm going to post about something Chris and I like to call "Things we've lost because of litigation."

Today the item I would like to highlight is the home pool diving board. These are a rare thing indeed because, well, it's possible to get hurt on them. People would try something stupid and low and behold, a broken nose. Then the insurance claim and maybe a lawsuit would follow the possibilities are endless! Of course these accidents were fairly rare but where does that leave us? With less summer fun and more diving off the side of the pool which has the ability to be even more dangerous!

Ahhh, the things we have lost because of litigation.

2008-10-20T22:44:00.000-07:00

I appreciate the explanation of this little video describing prop 8 and what it's affects would be.

I know that most people who read this blog will most likely vote Yes on Prop 8 but if you are on the fence and are hearing that this is an equal rights issue then research a little more to find out what it's all about. This video is helpful but I recommend finding out more on your own.

I know that everyone in my family and extended family has strong opinions about politics (and religion) and that is a really good thing. I appreciate this so much and feel lucky to be in family and to have friends with strong view points and opinions. It keeps me thinking about what I believe and why I believe it.

As a Christian I feel obligated to act on a few things politically. The main ones are

- Freedom of religion (this is huge)

- Protection of the innocent (this is why I feel so strongly about abortion)

- Capitalism (this is a weird one because CAPITALISM is almost a dirty word lately, but I believe that having a society that encourages competition financially and has the ability to grow can also do more good for the poor and helpless than a society where everyone is kept 'equal' by Socialism. It never works out like the idealistic formula.)

Lately I have felt like these fundamentals have been challenged. People don't see them as important and kind of scoff at the "idealism" that they perceive in believing in these things. I believe that much of this has to do with postmodernism and seeing things as all relative. There is a hopelessness in this and it kills me to see it.

What we believe matters. It affects how we see the world and how we see God. It also affects how we relate to the world around us and God.

America has made it's mistakes but it has mostly been a force for good in the world. And the reason for this? Freedom, defense of the innocent and yes, capitalism.

I mean, without America would we have computers, cameras, cars, space ships, light bulbs, airplanes, and any thing else that was invented or discovered in the last 150 years in America? This country has encouraged and championed entrepreneurship, humanitarian work, missionary service, big and small business. It has given the freedom for more cults to be formed, more churches to meet, fashion fads, entertainment galore. America's citizens (and non-citizens) have been able to prosper and thrive enough so that we can share our wealth, good ideas and bad with the world.

I guess in writing this I want to challenge the Anti-American words that I keep hearing whispered and shouted lately. It's on t.v. it's on bumper stickers and t-shirts. And, I hear it in the cynicism of my peers. I want this to be out there whether it's read or not. I feel that these things need to be said if not shouted.

2008-10-20T00:22:00.000-07:00

We had some fun with our friends John and Annie tonight. They came over and brought our favorite thin crust barbecue chicken pizza from Sharky's with them. Yum! And they indulged Anders who just thinks that Annie is the best thing since macaroni and cheese. Since the last time we saw them which was about a month ago Anders will randomly say "Annie?" and look around expectantly. When we went to a restaurant that we had been to with them he freaked out with excitement about seeing ANNIE! And of course was disappointed by not seeing her upon entering. So, needless to say he was thrilled to have Annie in person tonight and he also realized that John was pretty fun as well. He practiced saying "John, John, John etc...." quite a bit.

After Anders was put to bed we watched Transformers which I was happily surprised by. I never would have chosen to see a movie about machines but I had heard it was good and it was. There was enough relationship and action to keep me interested.

I thought I'd post a couple of pictures from our evening.

2008-10-18T16:47:00.000-07:00

Today we took some family photos and we had the privilege of having them taken by Dana Fineman. She is an amazing photographer who has done many covers for various magazines and has photographed many celebrities and she was doing this as a fund raiser for my MOPs group. (lucky us!) She captured some really nice pictures of our family (unfortunately we didn't look like some of the celebrity clientele that she has shot) and some really sweet ones of Anders. The best part about this is that we get to keep the disk and do with the pictures what we want! So of course I had to put a sample on the blog.

2008-10-17T13:15:00.000-07:00

Here is a link to my Aunt Mary's blog. She is a new blogger and I've enjoyed keeping up with her blog since she started. Her current post has a couple of funny video's of Anders from when she was out here to visit on Wednesday.

Ever since we have moved I feel like we have had way more visitor's and I love it! It has been so enjoyable to have people stop by and just hang out. We need a couple of comfy chairs in the living room to lounge on but other than that I feel like we have the space to have people over.

So, remember to let us know if you are passing by on the 101 so that you can stop in to our little "hobbit hole".

2008-10-15T13:05:00.000-07:00

Chris brought home a large box of Icelandic Glacial Water from the concert on Sunday. On the box it says that it is a "Carbon Neutral" product. This statement, we decided is one of the funniest and most pretentious things we've heard. First of all is it environmentally friendly to bottle glacier water? I mean it's the glaciers that are melting from global warming and we're bottling it in plastic and shipping it across the world and then trucking it to various stores all the while using many forms of energy, gas, coal etc... so that someone can feel good about themselves! I mean isn't it more carbon neutral to just drink tap water? Or even Arrowhead water?

So, I know that eating local is the big thing right now and for good reason but shouldn't we be pushing the concept of drinking locally too?

In the mean time I'll sip this lovely looking water and wonder if this is what Iceland tastes like?

2008-10-14T14:15:00.000-07:00

So, I got to go to the K.D. Lang concert on Sunday night. That was really amazing and I really enjoyed the music. It's been quite a while since I have seen a concert and this one was one of the best that I've seen. It was put on by KCRW the NPR station for L.A., and the auditorium seats about 500. I was on the far left in the front so my view of the stage was pretty decent. It was really informal and the band did some "old timey" music with the 40's style mic and a hand accordion as well as some banjo, stand up base, and dulcimer. It was very eclectic.

Of course Chris was helping to man the sound booth so I didn't get to sit with him which was a bummer but we were able to enjoy it together anyways.

There has been a fire burning in Porter Ranch (maybe 10 miles from us) since yesterday and last night there was some concern that the wind might pick it up and bring it our way. Luckily things stayed fairly calm and we didn't have to evacuate at 3 in the morning. I had bags packed just in case. Now we're just hoping things stay calm and contained because if the wind picks up the fire will spread even faster. It's already burned well over 1000 acres.

I'm sure I'll post something if things change.

By the way, if you would like to follow my blog click on the "follow blog" in the top left corner. Thanks!

2008-10-12T07:52:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRIS!

It was 5 years ago this weekend that Chris and I met. What a special weekend that was! So, Happy Birthday to a loving and thoughtful husband and a wonderful dad!

We love you!

2008-10-11T09:06:00.000-07:00

I am sitting here waiting for Chris and Anders to hop off to their Saturday morning sports class so I can curl up on the couch and read my book! I am really enjoying these Saturday mornings and the much needed respite that comes along with them.

Chris and I are going to finally have a date tonight and we now have a list of three potential babysitters that we can call if need be. Big answer to prayer! Tomorrow is Chris birthday but he will be working all day at a K.D. Lang concert. I guess that he will be supervising the sound equipment and such. It will be a very easy day since there is already a sound guy that comes with K.D. Lang. Chris just gets to be the point guy for the building.

It's a bummer that he has to work on his birthday but he is happy to make a little extra and couldn't turn down the opportunity.

While Chris is working I'll be doing hair at the house. There is a couple in our church that are getting married next week and needed cuts and color. So, I'll be turning our guest bathroom into a salon for a couple of hours.

So here I'll say HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRIS a day early!

2008-10-09T14:01:00.000-07:00

If you are going to vote this year please Vote YES on Prop. 8. This will affect families for years to come.

Watch this video and read about Prop. 8!

Sorry to post a political blog but these things really do matter and they change the course of history.

2008-10-08T15:25:00.000-07:00

Today we braved the 98 degree weather and headed out to Underwood Farms in Moorpark. Our Wednesday play group was meeting there for a hay ride and some good Fall fun. It was so dreadfully hot that we left by 11:30 just to get out of the heat. It felt good to get home to our cool house and get a big glass of water! Anders loved the tractor ride and he thought that the "pumps" were very interesting. We even got to pick out to small "pumps" and bring them home! He wanted to help me carry one of the bags inside and made a big deal about how "HEAVY" it was.

When we got home we had mac n' cheese, asparagus and grapes. I realized that Anders wasn't getting enough greens when I came out to the patio the other day and saw him bite into one of the palm leaves. When he saw me he said "lunch!". Hmmmm I know that we call broccoli "trees" but I didn't think he would think that he could eat all trees! That night we had broccoli and he cleaned his plate.

2008-10-03T19:34:00.001-07:00

I've been trying to update my blog the last couple of days with a video I took of Anders playing one of his favorite games. He lines up a few cups and then bowls with a little ball. He has been enjoying "games" and asks me to play with him. It's a pretty fun stage.

Last week I started MOPS put on by Malibu Presbyterian church. They really know how to put on an event and we had a lovely brunch overlooking the ocean. Each place had a little gift bag with Kiel's product samples some Bed Head hairspray and a folder containing advertisements for a local upscale spa. It was a funny experience coming from a very down to earth regular sort of existence and stepping into this tanned, wealthy, scarf wearing community. Of course the women are all in the same boat as me as far as being a mom and dealing with all of the joys and challenges that that entails and most of them are believers so it felt fairly comfortable in that way.

Anders and I also go to a "mommy and me" play day on Wednesdays with some of the same moms and that has been really enjoyable. Anders gets a kick out of circle time and even says his name (very quietly) when we go around the circle to introduce ourselves.

When we first moved here I started out by looking up every fun thing to do in the area and have tried to do as much of them as possible. We have found some fantastic parks and indoor play areas as well as the library and the beach. We do something almost everyday but sometimes it is nice just to stay home and play.

Chris and I are DYING for a date night but as of yet haven't found any babysitters. That is our next priority! I realize that it's been kind of difficult to always be parents and not have much time together alone. We do go out as a family but many times there is the stress of having a active and slightly moody two year old and we have had a couple of tense meals out where we had to leave early just so that we didn't lose our cool. So, hopefully in the next couple of weeks we'll find some nice high school or college girl to rescue us!

Other than that all is going well. Chris is thankful for his job and is just on his way home from work as I write this. This week has been really busy and he has been pretty tuckered out. We really look forward to the weekends lately. Tomorrow Chris takes Anders to his "little sportster class" while I get to enjoy some time alone. Nice!

2008-09-30T12:37:00.000-07:00

I have felt compelled lately to watch what is going on in the world and to rely on Jesus as a strong tower through difficult seasons.

Here is a link to a post that brother-in-law Will wrote back on February 18 of this year. I just thought it might be a comfort to know that God knows the future and provides a place of safety and rest for His children.

God is good. He is good all the time.

2008-09-27T12:59:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more pictures of our fun day today.

2008-09-27T12:34:00.000-07:00

So today was Anders and Chris' first day of "my little sportster" class. I went along to take some pictures and of course hollered a little from the side lines. They are learning how to kick a soccer ball and hit a t-ball. I'm sure there will be some other skills to learn as well. The class was pretty chaotic and the poor girl who was running it had a pretty quiet voice and didn't seem to feel comfortable telling people what to do. Hopefully next week will be a little more organized.

After class we went to grab some breakfast and then headed over to the Paramount ranch. The Paramount ranch is basically a set built to look like an old fashioned looking town and it was used in a ton of old western movies.

There used to be a train track and a train on location but was moved quite a while back. There is still a very realistic train station and platform. The whole time Anders kept talking about a train and he thought we were going to get on a train! Since it was close to 100 degrees outside we sat down at some picnic tables under a nice covered area. We told Anders that the train wasn't here anymore and that we weren't going to see a train today. He climbed up on the picnic tables and walked back and forth all the while having a conversation with himself. It went something like this. "old train...new train...on?? noooo! hmmmm, train old? Yeah. no train. New?? hmmmm...."

We were trying not to laugh but it was sweet and funny to hear him try and work out the dilemma of not being able to see a train today.

2008-09-25T14:35:00.000-07:00

So, Chris and I were chatting last night and I was telling him something about the day regarding Anders and a bottle. He gets this smug smile on his face so of course I stop and ask him what is so funny! He then points out that he has never heard me use the correct past tense form of "drink". It turns out that whenever I refer to something that has been drunk I say......"drank'n" like "after he had drank'n it all up he didn't want any more"......I'm blushing just writing this!

Now, I grew up reading a lot, going to private school, having parents that were educated and who loved to read and are both articulate writers and yet here it is, "drank'n".

So, if any of you who see me catch me using this term, please stop me and correct this horrible mangling of the English language!

Well, all a ya'll folks out thars, i'd betta go and git me somma that there moonshine yonder and drinks it all up! A'n after I've drank'n it all up Im's gonna go and skin me some possum!

2008-09-18T10:06:00.000-07:00

Hear is a little silent movie for those family members that live far away. Jumping on the bed is a new thing and although we think it's kind of funny I think it's going to do the crib in one of these days! The crib is already a bit wobbly.

Our camera doesn't record sound unfortunately. I was asking him if he wanted to go to the park and of course he wanted to and mentioned that he wanted tennis at the park.

2008-09-18T09:43:00.001-07:00

Here are a few little quirks about our new place in Calabasas.

- A downstairs corner apartment next to the parking lot. We get lots of talking late at night about 9 feet from our heads. One of the conversations went something like this (at 2 in the morning). "hey man, that was fun let's do that again sometime! @$#@ yeah, N!$@#r! Oh man! I'd better get home or my wife's gonna kill me! Maybe I can sneak in and say I fell asleep on the couch! @#$%!"

Charming to say the least.

- Lots of bees on the pathway leading up to our door. Anders say's "scuse me!" I taught him to give the bees space so that they can make honey. =)

- A thief(s) in the neighborhood. Anders tricycle was stolen from in front of our door during dinner last week. Yesterday I came out and noticed that the car next to mine had had it's window broken into. I guess they couldn't see anything valuable in my car under all of the stuff!

Yesterday Anders came up to me and shrugs his shoulders, throws up his hands and says dobedoo? ohhhh, doobedoo, sad... New??

Doobedoo means tricycle, bicycle or motorcycle in our house.

Other than these little bumps we are really, really loving our place. It's convienent to friends out here, it's pretty and rural feeling. The parks are incredible. We have a washer and dryer. The list could go on!

2008-09-15T23:50:00.000-07:00

Since we now live 15 minutes from a good beach I decided to take Anders down last week. I realized that he really had never been to the beach to play in the water! He had more fun than I expected and he still talks about it.

It was my first time taking a child to the beach by myself so I learned a few things like, don't forget the cooler in the car, bring a chair, bring some kind of talc powder to prevent sand/diaper chaffing, bring fresh water for rinsing afterwards and lastly, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are the best beach food!

2008-09-15T23:41:00.001-07:00

Kristy Caver and I took our boys to Disneyland two weeks ago so here are a few of those pictures. The highlight for Anders was the Winnie the Pooh ride and getting to meet Winnie the Pooh IN PERSON. I'll include the picture of Anders looking up at me in line with the look on his face that say's "what? I get to actually walk up to Pooh and hug him????" It was pretty fun. =0)

2008-09-15T23:26:00.000-07:00

Here are a few random pictures of our new place. It has taken WAY too long for us to finally find the cord that makes this possible so I have a lot of photos to go along with all that we've been up too lately.

We recently had our friends Mike and Denise over with their one year old son Gus. Anders loves him and they get along fairly well. Gus is big for one so he can hold his own if Anders plays like a two year old.

Below is a picture of the park that is just down the street from our apartment. It is a lovely walk and the view is so pretty.

These pictures don't really do our space justice so hopefully I can take a some better ones later and post them.

We really love it here and are so happy that we moved.

2008-09-11T09:50:00.000-07:00

I had to post this hilarious satirical article that Chris read to me this morning. If you are a baby boomer you will find it either really hilarious or slightly offensive. Although I think that any of the baby boomers that read this blog will find it funny.

Here is the link.

(disclaimer - All of the baby boomers that I personally know do not fit with the "hippy" stereotype. This article is completely for fun....)

2008-09-09T07:19:00.000-07:00

I googled "what did Sarah Palin accomplish in office?" because I want to see if what she accomplished is as impressive as everyone is saying (or not so impressive as some are saying). Here is one link that I found, and here is another link.

From what I've read she does have the experience and grit needed to turn Washington on it's head. I'd be happy to see that kind of change in the White house even if she's only the vice president. Actually I think that McCain and Palin are both the types to buck the status quo and change things up. I just want to see it happen!

2008-08-27T14:33:00.001-07:00

Well, we had our first experience living in "fire territory" yesterday. The hill up behind our apartment caught on fire and ended up burning about 80 acres before the fire department was able to completely kill it. I was driving back home from Costco and a friend called to ask if we were o.k. or if we had to evacuate. I figured that I had better hurry home and see what was going on! While I was on the freeway we had to drive through an area that was being targeted with the water dropping helicopters. Of course they weren't dropping water on the freeway but around it. My car was getting drops of water and ash on it as we inched our way up the 101. Anders was pretty excited about all of the "moke!" and whenever a fire truck would wail by he would say "mmm help". He did think that the smoke had something to do with choo choo's as most of his life revolves around trains right now.

From my patio we can see the hill where the fire started. It's right above the park that we walk to. While we stood outside watching the fire fight we waved at the big helicopters that were flying over so low that we could almost see the pilots inside. It was quite dramatic and it made me extremely thankful for the fire department! It was amazing to see how precisely they hit every little spot of flames that would pop up. It was an incredible effort and the fire was out by mid afternoon. Impressive!

2008-08-22T16:31:00.000-07:00

Here is link to sister Heidi's blog regarding Todd Bentley and the cacophony surrounding his public humbling. The reason I am posting this is because I want to encourage other Christians to pray for Todd and his wife as well as any other believers that are struggling with public consequences. I know from experience the power of love, acceptance and the healing that comes from prayer and restoration.

2008-08-18T14:19:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Aunt G. Here are a few moving pictures from the crazy week before we moved. My mom was a great help and Aunt G. came over a couple of days before the move and worked her magic as well. It was one of the most crazy things I've done. It was the first time I had had to pack up a whole house not just a room.

We are officially in the new place and are starting to feel settled. I'm hoping to get my camera up and clicking soon to show what it's like out here.

This past week was really stressful and last night Chris and I finally re-configured our bedroom and unpacked a few more boxes. We are almost done! This apartment is quite a bit smaller and has a lot less storage than the old place so it's been interesting to try and tetris everything into place.

My only moving war wound happened last night when the paper shredder fell on top of my foot and it hurt so bad that I immediately burst into tear and hobbled out to the living room. It would have ended there except that when I get hurt I also get kind of angry so.... I karate chopped the padded desk chair out of frustration and anger and I think that my wrist hurts more then my foot..... It was a pitiful sight and it put me out of commission for about 20 minutes while I iced my wrist. Now I understand where Anders gets his hurt/angry reactions from!

Chris was really sympathetic and didn't laugh until I felt better and then we both were able to laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation.

2008-08-04T21:05:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting here in our "old" apartment taking a break from packing. It has been a stressful job and I realize that I've never really packed up a whole household before. It is a big job! When I get stressed my body starts warning me to slow down by swollen tonsils, canker sores, headaches and such.... yuck. So I'm taking extra vitamins and drinking lots of water and of course not slowing down!

Chris hired some guys to move us on Saturday so we just have to make sure that everything is in boxes and easy to get to. I'm looking forward to seeing someone else do a lot of work. Next week will be filled with some unpacking but I'm hoping to take a couple of Chris' vacation days to drive up to Santa Barbara and Solvang. I want to at least enjoy some of his time off not just spend it all slaving away!

I'll blog again as soon as we are sort of settled. Maybe I'll find the cord that enables me to add some pictures as well.

2008-07-28T19:05:00.000-07:00

These pictures are from this weekend. Actually the pictures with Chris and Anders were taken Sunday and the swimming pool pic was taken today.

These are mainly for Grandma J. because she is the one who gave him the sweet little sailboat outfit. He looked like quite the little old fashioned boy in it. =0)

Sunday was a rare family day for us. We decided to skip church and get a replacement for Chris' church sound job since Chris had been down in Malibu all of Saturday for another sound job.

We spent the day resting and going out to lunch at the local Corner Bakery. In the later afternoon we drove out to my parents house to spend some time with them. It was one of the nicest days we have had in a long time!

We'll look forward to more days like this after we move.

2008-07-24T14:06:00.000-07:00

Today my friend Kelly and I took Anders and Aubrey to the Fullerton Arboretum. The kids had a great time and we basically just followed them around as they explored. We met another mom with a little boy named Max. They all had fun sitting on the bleachers playing "drum".

The picture of Anders touching the pumpkin was me trying to get him to not get too rough with the plants and to only touch with one finger! Otherwise leaves and flowers would be pulled apart.

The canopy of vines was a favorite and the kids enjoyed running back and forth through it.

Afterwards we went to the Corner Bakery for lunch and then Anders and I continued on to Pinkberry for some frozen yogurt and blueberries. Yum!

2008-07-24T13:49:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I redeemed a spa finder gift card that Chris had given me as a Christmas gift to get my hair cut. I've had hair to my shoulders for some time now and it was really starting to bug me. I rarely styled my hair and mostly just put it into a wet bun for the whole day and then would sleep with it back in a ponytail because of the heat. Completely un-hairstylist like.

When Chris came home last night I mentioned that I felt more like myself again with the short hair, and didn't he think I looked more like the old GG again? He paused and said, "yes.... but with more cares." *sigh*. I guess that as a mom there is a certain weariness that lingers into each evening.

How carefree life was as a single, girl with all the time in the world. But then again how sad to have no sweet husband to rub my feet and laugh with or no precious little red-headed boy to pick up and give love'ns to. I'll take the extra cares thank-you very much!

2008-07-17T19:46:00.000-07:00

I feel a bit guilty for waiting so long to blog but it couldn't really be helped. Around Anders birthday Chris spilled some tea on to our already older laptop and it was instantly ruined. I was just glad that it wasn't me!! So now I am sitting in front of a nice new (to us) IMac that Chris won on E-bay for 340 bucks. It is MUCH better than the old lap top.

Since my last post we had a great fourth of July visiting with Mike and Denise Radka and their little one Gus. It was his first birthday on the Fourth so we attended the party and then spent the rest of the day at their house in Simi Valley. I took a lot of pictures but they aren't uploaded yet.

I had a weekend in Palm Springs with some girlfriends which was completely delightful. It's a once a year treat that I missed last year because I didn't want to leave Anders yet. But this year I felt JUST FINE about it. =)

As I am writing this I am very aware of a large accumulation of boxes behind me. I'm also aware of all of the things around me that are not in boxes..... The reason for the boxes? On August 8 we will be moving about an hour away to Calabasas. We just found out last week that an apartment that we have been wanting came available and so we decided to take it. The list of pros and cons was long and detailed but the pros won out. We will miss our current residence greatly and I will be very homesick for the ease of having friends and family so close. I love our big windows that look out on lots of trees and the breeze that we get. I'll miss the friends that live right here in our complex, I'll miss the new Pinkberry Yogurt shop that we have grown to love.... so many things to miss.

Chris won't miss the hour and fifteen minute drive to and from work, and we both won't miss the hour each way drive to church on Sunday's.

So, the next few weeks are to be filled with packing, donating, selling and throwing away our worldly goods.

I'll post again soon, hopefully with pictures.

2008-06-24T19:44:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is Anders Two year old birthday. We celebrated in style on Saturday in over 100 degree weather. Everything was Thomas the Train and we had a bubble machine which was a BIG hit! It was fun to see Anders playing with some of the friends that came and of course it's always special to see him with Grandparents and Great Grandparents.
I had fun making the cupcakes and using a special food coloring spraypaint. We had to keep them at home in the fridge until the last minute because it was so hot we were afraid they would melt before the party. It ended up being a really fun day despite the heat.

We have also enjoyed having Chris' mom here for the week. I didn't get many pictures of our time together on my camera so this is the best picture that I have of Grandma J and Anders! Tomorrow we head off to Disneyland for the day. What I'm really looking forward to is Friday when I get to drive out of town and join some friends in Palm Springs for a girls weekend!

2008-06-17T00:42:00.000-07:00

A few more pictures that I liked from recent events. The bottom picture is with my Grandma Cox at Aunt Mary's and cousin Katie's Grad party. Anders was fidgety and grumpy much of the afternoon and it took alot to get this picture. The top two are just favorites of our weekend with Chris' dad. The highlight for Anders and the guys was a Sunday afternoon at a local miniuture golf course. I realized again that I don't particularly like that activity so at about the 15th hole I retreated to the much cooler arcade to buy us all water and to avoid sun stroke. Anders had the time of his life and was red, sweaty and not ready to leave at the end.

2008-06-17T00:32:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the last week. The middle picture is from Sunday when we saw a boy that could've been A nders brother. We found out that he was almost exactly one month older. The bottom picture is one of many taken with Chris' dad while he was out to visit with us last weekend. More will follow!

2008-06-05T13:49:00.000-07:00

Today Aubrey came over and she and Anders had a grand time together as usual. They both love playing in the water and the weather was perfect for it so that's what they did! They were both soaking and happy. Right now Aubrey's mom Kelly has Anders and I have been finishing up some house cleaning and laundry. I feel so lucky to have such nice neighbors (friends)!

Update on the car situation. It's in the shop right now and it looks like it may be able to be fixed just fine. We're keeping our fingers crossed. Chris is driving a rental hybrid which the insurance is paying for. So far he feels like they are being fair and taking care of the situation just fine.

2008-06-03T18:29:00.000-07:00

As life goes you never know what the day will hold. Yesterday, Chris came out to his car parked carefully in the parking garage at his work to find this. There was a note and the lady said that she had "no idea what happened!" "I was backing up and my car just went out of control!" The damage is so bad that he can't open the back passenger doors or the trunk and the frame is all smooshed. He took the metro home last night which was interesting. I was able to find someone to come and be at the house while I picked him up at the Norwalk station. This morning we all got up bright and early to be out of the house at 7:3o to get him to work for a 9:30 appointment. After dropping him off at work Anders and I had a nice breakfast at "Jinky's Cafe" which is right around the corner from the studio. The traffic wasn't bad at all and it was an uneventful drive but hopefully tomorrow there will be a replacement rental car for Chris to drive!

We are hoping that there will be a positive outcome and that the insurance will really take care of us. As you can see, Chris has a hybrid and it's pretty much essential for his commute. Gas is so expensive that it would be a very uncomfortable price to pay to drive a regular car. He gets about 50 miles to the gallon and it really makes a big difference right now.

So, I'll update about this again when things are somewhat resolved. In the meantime we are getting ready to have Chris' dad here over the weekend and we are really looking forward to that. Two weeks after that Chris' mom comes for a week and Anders birthday party will be on the 21st. Then the next weekend I get to escape for a couple of days to Palm Springs for an annual girls getaway. So, it's a busy month!

2008-05-30T20:59:00.000-07:00

So, next month is Anders two year old birthday and we are getting geared up for a full on Thomas the Train birthday party. The two year birthday is coming at the just the perfect time for the two year old behaviour to start. I have to say that we have a VERY good boy. He is sweet and contemplative, loves babies, "buppies" and his teddy bears, listens really well to instructions and follows them with gusto. He loves to run and get me a diaper and bring it to me and then lay down on the floor to be changed. This is a very useful and welcome step in his growth. Yesterday he made it clear that he wanted to sit on the couch and watch a movie while I got ready for the day instead of sitting in his high chair like I normally would have him do. When I told him that I needed to get a shower he ran over to the couch, climbed up on it and said "stay" with a very firm nod of the head. So that's what he did! It was WONDERFUL. When we are out driving he looks for every truck or bus and hollers it out "TUCK" or "BUTH" along with an occasional "BIG BIG" thrown in. I love it.
Along with these new developments there are a few not so fun ones. Because he can't really talk yet there are a lot of winey sounding grunts and noises along with a lot of shrill screaming. Sometimes when I'm in the middle of making dinner or doing dishes he comes up behind me and hugs my legs and then NIPS me. I feel like I'm in the movie "Jaws". It's a little creepy. He now knows that he can run away from me when I ask him to come to me, the word "NO" is an answer to most anything. He is really getting more independent which is very good and he's trying to do more climbing and balancing. Tonight we were over at my Grandmas house and he had given me a good nip and so he was in time out on one of the kitchen chairs. He tried to stand up and fell face first onto the hard kitchen floor. So not only was he in trouble for biting but he was hurt and surprised as well. Luckily he recuperates pretty fast!
So, I welcome a new year with new accomplishments. I welcome a child that can talk and communicate with me, and most of all I look forward to the day that I won't flinch every time he comes up to give me a kiss hoping that it doesn't turn into a bite!

2008-05-20T19:40:00.000-07:00

Quick update on my last blog. We didn't see anyone famous but we saw a lot of paparazzi wandering around looking for famous people to harass! Later in the evening I was looking at an entertainment site and I saw Kelsey Gramer (s)? on camera in the parking lot where we were parked earlier in the day. Although we go to Malibu every week it is rare to see someone famous. I'm sure I wouldn't recognize anyone if I bumped into them in Starbucks.

On another note the weather today is MUCH cooler and I have all of the windows open to let the cool air in. At the moment I am looking out the window at the sky and it looks like we may get some drizzle at some point! It would be nice if we had some spring-like days before summer truly sets in!

2008-05-17T23:00:00.000-07:00

Chris and I just got in the door from a pleasant night out at Downtown Disney. We are both soooo tired and the weather has been freaky hot which is part of the reason for the fatigue. Yesterday was at least 95 if not 100 degrees and today was more of the same. It feels like the middle of July. So weird for the middle of May! If this weather holds out it's going to be a long long summer here in La Habra. For now we are running our air conditioning at 11:04 in the evening and I'm hoping that Anders isn't to hot in his stuffy room with the window open and the fan running.
Tomorrow will be spent in Malibu which will be cooler and prettier. We are going to meet some good friends for lunch down near our church and hopefully spot some stars while we're at it! If I see anyone famous I'm sure I'll have to write about it!

2008-05-14T13:55:00.000-07:00

Finding the moon in the afternoon.....

2008-05-11T17:54:00.000-07:00

We had a very relaxing afternoon at the park today. It's a tradition with my parents to spend most of Mother's Day at Penn park and escape the craziness of the restaurants and other public places.
Chris and I weren't so smart this morning and decided to go out to brunch before the park. Luckily Chris found a replacement sound tech for the church job and we were able to lounge about a little. Then we called the place that we wanted to have brunch and they were booked up of course. So we made the short trek to Polly's pies, a place where I have lots of good childhood memories. The wait was about 45 min. Breakfast was... "Grill scraping and eggs" according to Chris. There were a few pieces of unknown crispy, fatty somethings swimming around in it and Chris says that he was still nauseous thinking about it. Mine was pretty good although I did send back my waffles once do to them being burned and cold, something I normally would never do.
My mom assured me that this is why they NEVER go out on Mother's day. So next year we'll actually take my mom's recommendation and hunker down and enjoy breakfast at home.

I hope you all had a lovely Mother's Day.

2008-05-07T16:19:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Anders was sitting on my lap while I checked my e-mail, uploaded photos and talked on the phone. My camera was on the desk and he wanted to play with it so I thought I'd take a picture. Chris noticed that I was wearing my apron and mentioned that I looked a bit frazzled. I was a little. We had a busy fun day yesterday and before the picture was taken I was trying to get ONE thing done for the day. That ended up being the kitchen which had begun to look like a playroom/science experiment/office/farmers market/.... you get the picture. It was in need of a good scouring.
After getting the kitchen cleaned, we went out to buy Anders some new shoes in Uptown Whittier. There is an adorable children's store called "The Wishing Well" that has every cool and fun toy imaginable and some pretty cute clothes and shoes. Anders feet are really wide and he had started to complain about the tennis shoes that he wears everyday. They were a little big length wise but too narrow. The other pair of shoes that he owns have so many holes in them he might as well be wearing socks. So, I broke down and bought a fairly expensive pair of sandals made by "See Kai Run". They are super cute and seem wide enough.
After that we went to my parents house for dinner and a visit. When I told Anders we were going to Grandma and Grandpas house he said "bolf"? and then put his finger in his mouth to try to make a popping noise like my dad does to amuse him. Of course we had a great visit and the golf club was swung many times and there was a lot of "mouth popping".

2008-05-06T14:26:00.000-07:00

See below posts for descriptions.

2008-05-06T14:18:00.000-07:00

(I'm having trouble posting pictures so I'll do a couple of posts without writing just pictures)

Today we had a fun visit with Kristy and James Caver. We all went to the Santa Ana Science Museum where they have a big dinosaur exhibit. The play yard was a huge hit although Anders loved the weather and other exhibits in the main area as well. He especially liked one with a bunch of balls that would fall from the top onto various tracks and slide down. He and James seemed to hit it off better than they have before mostly because they are a little older now and can actually play together!

Of course I had fun visiting with Kristy as usual. I'm hoping to get a Disneyland pass sometime soon so that Anders and I can have another fairly inexpensive activity to do during the week. Most of my friends have passes including Kristy so we'd have plenty of company.
He is free until three so we are going to try and take advantage of that this year!

2008-04-29T20:21:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I came out to the kitchen where Chris was feeding Anders breakfast. Both Chris and I were struck with how crazy his hair looked that day. I will be cutting it soon so I thought these pictures would be good for documentation purposes.

2008-04-29T16:52:00.000-07:00

I have been observing something lately that is interesting and it's really telling about the media. While listening to KFI or pretty much any news radio or TV, I here the term "immigrant" used to describe illegal immigrants. Now I believe that immigration is an extremely important part of American society. Pretty much every person walking around the U.S. (besides native Americans) has a background that involved some kind of immigration. From the Pilgrims on the Mayflower to the Swedes, Irish, Africans, Norwegians, Italians and so many other nationalities who have made America their home. This country is made up of every type of person most of whom immigrated at some point.

The problem is that all of a sudden law doesn't matter. The thing that makes an American be an American, primarily the process of becoming a U.S. citizen is given no priority or authority. The disturbing thing is that the only people given this slip of the law are coming from Mexico. My friend Annie who is from Scotland recently (in the last couple of years) married an American. She went through all of the correct channels and waited for work visas and paperwork that took forever. The process was hard but she respected the process and has since been rewarded with citizenship work visas and such. Now she can be proud of the being an American and taking the right steps and following the laws of her new country.

As Americans we welcome with open arms the foreigner. Those who can't make it in their own country. Those who are persecuted, hungry and needy. But is there going to be any enforcement of the law? Do those needy people even care about the country that so freely welcomes them?

We need to call it "ILLEGAL immigration" not "immigration. After all that's what it is right? The United States of America needs to recognize illegal immigration for what it is and hold everyone to the same standard. It's not fair to those who take the time to respect the laws of the country they want to be a part of and spend the time needed to become a citizen. I feel crazy for even having to analyze this, I mean it seems so fundamental! But it seems like things that should be so obvious aren't anymore.

I would love to hear the correct term used but I'm afraid that would force the issue! (Oh, and it might make some people feel uncomfortable...)

2008-04-25T13:38:00.000-07:00

A few things we have been up to lately......

- Immunizations for Anders today. (poor baby)
- Looking for somewhat affordable housing closer to Chris' work ie in the Valley, Calabasas, Agoura, Burbank etc....
- Starting to plan a possible family vacation to Seattle and the surrounding areas for this summer
- Enjoying our trips to Malibu every Sunday for Church (it's been getting better over the last couple of months.)
- Trying to be just a little healthier...
- Cleaning out closets and making trips to the Goodwill
- Taking a "water babies" swim class with Kristy Caver and James. The last class was yesterday.
- Thinking about more babies and wondering when the right time is to have one....
- Planning a two year old party for Anders which is coming up in June.

2008-04-23T07:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Anders had fun playing with Aubrey in their little wading pool. It's fun to see the personality of the kids as they interact. Anders is pretty cautious and careful with his movements. He is pretty methodical with what he does. Aubrey on the other hand is quite a tom boy and charges ahead not seeming to mind when she falls down or bumps into something. Anders came running over to me with his hand held out and was squealing with annoyance. I thought that he must have a little bug on his hand or something but it turned out to just be a little piece of grass that had stuck to his hand. he doesn't like getting dirty and I have to keep telling him that it's o.k. to have a little dirt on his hands. Aubrey would stomp through mud then sit down to play in it if her mom would let her! Kelly and I were laughing about how different they are and how it is quite obvious even at this age!

2008-04-18T20:06:00.000-07:00

A day of chopping veggies and playing around the house.

Anders was pretty patient while I worked.

2008-04-18T19:25:00.000-07:00

In the last two days I have scared the bejeebers out of Anders at least twice. I have to admit that I am really afraid of bees, wasps, hornets, yellow jacket's, and pretty much any thing with wings and a stinger. It probably has to do with the fact that I've never been stung and have no idea what kind of pain to expect. Anyways, yesterday I had the door open while Anders played on the porch with water and I cleaned. I had just put Anders in time out for trying to hit me and he was a little emotional about that and I looked up and a HUGE wasp had drifted in from outside. At that same moment I was on the phone with my grandma who had just called. Of course I screamed and ran to grab a pillow off the couch. My reaction must have been pretty dramatic because Anders completely freaked out and was crying but not getting off his "time out chair". I hung up with grandma and watched and waited while that big old wasp cruised around the apartment. Anders was still crying and wondering what was wrong. Pretty soon after being misted with poison the wasp flew into the window, I slammed it and waited for it to expire. It did eventually.
Today slightly same scenario except no time out and no grandma on the phone. I was showing Anders how to water the flowers on the porch and all of a sudden a very loud buzzy bee hit my head. It was so close to my ear that it sounded especially loud. I spilled the water on the floor and me and Anders..... He ran inside with me as fast as possible. I'm not sure what was wrong with the bee. After it hit my head it landed on the ground and convulsed for a few minutes until I put it out of it's misery. I guess that my head wasn't very forgiving.

Besides getting run into by the bee today, I went to La Habra Ranch Market with my mom which was great. I have always wanted to go there with her to ask about various vegetables and get her opinion about the quality of what I want. After shopping and lunch I came home and chopped up all of the veggies and put them in bags ready for the next week. There is something so gratifying about chopping and preparing good food. It is so satisfying!
One other little side note. Anders has been kind of sentimental the last couple of days. Yesterday I was singing "away in a manger" to him and his lip got all quivery and he almost started crying! I figured that he must be a little tired or something so today I sang it to him again and the same thing happened! He really is our little tender heart.

2008-04-15T12:01:00.000-07:00

Filling time until lunch.

2008-04-11T20:56:00.000-07:00

Tonight Chris was able to come home for dinner so we let Anders stay up and eat with us. Usually Anders is in bed when Chris comes home so it was an especially novel evening for him. I really enjoyed cooking a nice dinner of Ahi steaks and spending some good family time together. This would be one of the advantages to moving closer to Chris' work. It was also nice to tag team bed time! =0)

2008-04-10T21:10:00.000-07:00

The bottom picture was taken early one morning while Anders was watching Sesame Street. That is a favorite in the morning and I don't mind him watching it too often. He loves "melmo" and he LOVES it when I count. Sometimes when he isn't listening to me I start counting and he comes running! (I'm totally that mom who's like "OK! 1....2....3.....!" A little bit annoying but pretty effective.

The top picture is just another bit of evidence for later when Anders is complaining about having to go to another golf lesson. We'll just pull this picture out and remind him that he told us what his destiny was at 22 months. We are amused that he is so crazy about a sport that is so slow moving and precise. He will watch the golfers and then try the stance and movements. It's pretty funny.

2008-04-07T12:55:00.000-07:00

Here is an interesting link regarding Oprah and her endorsement of Eckhart Tolle's book "A New Earth". Although it is a bit sensational and dramatic it is something important to evaluate. There have always been New Age authors and strange ideas that speak against Jesus but this book seems to be grabbing a hold of a whole group of people in my generation. Her book club is popular and she has always endorsed pretty good literature. I often go to the Oprah Book Club list for reading ideas. A friend of mine was reading "A New Earth" recently and I wondered what it was about. I saw one small segment of Oprah's show before I knew anything about the book and my first impression was that it wasn't something I would necessarily read so I watched something else at the time.

Anyways, Oprah is a huge influence on our society and her beliefs are making there way into the main stream everyday. The question I am asking myself is, are her ideas ones that I want in my head?, What in life matters in the end? Do I want to support the neutral or good things about Oprah's show if this is truly what she believe and is basically preaching to millions of people?

It really made me think about what I believe. I do believe that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life and that no man comes to the Father God except by BELIEVING in him. (at one point Oprah makes a statement about the not needing to believe).

So, I encourage anyone who reads this to watch the youtube clip and think about the ideas that come across our eyes and ears everyday.

One funny side note. When Chris lived in Cincinnati, he remembers one Christmas sermon at the church he was attending at the time. The pastor referred to the Holy Spirit as a "Specter" (said with a religious tone). This is kind of like that....

2008-04-01T20:06:00.000-07:00

Miss Veta Lindsey passed away a few days ago and I wanted to share a little about her. She was one of those people who couldn't be compared to anyone else I've known. She was funny, she loved practical jokes and was always looking for a chance to pull one. She was extremely generous and had a heart for the helpless or hurting. She always had a gleem in her eye and a wry smile that showed that she was up on what was going on. Miss Lindsey prayed. She prayed for me and on occasion had inside knowledge from the Holy Spirit that she used to encourage me. I know she prayed for many other people as well. She loved Jesus.
Here is a link to a song that reminds me of Miss Lindsey and it brought a smile to my heart when I heard it. I hope you like it as well! (the link takes you to my MySpace address where the song is posted.)

2008-03-25T15:05:00.000-07:00

Today I'm on a blogging spree. There has been so much going on and I feel compelled to blog it! Scroll down for all of the blogging fun! This one is just Easter. Chris took some pictures with his iPhone and I loved the ones he took.

Anders loves to talk with my dad about golf! That's what they were doing after church before this picture was taken.

The one with my mom and Aunt G. is great. Everyone had fun taking pictures on Sunday.

2008-03-25T14:21:00.000-07:00

A couple more pictures of the "El Morocco Inn".

One of the special touches was dried figs and Medjool dates to enjoy at any time. Chris and I were impressed with all of the hospitable touches.

2008-03-25T14:05:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of shocking picture of Chris and I SMOKING.... the Moroccan water pipe. It was a novel experience.

For more pictures of our trip scroll down.

2008-03-25T13:58:00.000-07:00

Our trip up the mountain in Palm Springs. As you can see it was very windy and VERY cold!!

I had to include the picture of our much enjoyed cheese plate!

2008-03-25T13:55:00.000-07:00

I had trouble posting pictures on the last post so here are a few pictures of our Hotel in Desert Hot Springs. To read more about our trip scroll down to the last post.

2008-03-25T13:53:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged about our vacation up until now because our pictures weren't uploaded. This morning Chris put them on my computer so that I could finally share about our fun time!

We stayed at the "El Morocco Inn"(hi Bruce!) in Desert Hot Springs which is about 15 miles from Palm Springs. It really was one of the most enjoyable places we have been and we have been to a handful of very nice hotels and spas. The atmosphere was so relaxed and personable and four nights was almost long enough but not quite! A couple of the days we just lounged around the pool and enjoyed the sun and one of the days we ventured out to Palm Springs and took the Air Tram up the mountain. I'll put more pictures up on the next post. One of the things that I wished that we had planned better for was the trip up the mountain. At the base of the mountain it was probably 80 degrees and at the top it was about 35 with snow. If we had planned better we would have brought warm clothes and gone cross country skiing or taken a little hike. Since we didn't have the right gear we only went outside for a couple of pictures and to see the incredible view. There was also a nice cafe and restaurant at the top where we enjoyed a cheese plate and a glass of wine and enjoyed the view from the warm indoors.

We HIGHLY reccomend the inn where we stayed and plan on going back there again next year if possible. We couldn't have done it without the help of Grandma and Grandpa Seelye and my parents who took turns watching Anders. He didn't even notice we were gone which was a little sad but mostly a relief!

I'm going to put up some more pictures of our trip in some following posts but as you can see it truly was a luxurious setting!

2008-03-24T11:13:00.000-07:00

Here are a few egg hunting pictures. It went pretty well except for the fact that Anders thought that all of the Easter eggs were balls and wanted to throw whatever he found.

The day was pleasant and Anders had fun until I slammed his index finger in the car door. He also got a scratch on his cheek form an offending rose bush. The finger wasn't broken just sore and he seems to recover pretty quickly from most injuries which is good because they are happening more often nowadays.

He did love the ham and sweet potatoes and he tried one of the Cheetos this morning but didn't feel to sure about them. The chocolate will have to be enjoyed by mom and dad until next year.
Chris and I really enjoyed this Easter. It was laid back and we were able to get naps! We had fun dyeing Easter eggs on Saturday night (mostly after Anders was in bed). And we were able to spend some quality time together as a family, not just in the car like most Sunday's.

I hope that you all had a good holiday as well!

2008-03-22T21:28:00.000-07:00

Easter egg ritual

2008-03-18T08:59:00.000-07:00

I've been having fun using Greek style yogurt and mixing in various spices and fruit to make it even more yummy. Today for breakfast I made cinnamon/nutmeg with a splash of vanilla and honey. I liked it and of course Anders scraped his bowl clean! Yesterday I mixed in blueberries and vanilla. I'm thinking of making a mint sauce from fresh mint leaves and mixing that in with a little honey. Any ideas for sprucing up Greek yogurt?

(Thank you for all of the yummy ideas!)

2008-03-17T09:12:00.000-07:00

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY! (Happy birthday Peter!)

2008-03-10T23:40:00.000-07:00

Today Anders got to play with "Ableh" or as her parents named her "Aubry". Her parents live in our apartment complex around the corner and Anders really likes playing with her on occasion. When he is on his changing table which is situated next to the window he calls out "ABLEH!" It sounds like the Spainish word for speak. We had a nice lunch at our house and Aubry's mom Kelly and I were able to visit over turkey sandwiches. It really is nice to have so many young families living around us and we would really miss this community if we moved.

Wednesday, Chris and I are dropping Anders off with Grammy and PaPa and driving out to Palm Desert for four nights. We found a really interesting hotel called the "El Morocco Inn" and it was the highest rated hotel on Travel Advisor. I can hardly wait to have some relaxing down time with the hubby!

2008-03-10T14:07:00.000-07:00

2008-03-09T17:20:00.000-07:00

Last night was a small celebration for my grandma's 80th birthday. Although we are missing a huge amount of family my Aunt Luanne was flown in from the Philippines by my Grandpa to surprise Grandma! It was such a surprise for her and it was so good to spend time with my Aunt.
The first picture is of Aunt Luanne and Luke who is the youngest of her Seven children and the only one who is still in town. The rest of the family was truly missed.

Anders had alot of fun playing with everyone especially Luanne!

Grandma got some really sweet cards and one of her gifts was a digital picture frame which Uncle Kirk had already loaded up with alot of family pictures.

Here is a picture of Grandma, Luanne, Robin and Gretchen. (sorry aunt G. about the picture!)

2008-03-05T19:51:00.000-08:00

Anders had a good week this week. After nap one day I let him play with some tepid water on our little porch. It was pretty fun until he began dumping it down his front and getting all shivery and cold. The weather has been really pleasant and warm during the day but around 4:30 or 5 it starts getting chilly. So I ended up putting him straight in a warm bath which was just another extension of the water play time.

One of the other fun events was riding the merry-go-round at the La Habra Children's museum. It was the first time that he actually got the concept and thought it was amusing. He wasn't thrilled but he was amused. That's all I can ask for sometimes.

2008-03-04T15:58:00.000-08:00

Thank you Eloise for the beautiful flowers! They are looking a little sad but they have held up really well! They look just like our wedding flowers.

2008-03-04T15:02:00.000-08:00

Two years ago today around this time, I was in the midst of picture taking and pre-wedding flurry. I walked down the aisle to the instrumental version of "Annie's Song" by John Denver. While we were on our honeymoon we made a quick stop at a little road side vendor to get a drink a some lunch. While we were sitting there that song came on over the speakers. It was one of those sweet moments that makes perfect sense. Since then I haven't heard that song unless I chose to.

Fast forward to this morning. Chris and I decided to celebrate in the truly romantic way that couples with small children do, and have breakfast at IHOP. Anders was acting up and making lots of noise and we were trying to have a peaceful time and all of a sudden my ears perked up and I heard "Annie's Song" being played in the background. It was pretty faint but still there. I looked at Chris and pointed to the speaker. It took us back to the moment we committed our lives to each other exactly two years before. We both got a little misty eyed over the sweetness of the moment and we agreed that it would be really weird if we heard it again next year in some random setting!

Luckily, the IHOP breakfast wasn't the our main celebration. We will be skipping town in less than two weeks and leaving the little man with Grammy and Pa Pa and my parents. We can hardly wait!

2008-03-03T08:24:00.000-08:00

So far the ant poison seems to be working. I haven't seen even one stray ant. Many of the other families in our apartment building have been complaining about the ant problem and I guess the managers would have to do some major war against these industrious and busy little creatures if they wanted the complex to be ant free. I'm sure we'll see a few swarms before the summer is out.

This weekend was an enjoyable one. Saturday I worked as usual and Chris had an fun day with Anders. They like their "man Saturdays" filled with Costco (samples), Chick-Fillet, fun at the park, and just hanging around in various stages of comfortable undress. On Sunday Chris went to Malibu for church and afterwards had a meeting until around 5:00. I decided that I didn't want to hang around that late so Anders and I went to church at Granada. It's always enjoyable to visit my home church. The nursery care is always so great. They are well organized and there are always a group of kind ladies who volunteer. Anders loves going and never makes a peep about being dropped off. He just waves me away as he is carried into the room with LOTS of new toys!
After church was a Del Taco lunch with my folks and then home for the coveted Sunday afternoon nap. Chris' friend Todd made the trek to our house from Santa Monica and hung around for a while. Then he and Chris went to the Yard House in nearby Brea. The Yard House allegedly has the biggest selection of beers on tap in North America. Chris was excited to have a good Belgium brew and Todd was looking forward to a local Colorado variety. I'm always glad when Chris has a chance to hang out with one of his guy friends. It's hard to live so far away from all of the friends he made when he moved here from Cincinnati over nine years ago.
Oh, and the weekend was kicked off with a girls night out with some friends of mine that involved a local Mexican restaurant and a movie. Then Saturday our friends Scott and Laura were gracious enough to have us over for dinner. Anders had a blast with their girls and was completely spent by the time we got home at close to 10:00! So, it was a fun weekend for all of us.

We are still working on Anders behaviour but it seems to have gotten a little better since some of his molars have come in.

2008-02-27T07:43:00.000-08:00

Today is a good day because.... ba ba ba baaaa! We are getting our apartment sprayed for ants!!! As some of you know, last year was a bad year for ants. I was constantly finding trails around my house and it didn't help that Anders was just learning to feed himself and food would get dropped. It seemed like no matter how clean my kitchen was they would find some random crumb and attack it with all of their special forces.
The last couple of weeks I have been finding little ants out looking for something to feast on. In the past few days I have had some major frenzy's and so I decided that I won't live like I did last year. So we are vacating the house for the day maybe the night depending on how toxic the poison is and I'll be crossing my fingers that it really gets 'em! Right now I'm waiting for the poison sprayer guy to get here and I'll have fun showing him exactly where the ants are coming from!
I'll write an update on this subject when I find out if it really works.

2008-02-24T21:55:00.000-08:00

As you can see we have been enjoying the Wii. This week has been busy and we are finally all feeling better after a vicious cold that it seems like everyone has gotten. For a couple of nights Chris had to sleep on the Aero bed that we have for guests. It's pretty comfortable and it is handy when one or both of us need a good solitary nights sleep. My energy level returned by Friday and I spent the whole day catching up on cleaning, laundry and settling back in after a busy couple of weeks.
On Friday morning Chris and I were sitting at the breakfast table with Anders sitting in his highchair next to the table. He was screaming and wining and making the sign for "more" while demanding "MO" "MO". Chris looks at me and says "he's spoiled isn't he." We decided that we needed to do some things differently and we set out a rough game plan for future behaviour issues. During that breakfast whenever Anders would start screaming we would look away and start talking about something else. We also started working on saying "please". At one point he got really quiet and was staring off into space with the contimplative look of a deep thinker. He was really considering what what was going on and he quieted down pretty quick.
We realize that raising children will be filled with these moments. Reevaluating how things are going and what is working and what's not. The toddler years are good practice for that!

2008-02-19T10:37:00.000-08:00

O.K. so I have to address a MAJOR pet peeve. During this political season I have been hearing from a few people that I respect, some pretty big scare tactic stories. In this case about Barack Obama. These stories have been sent out on the internet at different times and they are easily tracked by using snopes.com or politifact.com. The thing that bugs me the most is that it makes (in this case) Christians or conservatives which ever comes first, seem really naive, alarmist, judgmental, uneducated, blind, let's see.... I'm sure there are even more adjectives.

The incident that pushed me over the edge was this past Saturday. I was chatting with a client about the current political possibilities and the subject of Barack Obama came up. Now, I'm pretty conservative and although I like Obama as a person I don't agree with most of his political views and I most likely won't vote for him. So that aside, this person says, "you know that Barack Obama was sworn into the Senate using the Koran". My response was "Hmm that's odd because he professes to be a born again Christian." She came back with a very assured "well he did!" At that moment I couldn't research it but I had a feeling that if it were true there would be A LOT more drama. So I googled it when I got home and OF COURSE IT'S NOT TRUE! The other story that is circulating is that he is a radical Muslim in disguise. So, let's not make fools of Christianity or ourselves. Research "factual" e-mails. Don't believe everything you hear without checking the facts.

2008-02-18T13:54:00.000-08:00

Berry Carnage..... Berries are a huge favorite of Anders especially blueberries. We get the big bag of frozen mixed berries and heat up a bowl of them. They are a major hit although the blueberries always get picked out first! While in Texas I discovered the wonders of V8 Fusion juice. It has a ton of veggies and fruit in it so I have been giving that to Anders mixed with water instead of Apple juice. It makes me feel better about giving him juice knowing that it's so packed with good stuff.

2008-02-14T17:08:00.000-08:00

I just got home last night from a week long visit to Texas. My cousin Chad got married on Saturday in Dallas so it was the perfect time to get caught up with my sisters and their families. Anders had so much fun with his Cousins although I don't have any pictures of him and the newest cousin Garrett. The kids had fun playing outside and watching dvd's. Anders was in heaven because he loves "eedee" (tv).

Some of the highlights were getting professional pictures taken with all of the kids, buying a Wii along with the DeHarts and the Barnes' (Chris set it up last night!), and spending some quality time talking and hanging out as a family.

The down sides were not being able to have Chris there due to work, traveling by myself with an active toddler and having a nasty cold most of the time I was there. Actually, the traveling part was extremely horrid. We decided to save some money and not buy Anders a seat and I will NEVER travel that way again. My flight was cheap and I found out why once I got on the plane. We stopped in Pheonix as well as New Mexico. The up and down on the plane was tiring and Anders Cried every time we landed or took off. The worst part was when the plane was full I had to put him on my lap and that was.... hmmm how do I say this..... miserable. He fought me the whole time and kicked the seat in front of us. It was pretty stressful and the forte of our flight home was when we pulled into the Burbank terminal he threw up. Luckily we were home and I was able to put everything into a plastic bag provided by the kind gloved flight steward. We were the last ones off the plane and by the time I climbed down the stairs on to the tar mac and retrieved my stroller, I was shaking and about to cry. We made a beeline through the terminal into the helpful and loving arms of my husband. Man was I happy to see him!
Although the traveling was hard it was worth every moment!

2008-02-14T16:35:00.000-08:00

A couple more Super Bowl pictures.

2008-02-14T16:33:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures of our visit with Chris' dad and Superbowl Sunday. =0) We really had a great time with John and it was fun to get together with my parents to watch the game! Anders had fun at Sunday school showing off his natural talent on the drums....

Anders had fun trying on Grandpa J's hat.

Chris and his dad relaxing and enjoying the SuperBowl.

2008-02-14T16:26:00.000-08:00

These pictures are mainly for Grandma Jensen because she sent Anders this adorable cowboy hat. He really has gotten alot of milage out of it! So cute. =0)

Howdy!

2008-01-28T14:27:00.000-08:00

Today is one of those perfect blustery days that feels like fall in any state other than California. The wind is blowing it's cold (brisk 53 degrees), and the leaves are gold, red, and brown. The sky is a clear blue with big puffy white clouds edged with gray and in the distance you can see the mountains covered in snow. This kind of day is rare and glorious and usually only comes after a lot of rain which we've had for the past week.
Because of this I took Anders to the park and he ran and threw leaves and pine cones and the wind whipped his hair all around. He looked so rosy and happy it made me want to move somewhere cold just so that I could see that picture more often.
I had a goose hiss at me. Did you know that Geese can hiss? It's pretty creepy sounding. The geese at this particular park are very aggressive and we've been chased before for not producing bread or not producing it fast enough or for running out. Scary stuff.
Anyways, we're trying to get lots of energy out before more rain comes again. Which we are hoping for!
This Thursday Chris' dad is coming out to visit and we are really looking forward to spending some quality time with him. He stays until Monday and then on Wednesday Anders and I fly out to Texas to visit my sisters and to attend the wedding of my cousin Chad. It's so fun that he is getting married to a Dallas native. It looks like it will be a nice family reunion.
I'm dreading the flight with a toddler but I'm hoping to find a portable dvd player to borrow and I'm sure I'll bring some kind of sleepy juice (ie benadryl) just in case. I'm sure I'll share my experience when it's all over!

2008-01-24T07:51:00.000-08:00

It's not a little Yoda.....

It's just Anders Enjoying the rain.

May the force be with you....... =0)

2008-01-22T20:10:00.000-08:00

Today we went over to Laura Blackwell's house to play with Abby and Megan. Megan is a little younger than Anders and they seemed to get along pretty well. Although at this age they just kind of play next to each other not with each other. At one point Anders kept trying to swipe Megan's sippy cup so as you can see in the pictures we had to keep them seperate!

Anders had alot of fun playing with new toys and Megan and Abby's dog Cherry who followed him around licking his face.

2008-01-19T20:52:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of our trip to the Santa Ana zoo on Friday. We went with our neighbor Kathy and two of her boys Roman and Sabastian. They all had a great time although Anders fell at one point and scraped his face on the gravel. He pulled through pretty well. =0)

Lately Anders has been sticking out his tongue alot. I think that he is practicing a certain sound.

The off road jeep that was on display was a hit with all of the boys.

The best part of the day was the train ride around the farm animal area. The conductor was great and Anders kept looking up at me and making kissy faces to show his approval.

2008-01-17T19:52:00.000-08:00

This week has been a busy one. It started with a much needed one year check-up for Anders. We just got heath insurance after a long scary stint without it. Luckily we all stayed relatively healthy during that time. I also found out that I could take Anders to the doctors and just pay for the office visits. A little more than a co-pay but worth it.
We found a highly recommended pediatrician that is just down the street from our house and I was very happy with him. He was a good listener (always a plus) and he seemed to be pretty thorough. We found out that Anders is healthy and a little above normal for height and a little below normal for weight. Heidi pointed out that he probably just had a growth spurt....
The downer was that we need to take him to a urologist on Monday to talk about fixing a lousy circumcision job thanks to Kaiser. I am NOT looking forward to that process!
After visiting the doctor we went to the park where Anders promptly fell and bumped up his chin. I had to hall off a screaming bleeding child while a group of loud and crass homeless men watched the scene with interest. That was a long day.
The rest of the week has been filled with cleaning, shopping, playing with friends, a visit to the DMV, work, and soccer. Yes, Anders is showing a propensity for sports. Actually anything to do with a ball is a hit. We've spent almost every afternoon this week playing with a new soccer ball out in front of our apartment. He's getting the kicking down and I'm having fun getting some exercise.
Lately, sports on T.V. has been a hit. It started at Grandpa's house with golf and was confirmed with football over the holiday's. He now points to the t.v. and says "ootbul", eedee (tv), and brings me the remote saying "emote". I'm not sure how to feel about this new love of "eedee"....
Tomorrow is the zoo and I'm sure I'll get some good pictures to post soon.

2008-01-11T19:25:00.000-08:00

I have to put a plug up here for my moms blog. She is such a good writer and I have had fun reading what she has to say.
Yesterday Anders and I had fun going to the "Museum of Science and Industry" with Kristy Caver and James. The boys really are too young to be fascinated by the interesting exhibits but there is a small play area for Toddlers with lots of fun toys. They played in there for a while and then we took a long walk to check out the Natural History Museum that is right near by the other one. We ended up not going in because it was 8$ and it wasn't worth it. I do look forward to enjoying all of the fun exhibits some day!
The thing that I really enjoyed about the trip besides the fun company, was seeing USC and the Coliseum so close up. I had never been down to that area of L.A. as an adult and it really is a beautiful spot. I suppose I wouldn't want to wander around there at night but during the day it was pretty safe feeling. Hopefully we'll do it again soon and get to really explore the museum!

2008-01-09T20:41:00.000-08:00

I had to put up this picture of Anders in the tubby. We went on a big walk tonight with our destination being Wal-Mart. It's pretty close but we always drive everywhere and I realized that it could be a very pleasant walk. While at the store we saw a can of "Thomas the Train" bubble bath. He really likes "choo choo's" so I decided that it would make bath time even more fun. The bubbles were fabulous but the berry scent wasn't so hot in my opinion. Anders was VERY impressed by the bubbles and had fun washing his own hair.

The table picture is exciting for me because if you have been over to our apartment you would know that we have been living for a long time with metal folding chairs and a hand-me-down table that used to be Aunt boo boo's. We finally upgraded and I am SO HAPPY. We still have one chair to assemble but I am very happy with the results.

And of course I had to include a picture of laundry day. For some reason I like to document this kind of thing. Don't ask me why.

2008-01-08T19:15:00.000-08:00

Today was so productive thanks to my mom who lovingly and willingly took Anders for the day. It's amazing what can be accomplished without a little one clinging to my leg. I tackled six loads of laundry, decluttered our bedroom and Anders room, shopped at Trader Joe's, worked on this blog, vacuumed the floors.... and had a nice visit with mom at the end of the day. Now a chicken is roasting in the oven and there is still a small pile of clothes on the couch that need to be folded. It feels so good to get back on track after the Holidays! For some reason Christmas gets me all out of wack. The house gets extra cluttered, laundry get put on hold and new gifts get piled into corners until they find a new home. Of course surrounding that chaos is a lot of fun and joy so I suppose it's worth the extra work.
Today as I was walking back and forth to the laundry room I started thinking about one of the ways I make the task enjoyable. I live in a nice quiet apartment community. It's gated and it really feels like a safe little village. Most of the apartments have little elements of care put into them like a wreath on the door, some flowers around the outside or other reminders that these are people's homes. I imagine that I'm somewhere in Europe and this place is my town. I have to walk to do my laundry but it's ok because life is so slow and enjoyable and it's just part of the daily rhythm. For some reason this makes the chore of doing laundry seem pleasant instead of an intrusive, tiring, time sapper.

2008-01-08T12:19:00.000-08:00

Here are a few more pictures of Christmas. I had to include some from the Seelye family gathering. I also hadn't put up any pictures of Erin Jim and Garrett so here they are!

We really had a good time over at the Stevens house. It was fun to share the event with a family that just came to the States from Rwanda. The father has been here for awhile studying at Talbot and his family, wife and three teenagers just arrived before Christmas. They were a welcome addition to the group.