The Adventures of Louie & Schnitz

Recipe #2: Lentil Soup

2011-01-17T21:41:00.006-07:00

In a burst of desire to eat a bit healthier, we started flipping through my "exercise plan" book which also has a section on nutrition. I told Brad to pick some recipes that he would be interested in and I'd see what I could do. Well, he decided that lentil soup might be interesting and the search was on. A quick internet search turned up a recipe by Giada de Laurentis of tv fame and we decided that she probably knew what lentil soup should taste like. And you know what? That was a great bet to make because this soup is tasty! Enjoy!

Lentil Soup

6 servings

2 T olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

1 medium onion, chopped

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 (14 1/2 oz) can diced tomataoes

1 lb lentils (approx. 1 1/4 cups)

11 cups low-salt chicken broth

4 to 6 fresh thyme sprigs (can also use 2-3 tsp dried thyme)

2/3 cup dried elbow pasta

1 C shredded parmesan

Directions

Heat the oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery. Add the garlic, salt, and pepper and saute until all the vegetables are tender, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juices. Simmer until the juices evaporate a little and the tomatoes break down, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Add the lentils and mix to coat. Add the broth and stir. Add the thyme sprigs. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover and simmer over low heat until the lentils are almost tender, about 30 minutes.

Stir in the pasta. Simmer until the pasta is tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Ladle the soup into bowls. Sprinkle with the Parmesan, drizzle with olive oil, and serve.

Rating: 4 out of 5 ladles (please note that Brad was loathe to rate it higher due to its failure to include meat, even though we scarfed it down to the last lentil...LOL!)

Allergens: Onions, Garlic, Wheat, Milk

I'm not sure how you get around the onions and garlic, but if you need to avoid wheat, you can easily substitute rice or quinoa pasta. If you have to avoid milk, you could skip the parmesan or substitute with a mozzarella dairy-free cheese.

Recipe #1: Beef Bourguignon

2011-01-09T20:57:00.004-07:00

I figured that I would pick something truly off the map for me to bring in the New Year. And that would be the famous Beef Bourguignon...a dish that I can barely pronounce (due to taking Spanish and not French in high school) and certainly not spell (for the same reason)! LOL! However, I am oh so glad that I tried this one out because it was TASTY! And besides, you get to feel like a "real" cool when you cook with wine and who doesn't love that?;-) So here goes!

Beef Bourguignon

Ingredients:

2.2 lbs chuck steak
4 1/2 oz bacon
12 pearl onions
2 oz butter
1.1 lbs carrots
Freshly prepared bouquet garni:
-1 sprig of thyme
-1/4 bay leaf
-2 sticks of celery
-4 sprigs of parsley
1 tbsp flour
1 tbsp tomato concentrate
1 liter 9 (1 3/4 pt) good red wine
2 cloves of garlic
salt/pepper

Preparation
Ask your butcher to cut the meat into egg-sized cubes.
Remember to take the meat out of the fridge at least 1/2 hour before use. Remove the rind and dice the bacon.
Peel the onions but leave them whole.
Melt the butter in a cocotte, then add the onions and the bacon and let them brown for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring regularly with a wooden spoon. Season the meat with salt and ground pepper, then add to the casserole dish and brown on each side.
While the meat is browning, peel the carrots, rinse them quickly under running water and cut them into 5 cm (2") strips before adding them to the casserole.
Carefully wash the parsley and the celery. Remove the stringy parts of the celery and then tie together the thyme, the bay leaf, the parsley and the celery to make your bouquet garni.
Add to the casserole dish.
Brown all the ingredients for approx. 30 minutes, then remove the meat, putting it aside in a warm place.
Add the flour to the cocotte and stir well with a wooden spoon. As soon as it changes color, add the tomato concentrate and stir again. Add the red wine little by little, thinning down the sauce as it thickens and stirring all the time. Season using a pepper mill. Add the two cloves of garlic after having peeled and crushed them. Continue stirring with the wooden spoon.
Once you have obtained a smooth sauce, return the meat to the cocotte, cover and leave to simmer for approximately 2 1/2 hours over low heat.
15 minutes before the end of cooking, heat the plates, and possibly a serving dish if you prefer not to take the cocotte to the table (I'll just admit that I didn't go this far;-)

I served it with mashed potatoes and let's just say, there were NOT many leftovers!

Rating: 4 out of 5 ladles
*This was a result of the need for more practice, not the recipe:-)

Allergens: wheat, milk, beef, onions, garlic
*Could substitute a different thickening agent such as cornstarch or tapioca flour for wheat and dairy free substitute for the butter.

Expanding Our Culinary Horizons 2011

2011-01-09T20:29:00.004-07:00

As my "fun" New Years resolution this year, I've decided to try out one new recipe each week. We will then rate it and the top contenders will be compiled at the end of the year. The impetus for this particular resolution actually came from a few different sources. First, I got some very fun, new toys for Christmas. A cast iron, enamel covered dutch oven and a cast iron skillet. Oh yeah, those have opened up some new avenues! The second is that Rusty had even MORE allergies added a few months ago that have, sadly, torpedoed most of the recipes I've spent the last couple of years collecting for him. Just for the record, he is now allergic to the following: wheat, eggs, dairy, soy, beef, peanuts, black beans, rice, onions, and garlic. I obviously needed more of a challenge;-)

These recipes are not going to necessarily follow any sort of pattern. It's basically just whatever I want to try out in any given week! They may be breakfast, lunch/dinner or dessert and may be recipes that just Brad and I can eat or "allergy friendly" stuff that Rusty can eat. Due to the fact that I have any number of friends and family members with some or more of the same allergy problems that Rusty has, I am going to include the allergen information for each recipe. Hopefully, this will provide some new ideas for others too!

Enjoy and let me know what you think!:-)

And then they learn to talk...

2009-10-19T20:26:00.003-06:00

You know, I remember that not too long ago I had frequent thoughts of how great it would be when the Schnitz would finally start talking. I thought I would share some snippets from the last few days so that I could explore how that's working out for me...mostly good, some obnoxious, and those that make it all worthwhile;-)

Saturday as we're on our way to the car to drop the Schnitz at KidsTown and take ourselves to game night with our Sunday school class:

Us: "What a great day! The football games were awesome...we're actually #1 in Fantasty Football, the weather is gorgeous and we get a night out! It is a GREAT day!"

Schnitz: (in very Eeyore-esque fashion) "It's NOT a great day! Sun's too bright, it's too hot, football is NOT a good idea!" Hmmm...having any trouble understanding his thoughts on the matter?;-)

This morning as he's using the potty:

"Poop in your pullup says, 'Don't clap your hands'"

Yes, this WAS before coffee and for the life of me I couldn't figure out what an appropriate response to that would be??

Fast forward to this afternoon, after approximately 10 minutes of quiet during which I thought he had finally fallen asleep for his nap. As I'm sitting at the table indulging in the idea that I might actually get some work done, he walks down the stairs:

Schnitz: "I'm done taking my nap."

Me: "What nap? You've been quiet for all of 10 minutes; you never took a nap."

Schnitz: (very matter of factly) "That's because I like to play and THAT'S why you shouldn't take me back upstairs." Then follows a stream of things that, quite honestly, I stopped listening to because I was busy pondering how much easier it was to put him down for a nap before he was mobile! I was then jolted out of my reverie by, "You just need to talk to me!!" LOL! Tell me how you really feel!

But, I have to end this by sharing the best thing I heard all day (especially after we had a bit of a rough afternoon) as I carried him up the stairs to his bed:

"Mama, you're my favorite friend."

Tell me that wouldn't melt a heart of stone:-)

Rocky Mountain High

2009-09-04T20:48:00.026-06:00

So once again, a critical mass of opinion has mandated that I stop procrastinating and get SOMETHING new posted on here:-) Now, in my defense, my camera stopped functioning at the beginning of July and this served to apparently freeze my abilities to even somewhat keep up with this blog, but that is an excuse and I'm sure beneath me SO moving on... This has been a busy, busy summer for the Atwell clan. I plan to share all of the highlights, but am going to do so out of order, mainly due to the aforementioned malfunctioning camera. Being fortunate enough to live near a popular get-away destination, Rusty and I (and for a few days, Brad) were lucky enough to spend a week up in Estes Park, CO with my parents. I've been there more times that I can count, but never more than a day or two at a time. So when the opportunity presented itself, I jumped on the bandwagon gladly!:-) Needless to say, the grandparents were pretty happy to get to spend an entire week with the schnitz and I was happy to be able to accomodate them! The week was spent relaxing, playing cards, reading books, spending time with family and friends and even getting in a few rounds of golf! Oh and I even got to spend a very pleasant evening going to dinner with my wonderful hubby! (Aren't grandparents great?:-)

Nevermind that he spent the week in the midst of God's masterpiece of the Rocky Mountains, the schnitz's favorite part of the week was the GO KARTS! Waiting patiently here with Papa (who liked it just as much:-)

How well do they know kiddos? There were TWO steering wheels in each car. Guess who thought he was doing the driving?;-)

He couldn't WAIT to go on the big slides and Ms. Dawn was kind enough to accommodate him!

"I'm gonna drive a motorcycle when I get bigger!" I hear this a lot!

Watching them make some yummy fudge in Mama's favorite candy store (they make THE best caramel apples...so good that I'm willing to risk getting sticky...LOL!)

Mom and Mrs. Lockhart...we were so glad to get a chance to see she and Dawn while we were there.

Mrs. Lockhart, Mom, Dawn and the schnitz with his ever-present water bottle.

Looking down on Estes Park from the gondola that didn't look nearly as high from the bottom! The things I'll do for my child;-)

You don't think he enjoys spending time with his Mimi and Papa, do you??

Awww....

Hanging out with Ashton. He really does like the blondes!:-)

So glad that Aunt Ruth was able to come and hang out with us for a few hours!

The schnitz was kind enough to hang out with his mama on the back porch of the hotel on a beautiful afternoon. He's very good company!

Ok, so there are chipmunks ALL over the place up there and I know they're very used to people. But, it STILL shocked me when this little guy came up and stood on the schnitz's shoe! So cute!

My handsome husband during our "golf date". Isn't this just the coolest shot?

Beautiful day for golf and we had a GREAT time (we won't talk about the score;-)

Can't wait to go back...thanks Mom and Dad for having us along!

**If you're wondering why the pictures look a bit different than usual...I had to resort to using the camera on my phone...desperate times called for desperate measures!:-)**

Field Trip #2 of 2009: Garden of the Gods

2009-06-16T17:42:00.022-06:00

Ok, so this particular field trip was actually a couple of weeks ago and I'm once again establishing my reputation as blog-slacker. But, better late than never, I continue to maintain!

Honestly, I'm so very happy that we did this one. Garden of the Gods was amazingly beautiful and the schnitz and I had a great time! We hiked around for a couple of hours, enjoying our surroundings and then went ahead and left when the clouds started rolling in. Stopped by to see my friend Marcie, a friend and roommate from Tech, where we ate our lunch and chatted for a bit. She was in the process of moving and so we left before the schnitz got packed in her truck:-) From there, we headed north to Monument and stopped to see yet another college friend and roommate, Sandy. What can I say? I believe in efficiency! If you're passing through someone's town...I figure you should stop and say "hi". It's the only reasonable thing to do. If you don't subscribe to this particular school of thought, you should probably let me know. You just might find me on your doorstep on one of my trips;-)

Needless to say, we had a very full and very enjoyable day! Hope you enjoy the pictures!

And we'll end with yet more proof that the schnitz NEVER takes a good picture with his mama...no wonder I'm always on the other side of the camera!:-)

Really and truly, if we lived closer we would be hiking here every weekend! What a beautiful place!

I can't tell you how long I've been waiting for this...

2009-05-23T21:57:00.009-06:00

Any of you who know me at all, know that I am a BIG lover of books and have been since I can remember. The fact that my husband is ALSO a big lover of books means that our house is full of them. To the tune of six bookshelves and growing. To be perfectly honest, I can't think of a single member of our immediate family that doesn't have at least one book going at all times.

Due to this fact, it shouldn't be hard for you to imagine that one of the things that I have MOST looked forward to in this parenting adventure, is the chance to pass along this love of books to the schnitz. Now, it didn't start out in such a promising fashion. Until about a year or so ago, his response to our reading to him was at best to ignore us, at worst, to throw the book across the room. I wasn't too interested in making him hate reading at the tender age of one and so I decided to be patient and just let him come to the decision that they were worth his time (this is the way he's done everything from walking to talking, so why would this be different?). Well, that phase has passed and he has developed more than a substantial interest...yay! And as excited as I have been about that, I've been waiting for the day that he would be ready for the books that I remember loving when I was little. Since my memory doesn't extend back to my very earliest days, I've had to have a bit of patience in this area. However, tonight we took a trip to Borders and I FINALLY got to indulge myself! I just had to share the books we got with y'all because I have a feeling that it's not just Brad and I who will be taking a stroll down memory lane with these! Enjoy!

And can I just say how happy it made me, in my heart, that he wanted us to read "The Poky Little Puppy" to him three times before bed? He just made my day!:-)

Who doesn't like a playdate?

2009-05-22T21:05:00.016-06:00

The nice weather we've been having over the last couple of weeks has led to a LOT more time to get out and enjoy ourselves. There's just something about a day of sunshine and warm temperatures that makes it seem just this side of criminal to spend the day indoors! (Mind you, we've now hit what looks to be a two week stretch of clouds and rain, but that's neither here nor there:-)

I have to admit, Rusty definitely gets the bulk of the playdates around here, but I've had a lot of fun just being outside. We're very fortunate to have a fantastic park just down the street and we've been making good use of it. Here's a couple of pictures from a day when just the schnitz and I were hanging out at the park and then a week ago when we had the opportunity to hang out with some of our friends.

The schnitz ALWAYS find a puppy to love on while we're at the park.

I had to include this just because the expression on his face cracked me up!

My friend, Amy's, little girl...isn't she just the cutest thing you've ever seen??

My son is part monkey, we're pretty sure. He started climbing this thing about six months ago...hopefully our health insurance will cover the heart attack he's going to give me one of these days!

Me: "You're supposed to go down on your hiney!" Schnitz: "Heh heh heh heh....BYE!"

Does anyone else think that this child truly needs a dog??

I've always wondered about the wisdom of putting a rusty horse statue in a park full of kiddos, but the schnitz found him absolutely fascinating.

Taking a break from playing to eat a bit of lunch.

Ahhhh....life is good!

In addition to our more "spontaneous" playdates, the schnitz is also part of a playgroup that meets every Friday. There are four of us moms and six kiddos that are involved in this. We each host one Friday per month. One of the cool things about this is that two of my friends live out in the country. One has two horses which you know is a hit. The other has a big, shaggy, black dog which the schnitz thinks is just fantastic stuff. I personally like the drive out to their homes and think it's great for the kids to have so much room to run around and have fun! It's especially nice now that it's spring. Things are finally starting to turn green and last week was just really pretty. It was all quite blissful, to be honest, until the dog actually caught the ground squirrel he was digging for. That was a bit more "circle of life" intensive than I think either Elysha or I were prepared for. What can I say? It's been a really long time since I've lived in the country and witnessed dogs doing what dogs do! Let's just say that we quickly decided maybe movie time wasn't such a bad idea:-)

See the frantic digging? Yeah...this is before he was successful:-)

And finally, I actually got to go on a "playdate" of my own! (Don't you think I deserve one?:-) We have a museum, here in town, called the Wildlife Experience that also has an IMAX theatre. Every couple of months they have an event called "Martini and a Movie". Basically, you show up at 6:30 for martinis, appetizers (cheese and crackers, tortilla wrap and a skewer of veggies), and dessert. Then at 7:30, you go to the theatre where they are waiting with fresh movie popcorn (yum!) and watch the featured movie on the big, big screen! Well, this past Thursday the movie they were showing was "Sixteen Candles". How fun is that? I managed to convince two of my highly entertaining friends, Laura and Jeannine, that this was absolutely something that we needed to do. Our only hitch is that Laura didn't buy her ticket ahead of time and it sold out:-( However, she stayed for the first hour and we've made plans for a make-up, so it's all good! Here's a sneak peek at how relaxed three moms can look on a night out without the kiddos;-)

I think it's going to be a fun summer.

A Mothers Day gift of perspective...

2009-05-10T15:29:00.025-06:00

I've found that there are certain days, during the year, that just naturally trigger the impulse to take stock of different aspects of my life. The obvious ones are New Years and birthdays. Since having the schnitz almost 3 years ago, Mothers Day has been added to the list. While it is a great day for dwelling on how very happy I am to be a mother, especially to one of the world's coolest little guys, it also makes me ponder whether or not I'm actually doing a good job. I don't know about the rest of you, but my answer on this changes day by day and minute by minute.

However, we had the coolest guest speaker in church this morning. She is the mother of 6 children and grandmother to (almost) 12. Once all of her kiddos were out of the house, she and her husband became very involved in mission work through our church and have been to Africa (Niger and Burkina Faso) twelve times in the past three years. They've had a very up close and personal look at how parenting transpires in vastly different circumstances. Talk about someone you can count on to know what she's talking about! She used the word "Perspective" as an acrostic which I really like because I have a much easier time remembering the material. I decided to post my notes from her talk since I figured that I might not be the only one who would be able to appreciate what she shared. Oh and just a few pictures of the schnitz over the years since he's the one who made me a mama in the first place (and because it's fun to take a little trip down memory lane;-)

Praise what you think is really important.

Try to avoid telling your child that they are the "best" because then they have no where to go but down! Instead, focus on what you really want to highlight such as, "You worked so hard, I'm very proud of you".

How on earth is it possible that he was ever this tiny??

Expect a lot of them and set your expectations of what you want them to be.

E.g., Self sufficient and independent.

I had so much fun hanging out with the schnitz in New Orleans and he found the powdered sugar pretty entertaining too!:-)

Respond with grace.

When it's tempting to ignore this one, just spend a few moments pondering the incredible grace showered on you by your Heavenly Father on a regular basis.

Shower them with warmth and affection.

I'm not sure if this bunny ever recovered from the "love and affection" he was showered with by the schnitz;-)

Perceive who God made them to be.

He created them with unique characteristics, personalities and gifts, as well as weaknesses. It is your job to encourage those strengths and work to overcome their weaknesses.

If God can create such beauty in the world, why not in our kids?:-)

Encourage gratitude by letting them experience deprivation first hand, not just by observing it.

As much as we would like to think that children will automatically learn gratitude by receiving, that's just not how it works. Human nature is to take as much as you can get and then ask for more. The speaker noted that the people of Niger, the world's poorest country five years ago, are some of the most gracious and grateful people she's ever met.

Cut the ties as they grow.

For those of us with little ones, this seems a bit far in the future. But, we need to remember that this is an ongoing process from day one and exactly how God intended for things to be. Our job is to do our best to prepare them for an independent life where their dependence is on God and themselves, not us.

Teach them that there is a God, but they are not Him!

Remember that life does not revolve around your child(ren) and/or their extracurricular activities.

Invest your time in your kids.

The yield on this investment is incredible!

Value their character, not their accomplishments.

The character traits they develop will affect their future far more than any of the other things.

Eliminate doubt about your ability to be a good parent.

Even if your childhood experiences were less than ideal, you can give what you never received. God as your Heavenly Father is and always has been a perfect parent and can fill in the gaps where you have a need.

Rusty with his first and one of his favorite friends, Damien. It has been so much fun watching them grow (they're only two weeks apart in age and he lives just across from us)!

I hope y'all enjoyed this as much as I did! Have a wonderful and blessed Mothers Day and keep up the good work!:-)

Black Bean Soup with Shredded Pork...sooo yummy!

2009-05-06T17:46:00.004-06:00

Cost per serving: $1.38

Preparation Time: 10 minutes minutes
Cooking Time: 6 hour(s) minutes

1 pound dried black beans, rinsed and picked over
2 bone-in center-cut pork chops (about 1 1/4 lb.)
2 slices bacon, chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped canned chipotle chilies in adobo plus 1 Tbsp. adobo sauce
1 teaspoon ground cumin1
1/2 teaspoons salt

Combine 6 cups water, beans, pork chops, bacon, onion, garlic, chilies, adobo, cumin and salt in slow cooker. Cook on low until beans are tender and pork chops are falling apart, 4 to 6 hours.
Remove and discard bacon. Cut pork away from bones. Discard bones and shred meat. Add meat back to slow cooker with beans. Season with additional salt and serve.

Yield: 8 Servings
CALORIES 320 ; FAT 6g (sat 2g); CHOLESTEROL 48mg; CARBOHYDRATE 37g; SODIUM 581mg; PROTEIN 29g; FIBER 9g

All You, MARCH 2009

Ok, as most of you know, Rusty is allergic to wheat, eggs, dairy and soy. So, I had to make just one modification for him. And then I made a few other modifications based on the fact that we a big meat-eaters in this house:-) So here goes:

The chipotles in adobo turned out to have wheat in them...obviously a no-go. But, I found something called El Paro jalapenos in tomato sauce that was almost the same thing, just no allergens. Recipe calls for 1 T, but I threw in about 1 1/2 T. Also, instead of the 1 1/2lb of bone in pork chops, I used what we had which was boneless. And b/c I defrosted the whole pkg which was almost 2lbs...just went with the whole thing b/c let's be honest...we're meat eaters in this house:-) And the bacon didn't say whether to cook it or not, but I cooked it up and didn't bother taking it out (really...take OUT bacon?:-) I also ended up cooking it on low for more like 12 hours. I stuck it in at 3:30 yesterday afternoon and at 9:30 it was kind of done, but the meat was in no way "shreddable". Stuck some more water in and kept it on low overnight. Got to it around 6:30 this morning and it was falling apart! We ate it for lunch today in tortillas with chopped red onions and cheddar cheese. If have everything I WANT to put on it, at some point, it would probably also include salsa, sour cream and guacamole...load it up!:-) Oh and this made a HUGE crockpot full,so plenty of leftovers.

Competitive Parenting

2009-05-04T17:03:00.001-06:00

"Just had to share...thought this was a really good remind that we should take it easy on ourselves and our kids. Everyone benefits in the long run:-)"

Are your friends always comparing their kids to your kids? Do you feel pressure to push your little one to walk or enroll your preschooler in music lessons? Learn how to combat competitive parenting.

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First official field trip of the summer

2009-04-29T16:19:00.012-06:00

Welcome to the insanity of a Colorado "spring"...one weekend there's 2 feet of snow and then a week 1/2 later...sunny and 75 degrees. Oh well, roll with the punches has become the name of the game around here. The schnitz and I decided to celebrate the gorgeous weather we're having today by taking a field trip, just the two of us! We got dressed, jumped in the car and headed to the Littleton Historical Museum.

What a fun place!

Here's a great description of the museum from their website: "The Littleton Museum is a 14-acre site encompassing an 1860s farm and 1890s farm with costumed interpreters, Littleton's original log schoolhouse, a 1903 working blacksmith shop, and an ice house." It's also the only Smithsonian affiliated museum in Colorado. Not only does this mean it's well-maintained, it also means it's FREE...even better!:-)

Rusty and I had SUCH a great time hanging out there this morning. I decided that since this was his day, that I wouldn't be so intent on us seeing everything, but would follow his lead as to what he found interesting. This basically meant that in 2 hours we only saw about 1/3 of what was there, but also meant that it was really relaxing and that we have more than enough left to see to justify a return trip with friends on another beautiful day!:-)

A view of the 1890's farm (we'll have to make it to the 1860's farm next trip:-)

Ok, I don't care if there was a spring hooked up to the seat...I'm really thankful for my nice comfy car!

Turns out that 1890's tools are just as fascinating as the more modern ones....who knew?

All the farm animals that he doesn't normally see and this goose was fascinating enough that we had to sit down on the sidewalk and watch him eat. Too funny! To the schnitz's credit, it WAS a really pretty goose:-)

The turtles were a hit, but he had a hard time understanding what the tree limb was doing in the water...he's pretty sure that God's going to fix it and put it back with the tree. Told him we'd check on that when we come back!

I'm not sure that you would have seen a farmer taking it easy like this in the 1890's, but since then we've instated child labor laws, so.....;-)

The schnitz found the blacksmith fascinating and I have to admit, I found it really interesting too.

Side note...I found myself thinking while watching the blacksmith heat the iron in order to get it to bend into the triangle he was making. When the iron was cool, he didn't even try to bend it, it was far too resistant. However, the hotter he heated the iron, the more pliable it became. It was a reminder that, as unpleasant as it came be to go through difficult times in life, whether it's related to your job, family, friends, etc, the more difficult things are, the more it becomes possible for God to mold us into what He wants us to be. As tough as I find it to actually wish for rough times in life, I do hope that I remember this the next time I go through a valley (let's be honest...there's always another valley) and pay attention to how God may be trying to bend and shape me to be more like Him. And also to realize that, while it's not easy, there is a blessing inherent in it, if I only pay attention and submit to what He is trying to do in my life.

And finally, the kind of conversations you can have with a two year old who is obsessed with fire trucks:-)

Does it get any better than this?

2009-04-28T09:33:00.004-06:00

Ok, these are the things that are absolutely guaranteed to melt my heart. Last night, I'm in the kitchen getting dinner ready and my sweet schnitz runs in, hugs my legs and says, "I love you!!". He then proceeds to have me pick him up, gives me a kiss on the cheek and a tight hug. He stayed that way and cuddled with me for the next couple minutes "petting" my arm that he informed me was "so soft". Oh my.

And just in case that wasn't enough, as we are eating dinner, he informs me three different times that the "mashed 'tatoes are nummy" and that "mommy is a good cooker!".

Just had to share because this mama went to bed feeling VERY loved and appreciated!:-) Seriously, who needs a Mother's Day gift with stuff like this?

A new resolve to carpe diem

2009-04-27T16:56:00.015-06:00

I am truly embarrassed to admit this, but even after almost 3 years of motherhood I still have to really fight my tendency to think of my days in terms of my own "to do" list rather than appreciating the time I have to spend with my child. The crazy thing about this is that I have a beautiful, intelligent and incredibly entertaining son. With the exception of the normal childhood tantrums, he is honestly just a LOT of fun to spend time with. He's had a sense of humor that has astounded me since around 6 months old and now that he can talk? Truly a trip. I have really liked all of the stages that he's gone through from cuddly baby on, but have to say that this is my favorite so far. So why do I spend so much time worrying about what time the laundry and dishes get done when these years are going to speed by and before long he'll be a teenager who wants to do anything other than hang out with his mama?

So I've decided, especially with the wonderful days of summer (at some point) descending upon us, to try to be far more intentional in spending time with this awesome kid that God has blessed us with and more flexible with my "to do" list. Spend more time letting him sit in my lap to read books, play at the park, and just enjoy him.

I started making good on this new resolution last Wednesday as we were leaving MOPS. We have a fantastic playground at our church and as we were walking past it to get to the car, Rusty very excitedly began telling me how he had gone on the slide and it was "so fun!!". I continued to the car and then realized that it was a beautiful day and we didn't actually have any reason in the world that we had to leave right then. So, I turned around and we proceeded to have a great time playing on the equipment for the next 45 minutes and it was just fun! Why on earth don't I think of that stuff more often?

The next day was Thursday and I had to go into the office for the day. We got home at about 5:30 and it was so nice that it seemed pretty much mandatory that we spend at least a little bit of time playing outside. Dinner could wait awhile. Daddy came home and we decided (with a bit of prompting from the schnitz) to take a walk to the fire station that's about a two minute walk behind the house. As we walked up, an older fireman saw us coming, greeted us and told us he'd grab a rookie to show us around. We ended up having an awesome, impromtu field trip! And for whatever reason, I had grabbed my camera and so even got a few pictures.

Off to see the fire trucks...

Talk about getting to see the trucks up close!

Mr. Brian was so great with the schnitz and spent at least 30-40 minutes showing him everything. Of course, his favorite part was working the flashlight on the helmut!

How perfect is this? Just as our tour was ending, they got a call and we got to see the whole crew in action!

Heading home...

While writing this post, I kept hearing the words of Trace Adkins' song, "You're Gonna Miss This" and thought it would be an appropriate note to end on. Now go hug your kiddos!:-)

Trace Adkins More CMT Music More CMT Music Videos

Freaky weather, family time and football!

2009-04-25T17:24:00.022-06:00

I should probably start this post as my friend, Amanda, did by asking, "can you call yourself a blogger if you never update your blog?", but figure I'll just skip that and jump right in:-)

Last weekend, the husband, kiddo and I jumped into the car for a roadtrip to Lubbock, Texas...home of the Texas Tech Red Raiders! Since Brad and I both graduated from Tech, we are fortunately on the same page when it comes to these things and really enjoy our trips back to west Texas. The reason for this particular trip was to see Tech's spring game and to hang out with Brad's side of the family.

As the date of departure grew closer, the weather forecasts for here on the front range started sounding ominous with warnings of up to 2 feet of snow starting on Friday. Oddly enough, we didn't really relish the idea of extending an 8 1/2 hour due to snowy roads and so we decided to leave on Thursday morning. And so, we set off, feeling rather proud of ourselves for avoiding "unsavory driving conditions". Well, we DID miss driving on all of the snow (although there was still quite a bit on the ground when we got home Sunday), but ended up driving through special west Texas weather between Amarillo and Lubbock. Can you say hail, thunderstorms, flooding and tornado warnings covering the entire Panhandle? Just to give you an idea of what really crazy spring weather can look like:

FYI...this is not snow...it's hail!

For anyone who is wondering (as my friend Janice did) there are no lakes, rivers or even creeks in this water-covered area normally, just open fields.

After being stopped for 30 minutes on I27 so that they could remove the hail from the road, we finally made it to Lubbock after about 9-9 1/2 hours on the road. Crazy!

The rest of the weekend was far more pleasant than eventful. On Friday, Brad, Rusty and I headed to the Science Spectrum where we'd heard they had a "Monsters of the Deep" exhibit. Anyone who has or has had a 2 year old boy can understand why we had to check out the monsters:-)

Apparently, his life long dream is not being eaten by a shark;-)

After finishing up with the "monsters", we had lunch at one of Brad's favorite spots (??)...Der Wienerschnitzel because he presumably wanted to show Rusty the airplane. This was a big hit!

Brad's parents, and his brother Kip with his wife, Sarah and daughter, Kate, arrived that afternoon. We had a great time getting to visit with them and it was so much fun to see the schnitz and his cousin Kate finally get to play together. We had a great time visiting that night and then Saturday headed to Tech's spring game. The weather was beautiful and we had a great time!

We had a great time on our trip and can't wait to see the fam' again in July AND for Tech's football season to start in a mere 3+ months:-) GO TECH!

Italian Bread Pudding

2009-01-27T10:40:00.003-07:00

I just realized that I haven't actually posted any recipes in quite a while and figured I'd try to rectify that real quick! This is a recipe that I made for my Christmas brunch and will absolutely be keeping in the make-again file. I actually made it for our women's bible study, as well. Put it this way, both times the casserole dish was all but licked clean:-) It's especially good for those times that you need to bring a "brunchy" kind of casserole to church, MOPS, that sort of thing. Easy to throw together and since it has to sit in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, you can do it the night before and just throw it in the oven the next morning. Enjoy!

Italian Bread Pudding

Prep: 15 min., Chill: 4 hr., Bake: 55 min., Stand: 5 min.

5 large eggs
*1 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon dried basil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 to 1/4 tsp. ground red pepper1
(9.5-oz.) package frozen mozzarella-and-Monterey Jack cheese Texas toast, chopped
3 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped (about 1 1/4 cups)
8 fully cooked bacon slices, chopped
1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
Garnish: fresh basil leaves

1. Whisk together first 6 ingredients until blended.
2. Layer half of Texas toast in a lightly greased 11- x 7-inch baking dish; sprinkle with half each of tomatoes, bacon, and cheese. Repeat layers once. Pour egg mixture over toast and cheese. Cover and chill 4 to 24 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 325°. Bake casserole 50 to 55 minutes or until center is set. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Garnish, if desired.

*1 1/4 cups egg substitute may be substituted.

Note: For testing purposes only, we used Pepperidge Farm Mozzarella and Monterey Jack Texas Toast. (Karrie's note: I used a generic store brand that was $2 cheaper than the Pepperidge Farm and it tasted just fine:-)

Texas Toast Bread Pudding: Omit dried basil, tomatoes, and bacon. Proceed with recipe as directed.

Sausage Roll Casserole: Omit dried basil, tomatoes, and bacon. Increase cheese to 1 1/2 cups. Substitute 1 (18-oz.) package frozen sausage wrap rolls for Texas toast. Break apart sausage rolls; cut each roll crosswise into thirds, cutting across sausage. Proceed with recipe as directed.

Note: For testing purposes only, we used Sister Schubert's Sausage Wrap Rolls.

Yield: Makes 6 servingsSouthern Living, DECEMBER 2008

Christmas 2008 Part II

2009-01-23T15:15:00.019-07:00

Ok, as I said, my last post had gotten to a crazy length and so here is my promised second post to wrap up the holidays!:-)

My parents were able to stay with us until the afternoon of Christmas day. At that point, they had to get on the road to head back to Kansas City as they had company coming themselves just a few days later. However, our holiday celebrations continued as Brad's parents flew in from Dallas on Christmas evening! They were able to stay until the following Monday which gave us plenty of time for a pleasant and relaxing visit. (For any mothers of toddlers are wondering...the schnitz recovered from his desire for constant spoiling much more quickly than expected after being surrounded by all of his doting grandparents:-)

Time to show Granddad the fancy new tools!

Woohoo...a Rangers baseball set from the grandparents! If only summer weren't seven months away.....

Brad was very excited about his copy of Thucydides. Hmmm...think I'll let him enjoy it first:-)

Helping Grammy unwap his new Texas Tech sweatshirt from Uncle Kip and Aunt Sarah. Can you say, "Double T, Texas Tech"? The schnitz can!

Ah...more Tech-wear. If only this model was as cute as the last one!

Granddad's wondering when he can start working with the schnitz on his form.

Who doesn't enjoy an episode (or two or three) of Corner Gas?!

You think he enjoys spending time with Granddad...just a little?

Christmas Fun

2009-01-02T15:41:00.037-07:00

Wow....the holidays have been a lot more of a whirlwind than I imagined they would be this year! But, in true New Year's Eve resolution fashion, I'm going to try to give a bit of a synopsis and be a bit better about my blogging this year.

Our season of craziness actually started with Rusty and I making a trip to Kansas City to visit with my paretns. It was so much fun and we wouldn't have missed it for the world; I say that in spite of the 14 hours it took us to drive back over black ice in western Kansas!

The reason that we had to push on through the black ice was because we had to get back to ready everything for my 4th Annual Christmas Brunch. I started this, obviously, four years ago for a variety of reasons. I really love the opportunity to get together for some girl time, Christmas is such a festive time, I love bringing together friends from all different areas of my life, and it's a great chance for me to try out fun recipes. If that sounds like I'm using my friends as guinea pigs, that might be the case, but so far no one seems to mind!

What can I say? I just felt the need to show off my yummy brunch food:-)

Church friends: Janice, me, Laura and Amanda

Work friends: Jeannine, Deena, Lisa and me

And so fun to have Mom and Aunt Ruth join us this year!

Even Rusty enjoyed himself with one of his favorite friends, Ashleigh.

And he even provided some entertainment for my cousin, Andrea and her daughter, Ashton:-)

The brunch was SO much fun, but once it was over, we quickly moved on to more holiday entertainment. The next thing on the agenda, was to attend an event called Winter Wonderlights at a local museum. They places lighted figures and Christmas lights all along a path that encircles the museum, had a small Santa's village with live reindeer, a craft area inside and several showings of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" on the IMAX screen. How cool is that? We will definitely be attending this event again next year!

Enjoying the lights with Mimi.

Coloring the walrus puppet is serious business!

Waiting for his viewing of the "Grinch"...how cool is it to see it for the first time on such a big screen??

You'd think those big antlers would make him at least a little nervous, but no:-)

A quick pic with Mama before ending our evening o' fun.

A few days later, Christmas Eve arrived. We attended service at our church that afternoon and then headed home for a "dinner" of appetizers, the reading of the Christmas story and the opening of just one present. On my side of the family, tradition dictates that the one present opened on Christmas Eve is always pajamas (my mother's way of ensuring that everyone was decently clad for pictures on Christmas morning!) The schnitz was excited about the idea of opening presents, right up until the point that he figured out that none of the gifts contained cars! I think it's going to take a while for this particular tradition to grow on him;-)

A fun gadget from Papa made up for the disappointment a little, but Mimi gets the benefit. Sorry Papa! Life's just like that sometimes!:-)

The next morning was a little more, shall we say, gratifying to his little two year old heart! Between his GeoTrax and bath toys from Mama and Daddy and legos and tool set from Mimi and Papa, life was certainly looking up!

The rest of the morning was spent helping the rest of us open our gifts and cuddling with Mimi and Papa (kitty Louie got a little bit of that too, as you'll see:-)

Ok, this has got to be in the running for "longest blog post ever" and so I'm going to do Christmas Part II in another post!

Hope you enjoyed the first part of our Christmas holiday:-)

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

2008-11-29T11:52:00.016-07:00

So the holidays are upon us and in an unprecedented move, we're actually staying home to celebrate this year! Almost unheard of, but we needed a year off. While we are blessed with wonderful family on both sides, with whom we love to visit, the many hours in car or plane can wear you out, especially with a two year old! Moving on....

Thursday was very relaxing. The three of us ate a leisurely dinner (most of which the schnitz could actually eat...woohoo for that accomplishment!), took some naps to recover and then joined some friends for dinner that night. An amazingly nice day. The weather was cool, highs in the 30's, but the roads were completely dry and didn't make our lives interesting in any way. Just the way fall should be, in my humble opinion!

Now tell me that's not an amazingly full plate for a child allergic to wheat, eggs, dairy, soy and beef! Can you tell that I'm just a little impressed with myself?;-)

Yesterday, we all slept in, due to our rather late night the previous evening. After a very healthy breakfast of pie (only for Brad and I...we're good parents, if not good examples;-), Brad headed out to see the new Bond movie with a friend while the schnitz and I got busy setting up the Christmas tree. What can I say? Our interests seriously divided on those activities! (Of course, by staying home, I got to see a seriously fantastic game between Nebraska and CU and scare the daylights out of my child with my shriek of joy when Nebraska made their crucial 57 yard fieldgoal. But, I digress.) By the time Brad returned home the house was decorated and looking quite lovely, if I do say so myself!

I left to do a few quick errands and in doing so, saw all of the people gathered along Mainstreet for the lighting of the mayor's Christmas tree. For those (meaning almost all;-) of you who have never been to our house, it is located in a really neat area. We live just off Mainstreet which is actually Old Town Parker. Parker was only incorporated 25 years ago and they've done a really great job keeping a lot of the traditions of a small town. This celebration is one that I think is really cool! So, while I'm driving down Mainstreet, I see the horse and carriage (which we watched being unloaded behind our house earlier in the day) giving people rides up and down the street and hundreds of people gathered in the park while the sound of Christmas music filled the air. Love it! Then while I'm across the street getting ready to go into the store, I'm able to hear the countdown and then see the whole park fill with Christmas lights! Almost perfect, right?

The gazebo in the park. I have to admit, for me a gazebo seems to make a park complete!

When I get home about 45 minutes later, I head up to the door and think to myself, it smells like snow. However, the forecast had called for maybe flurries at most and so the odds didn't seem all that great. Imagine my surprise when I looked out the window 30 minutes later to see HUGE snowflakes, so big that you could see their individuals patterns, falling from the sky and the lawn already covered in white. Talk about quintessential Colorado, right? It truly made for the most lovely and relaxing evening. The schnitz went to bed after being promised some play-in-the-snow time, Brad made a fire in the fireplace and while we enjoyed the fire and snow I wrapped all of the Christmas presents. What a nice way to end the week and a wonderful way to start into the Christmas season! Hope you enjoy just a few pictures of our town and home:-)

As you can see, the kitties very much approved of the way we spent the evening, too!

This is a little church located right across the street. Isn't it beautiful? They actually have this covered in lights too and it looks amazing at night.

The schnitz was having a lot of fun this morning. A big difference from last year when he touched the snow and just looked at me like I was crazy to have him out there! Oddly enough, he took to the warm water and sand at the beach immediately:-)

Ahhh...as if the snow wasn't enough, he even got to make a new puppy friend this morning.

And just in case you were concerned the shnitz might get cold in this weather, rest assured that he has his own, unique, ways of staying warm. And yes, he was like this when I went to get him up from his nap!:-)

Adventures in naptime.....

2008-11-19T08:33:00.007-07:00

Ok, let me start by saying that normally the schnitz is actually really good about taking a nap and hanging out in his bed until I come get him. Obviously, life is full of exceptions! Just thought I'd share what we've walked in on this past week....

Question to the schnitz: "How did you get up there???"

Answer: (with all but an eye roll) "I climb!!"

Next a riddle of sorts. What do you get when you take a 2 year with time on his hands, A&D ointment and a certain amount of creativity?

I collapsed on the floor laughing so hard I was crying! What else is a mother to do at that point?

Anyone know how to get diaper ointment out of hair?:-)

Have a great day!

Who knew junk mail could actually provide entertainment?

2008-11-15T22:52:00.005-07:00

Ok, I don't know about ya'll, but around here I am Chief Mail Sorter. As you might guess, this is not a job I applied for so much as failed to avoid. So, this afternoon I was going through yet another pile of junk mail that I fished out of the mailbox on my way home and came to a Brookstone catalog. Flipping through it on my way to the trash can, I came across a couple of items that just cracked me up! And in an effort to find SOME meaning in this task....I thought I would share with my friends. Granted, these might just be funny to me because my sense of humor is, well, off the beaten path. But seriously, just picture walking into someone's house and seeing them actually USING one of these items and I bet you'll at least smile;-)

(Hahahahaha......LOL!!!)

Karrie

Who says good help is hard to find?

2008-10-24T15:54:00.003-06:00

I'm going to go out on a limb and make the assumption that this is NOT a commentary on my housekeeping abilities;-)

Weekly Recipe #3: Chicken Azteca

2008-10-23T19:44:00.003-06:00

Ok, first I will confess to being a MAJOR blogging slacker! Apparently, I had some kind of underlying fear of getting a big head after being so consistent about posting during vacation. Well, my head is still its regular size, so guess I'd better get back at it:-) As I just received the nicest reminder ever (thanks Jen) that I have been quite remiss with that whole "recipe per week" thing, I thought I would ease back into the waters with one of our favorites dishes around here. It's actually one that was passed on to me by my sister (with just a slight modification due to Schnitzel's food allergies). Make it with or without the modification...both are great!

Chicken Azteca

Makes 10-12 servings (I just made 1/2)

2 15 oz cans black beans drained
4 cups frozen corn (I only had canned, so I used that drained)
2 garlic cloves minced
3/4 tsp ground cumin
2 cups chunky salsa
10 boneless skinless chicken halves
*2 8 oz packages cream cheese (I used 1/3 reduced fat and it was fine)
cooked rice
shredded chessar cheese

1. Combine beans, corn, garlic, cumin and half of salsa in slow cooker.

2. Arrange chicken breasts over top. Pour remaining salsa over top.

3. Cover. Cook on high 2-3 hours or low 4-6.

4. Remove chicken and cut into bite sized pieces. Return to cooker.

5. Stir in cream cheese. Cook on high until cream cheese melts.

6. Spoon chicken and sauce over cooked rice. Top with cheese.

*I always skip the cream cheese part because the schnitz is allergic to dairy and I figure that if there's ANYTHING I can do to cut calories without feeling deprived...I'm all for it:-)

Enjoy and I promise to post more very soon!

Quintessential Cape Cod: Nauset Beach

2008-09-14T08:31:00.018-06:00

After our somewhat disappointing outing on Wednesday, we checked the weather and discovered that the next day would be perfect for another beach outing. Since the first beach was on the bayside of the Cape we decided this trip should be to the ocean side. (Please note: my mother has reminded me that schnitzel's first actual experience with the ocean was in Myrtle Beach in December 2007 with them. However, this will be his first time it will be warm enough for him to actually get in the water too:-)

After a bit of research, Nauset Beach in Orleans became our destination. It's located right where the Cape "elbow" bends and is really a fabulous place! Lots of sand, good-sized waves (although the water was pretty calm while we were there), clean restrooms and a food shack that was amazing! We had a fantastic time and had a very difficult time pulling ourselves away. It's definitely on the list for a full day trip next summer!

As you can tell, the schnitz loves all aspects of the beach. He seems equally enamored with the water and the sand, whether digging in it or just feeling it squish through his toes. (Funny...he's not a fan of playing in the snow at all!:-)

After a long spell of enjoying the sound of the waves and the cool breeze, along with the occasional glimpse of some sea lions playing right off shore, we decided it was time to grab some lunch. As I mentioned there is a food shack right there and for convenience sake we decided to take advantage of its close proximity instead of leaving to find a restaurant in town. Fortune was certainly smiling on that decision! Not only was it convenient, but turned out to have some of the best food we had during our entire vacation! One of my "things" when we go to the Cape is that I have to indulge in at least one bowl of clam chowder while there. Well, let me just say. This place had THE best clam chowder I've ever had! And the lobster fritters? Oh yeah, life is good:-)

I'm adding this picture as a PSA because I love you all. If you go to Cape Cod, go to Nauset Beach and eat here!

We found out that this sign was more to wish you luck than an order. Point was driven home as we watched a seagull pluck a french fry from a woman's hand as it was heading for her mouth! It was at that point we decided to eat our lunch in the car!

I'm pretty sure that the schnitz was in fact the only one on the entire beach who found the seagulls fascinating!

One more trip to the water's edge before loading up to go home. Can't wait to do this again next year!

Visiting John Adams' house seemed like a good idea....

2008-09-11T17:00:00.015-06:00

but sadly, was more trouble than it was worth! When we were driving to the Cape last Saturday, we passed an exit for Braintree/Quincy, MA and started talking about how that was where John Adams was from and wouldn't that be cool to see where he lived? So, after we got settled, I got online and found out that there was in fact a museum and tours available. Great! Should be an interesting 1/2 day trip.

Wrong.

John Adams apparently made a bit of a, shall we say, misstep in one provision of his will. Apparently he left about 220 acres of his land to the town of Quincy. As is so often the case, being given something for nothing rarely turns out for the best. Because of this generous gift, the birthplaces of John and John Quincy Adams are surrounded by slum-like areas filled with mostly hair salons, ethnic eateries, and shabby houses. The "Old House" that they moved into later fared a bit better, but honestly the town of Quincy is nothing to exit the highway for.

This was a bit of a frustrating trip as you can probably tell. When we got to the visitors center at 11, we were told that the next tour didn't leave until 12:45 and would last for two hours. Not going to happen with a two year old. So, we decided on a path that seemed more reasonable. We wrote down the addresses and figured we'd just drive there, take a look at the homes even though we couldn't go inside, and call it good. Except that it took us no less than 45 minutes just to find the birthplace homes! Fortunately, it only took 10 minutes to find the Old House, but we have no idea how they could stretch a tour of these places to two hours.

However, we did get some neat pictures and some interesting tidbits of information which I am more than willing to share with ya'll. That way, if you're ever on your way to Cape Cod and have the same thought about how interesting this day trip would be, you can rest assured that you got all the best of the experience from this blog and can spend your time in more pleasant pursuits!

Ok, first of all, the birthplaces of John and John Quincy Adams are only about 75 feet from one another and are the oldest birthplaces of US presidents that still exist.

John Adams' birthplace is the house in back and John Quincy Adams' in the front.

It turns out that the winter kitchen in John Adams' house was actually the largest heated room in the county and is where they would have meetings about local politics in the winter. It's no bigger than our living/dining area (which is not big), but they apparently fit 23 chairs in there. Hard to imagine, but I guess having people pressed together during a Massachusetts winter might not have been such a bad thing:-)

The tour guide, who was kind enough to take us on a short, personal tour, explained to us that the fireplace chimney ran up through the center of the house. This was done so that the bricks would warm up and radiate heat to the rest of the house. Guess central heat isn't such a new concept after all! He also pointed out some divets in the fireplace bricks. It seems that they would heat the bricks in there to bake the bread and had songs they would sing to time it while baking. Can you imagine?

Here's another random tidbit that I read about John Quincy while we were in the visitors center. Apparently, after he finished his term as president, he served in Congress. It seems that three prominent abolitionists advocating for the Amistad slaves approached him with their case and he spoke on their behalf for 7 hours before the Supreme Court and was instrumental in obtaining their freedom. Cool, don't you think?

But, I digress. After taking a look around the birthplace homes, we headed across town to have a quick look at the "Old House" which Adams purchased the year before he became Vice President and stayed in the family for four generations before being donated.

Below is the adjacent Stone Library built to fulfill a request in John Quincy's will for a separate fire-proof structure for books and papers. It contains more than 14,000 volumes that belong to the Adams' Now that's a library!

We did two things after finishing our "tour". First, we vowed never to leave the Cape again while here on vacation and second, spent more time down at our lake that afternoon. Those two things seemed to get us right back on track:-)

The schnitz once again enjoyed himself thoroughly splashing, throwing rocks in the water, and digging in the sand. I enjoyed just taking in my surroundings. The light as the sun prepares to go down just makes everything so beautiful. The really cool part though, was when a group of 14-18 ducks came swimming around the curve almost right up to us and proceeded to hang out for a while. One of them came so close to the shnitz that he could have almost reached out to touch him. So cute, the shnitz kept bending down and saying, "hi duck"! They were very neat. It was a great ending to the day and so that is what I will leave you with.

Heritage Museum and Gardens

2008-09-11T07:24:00.020-06:00

Tuesday the weather forecast was calling for thunderstorms in the afternoon and so we decided to take advantage of the chance to get out that morning before it became necessary to hunker down.

I'd heard that the Heritage Museum and Gardens, located here in Sandwich, had some neat attractions for kids. So, I checked their website and found that they had a car exhibit, pirate exhibit and a working carousel. Surely the shnitz could find something in all of that to amuse him! Of course, I just finished and Brad is currently reading a novel about pirates called "Captain Blood", so we were looking forward to the exhibits ourselves (you can't be altruistic all the time:-)

We were very happy with our choice from the minute we pulled up. The weather was beautiful when we arrived as were the grounds. First stop, car exhibit. Apparently, 2008 is the 100th anniversary of the Model T. That was the one car that kiddos are allowed to get into to explore and the shnitz took full advantage of that! (We actually went back yesterday and he ordered Brad and I into the car with him...world's youngest chauffer, I guess:-) In addition to the Model T, they had a vast array of the most beautifully restored cars I've ever seen! Enjoy the pics!

Anyone want to go for a spin?

Brad and I have decided that if we ever strike it rich we're having THIS car built! So pretty!

They also had a car there that was one of eight ever built that was originally owned by Gary Cooper (old time movie star). It was made in 1931 and could make it to 90 in second gear and 120 in top gear! I'm not normally a big car person, but I found that amazing!

After the cars, it was off to the pirate exhibit. Too fun! They had a portion of a pirate ship that the shnitz could "steer", outfits to try on and a jail in case folks got too out of hand. Not to mention lots of historical stuff that the schnitz didn't care about, but his mama found fascinating!

Pirate ships are cool!

It's not really naptime yet, is it?

And you probably thought that the schnitz was going to be the one to dress up in the pirate clothes, huh?;-)

I told you what they did to the "out of control" visitors. These New England folks take this stuff seriously;-)

Once they let us out of jail, with promises of good behavior, we headed to the carousel. It's almost 100 years old and completely restored. It's really pretty and the best thing, at least for those with kiddos, is that it is free with admission and they can ride as many times as they want! Of course, our child didn't want to ride any of the horses, he wanted to ride the goat. And all we heard for the next 24 hours is "I want to ride de guut" (apparently he's Canadian!:-) So we actually went back yesterday for another several trips around!

We finished our trip at the American History exhibit which had a special section just for the kiddos. The schnitz thoroughly enjoyed the "gardening" that he got to do in there!

After our thoroughly enjoyable morning, we headed back to the house to enjoy a lazy afternoon of naps and listening to the rain. Chalk this up to another "highly recommended" activity! It was a great way to spend the morning! Oh and a quick note, adult tickets were $12/each, but they would validate your ticket and let you come back the next day. Not a bad deal!:-)

Stay tuned for more adventures to come!

And the fun continues with a day at the beach!

2008-09-09T12:57:00.012-06:00

We started our second day here in Cape Cod by discovering that not all ovens are created equal. Our nice simple breakfast of croissants turned out to be more of a challenge than we anticipated! Needless to say, we switched to Pop Tarts in the toaster this morning:-)

Since it was a beautiful sunny day (with highs in the mid-70's...ahhh) after our breakfast challenge, we decided to load up the car and head to schnitzel's first "real beach". Our destination? Corporation Beach in Dennis. We took a very scenic road (6A) which is also called the Old King's Highway. Should you ever make the trip to Cape Cod, this is a road to be experienced. It meanders along the north of the cape and is bordered by trees, flowers, neat old homes, shops of every description and peeks of water along the way. You don't take it to make time, as the speed limit tends to be around 25mph, but you wouldn't want to go much faster as you would surely miss out on some great views!

The schnitz wasn't nearly as enthralled with the scenic drive and fell asleep for a short nap. However, once we got him out of the car and he saw all that water? Woke right up!:-) This was a great first beach for him as it stays shallow for quite a ways out and the waves are really minimal. The first time a wave knocked him down and got his face, he was suprised. After that, didn't phase him in the slightest. Certainly helped that the water was such a pleasant temperature! Although we were informed by a wonderful couple that this was the "cold" side, the water was warmer than our outdoor pool in Parker, so we were ok with it:-)

He suprised us with his willingness to walk out until the water was up to his chest as long as daddy was along for the adventure:-)

I wonder why the little crabs run away when I come near them...must have heard stories from the kitties!

On a quest to find the "perfect" rock for throwing.

Oh yeah, this is a good one!

Let's see, threw the rock, check. Now what should I do next??

It was so nice of someone to dig this schnitzel-sized pool just for me! Now to go "show" this shovelful of wet sand to Mama. Hey Mama...stop running away!

Daddy gets some peace while Mama's busy being chased. This is considered fair by some;-)

Such a conscientous little guy...watering the beach to be sure it doesn't get dry;-)

After having a blast at the beach, we stopped for some incredible seafood at this little road-side tavern on our way home. Definitely recommended!

Such a great day! Hard to see how they can keep being topped, but I'm willing to keep an open mind:-)

Let the Cape Cod fun begin!

2008-09-07T20:51:00.012-06:00

So after a long day of travel yesterday which culminated in our arriving at the house at midnight during the rainy throes of a tropical storm, we awoke this morning to a new day filled with sunshine. We started by getting some very tasty muffins and coffee followed by a trip to the grocery store to stock up on some supplies, get a pepperoni pizza from our favorite pizza place in Sandwich and then fit in a naptime for the schnitz.

Once the schnitz awoke from his nap, the real fun began! The house that we're renting is on a beautiful lake with a rather unfortunate name (Snake Pond...hmmm...someone should have said something to the Chamber of Commerce!). We decided that since it was a bit late in the day to go to one of the beaches we're intending to visit this week, we'd walk the schnitz down to the lake just to give him a preview of things to come. I'm pretty sure that he's convinced he died and went to heaven! I wasn't actually certain that we were ever going to be able to get him out of the water! I mean, how do you top the opportunity to get soaking wet and throw rocks and not get in trouble? (The really entertaining part is that he would pick big, specific rocks, throw them in the water and then "fetch" them. Maybe he thinks the puppies are on to something!:-) I've included some pictures to let you enjoy the fun with us!

Taking the stairs to "the pool" with daddy. How pretty is this?

First things first, Daddy, here's your share of the rocks!

Hmm...this water isn't as cold as the pool water at home...

Awww, now that those pesky clothes are gone, I'm ready to go!

Mommy got in the water, but the schnitz wouldn't share any of his rocks. I never get to have any fun;-) Thinking about taking the boat out for a spin.
But, decides to go back in the water for one more dip instead.

This is the life! Can't wait to see what my parents come up with to top this!

Stay tuned for continuing adventures!

Not the way we wanted the story to end....

2008-09-07T13:21:00.002-06:00

As some of you knew and some of you didn't, Brad and I found out about a month 1/2 ago that we were expecting our second child at the end of March. Well, when I went in for my doctor's appointment this past Wednesday, the doctor discovered that I had miscarried. Due to the fact that we were leaving for Cape Cod on Saturday (yesterday), a D&C was scheduled for early Thursday morning. We were so very excited about the coming addition to our family, but apparently the timing is not now. We're doing ok, but want to let everyone know how much we appreciate the prayers and kind thoughts.

After a long day of travel, we have finally arrived in Cape Cod for the week. It could not have come at a better time as it is so very peaceful here and just good for the soul. Hopefully, I will be able to post on a more positive topic and provide lots of fun pictures of the schnitz at the beach as the week goes by.

God bless,

Karrie

Having a Blast in Tiny Town

2008-08-15T08:27:00.032-06:00

The schnitz and I had such a fun day yesterday that I am breaking my normal mode and actually writing about it within 24 hours! Yes, this event should probably be noted on a calendar as a historic event:-)

My friend Amanda, her two kiddos, Rusty and I all met yesterday morning at a place called Tiny Town. It has a really neat history. According to their website,

"Tiny town was created at the site of the Denver-Leadville stagecoach stop in a scenic mountain canyon southwest of Denver in 1915. That's when moving-company owner George Turner began constructing one-sixth-sized buildings with a turn- of-the-century flavor to delight his young daughter. In 1920 the town was opened to the public. In just five years, it became one of Colorado's top attractions."

This place is so incredibly cool for kids! It's located in Morrison, down 285 just about 6 miles into the foothills. They have 100+ buildings that are, true to their name, tiny, a train that you can ride for $1, great picnic areas and a fantastic playground. We got there at 10:00 and didn't end up leaving until close to 1:00. With kids that are 3, 2, and 1, you can imagine how impressive that is! It didn't hurt that the weather was beautiful with blue skies and 70 degree temps! We had a great time and will definitely be making a return trip!

The outside and inside of Rusty's favorite building...he played in there forever! Note: it's extremely difficult to get kids out of kid-size places until they're ready to leave on their own. Although, to his credit, he did try to pull me in the very small door:-)

Is this too cute, or what?

I'm fairly certain the deer didn't pay for admission, but we'll let it slide just because they were so pretty (ie,"neat" that's just for you, Summer;-)

Just waitin' for the paper to finish printing;-)

Mama...I don't think the realtor is in, but I'll keep an eye out for him!

The train was a HUGE hit as you can imagine!

Then it was off to the playground which was "so fun" as the schnitz informed me after every ride down the slide!!:-)

And so ends a fantastic day in the mountains! Can't wait to go again!

A Big Month for the Schnitz: Part III (and FINAL!!)

2008-08-11T21:12:00.026-06:00

Ok, I'm a total slacker, but have decided to try to (somewhat) mend my ways. I've been meaning to get this "final installment" done and for a variety of reasons, well, haven't. So here goes!

After leaving the reunion in Scottsbluff, Rusty and I traveled back to Kansas City (Olathe, KS to be exact) with Mom to check out their new home and relax for the week. Had a great time hanging out with Kristi, Phil and the kids the first day back and enjoying a trip to the zoo and then just checking out Kansas City with Mom and Dad the rest of the time.

Best way to get through a long drive!

Red panda...taking it easy in the heat:-)

So I really WAS hatched!
The lambs were VERY friendly, especially once you gave them food!

Ok, so they're poisonous, but still really cool!

Jakson and Rusty both thought the cave was pretty cool:-)

It's just hard to beat a frog/slide combo for a good time;-)

Crazy lemurs!

As you can see, we all had a great time at the zoo. If you ever get to Kansas City, I very much recommend checking it out! And in case enough fun had not yet been had, Rusty then got his first experience with the great Chuck E Cheese (heaven help us all!)

Then it was back to the house for a quick "family" birthday celebration!

The end result of a VERY full day:-)

Man, I really need to expand my vocabulary to include "child labor laws"!!Who knew there were such great rides at the mall?

If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Right, Mimi??

So this is what a pool is! Fun:-)

Already an old pro.

A nice dinner out with Mimi and Papa to end a great trip!

You know, I'm tired after just posting the pictures. No wonder I've been such a slacker lately, I've been recovering from vacation! Hmmm....guilt just fading away:-) Hope you enjoyed the pics and I'll try to be more consistent about posting!

A Big Month for the Schnitz: Part II

2008-07-29T07:25:00.024-06:00

Ok, I am a slacker and almost forgot that anytime you label something "Part I" there needs to at least be a "Part II"!:-) Mea culpa! So, here goes:

The beginning of July saw us leaving for western Nebraska for not one, but two family reunions. The first was out at a privately owned lake a little ways outside of Scottsbluff and was just immediate family. It was really nice to see some of my aunts, uncles and cousins that I hadn't seen in a while and as you will see, Rusty had his share of fun as well!

We stayed at my Uncle Jerry and Aunt Marty's house which is right on a golf course. Due to the location, they also have a golf cart sitting in the garage. Oh my, was that ever a hit!

Of course, I also feel that I should mention that within a 1/2 hour of arriving at their house (in the evening, mind you), my Uncle Jerry had taught Rusty to 1) be a public nuisance-by honking the golf cart horn repeatedly and 2) to gamble on the slot machine in the basement! Do I need to say that they were both having a blast?:-)

Out at the lake, there was no end to the entertainment. Four wheelers, a swingset, and DIRT! Who knew that we were depriving our poor child by not having piles of dirt lying around for him to play in?

Obviously, cousin Braeden is taking this adventure far more seriously than the schnitz!

As you can see, his cousins, Jakson and Aubrie, were awfully good at enjoying swingset time with him. You'd think they were kind of fond of the shnitz, or something:-)

What do you mean I have to take a bath soon??

Ok, I'm ready for the game, now where are the other players??
Taking a break to hang out with Mimi.

While Rusty was busy having a big time, his mama was having a good time catching up with family and friends.

Me, Kristi and Andrea hanging out and relaxing a bit while the kids are occupied:-)
Me and Rusty with one of my very favorite people! This is my friend Dana. She and I met in kindergarten (stop counting how many years ago that was!) and have been friends ever since. I was so excited that she, her husband Corey and kiddos were able to meet us out at the lake for a visit. Aren't old friends just awesome?:-) Beautiful sunset to end the day. I love sunsets that aren't blocked by a bunch of buildings!

The day ended with fireworks...only appropriate on the 4th! They were set off from a raft out in the lake to minimize chance of fire and we all camped out on shore and enjoyed the view!

Aubrie, Ashton and Jakson seem to think they got pretty good seats for the show!

These fireworks are SO cool!

The next day we moved down the road a few miles to Bridgeport, NE for a larger family reunion that was basically all of my grandma's side of the family. Talk about people I hadn't seen in a long time! My highlight was probably getting to see my cousin Mysi. We're the same age and so have enjoyed growing up together. I hadn't seen her in several years and it was so fun to catch up! I found it rather entertaining that we both ended up in research fields. Granted, mine was pharmaceutical and her's marketing, but still some similarities there:-)

Me and Mysi taking a break from chatting to smile for the camera.

My generation of cousins. With a family our size you HAVE to separate the pictures this way to fit everyone in:-)

Rusty's not big on visiting just yet, but had a great time with Braeden and Jakson using some extra tables as a jungle gym:-)

Ok, Uncle Jason, the weekend's over...I've gotta go!:-)

One last hug from Daddy and Papa before hitting the road for Kansas City.

Weekly Recipe #2

2008-07-22T12:14:00.003-06:00

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin

Prep: 10 min., Bake: 25 min., Broil: 5 min., Stand: 10 min.
Go ahead and season the other tenderloin in the package with your favorite spice blend. Wrap and freeze to jump-start another meal.

1 (1-lb.) pork tenderloin
1 teaspoon steak seasoning **

3 bacon slices, cut in half crosswise

1. Preheat oven to 425°. Remove silver skin from pork tenderloin, leaving a thin layer of fat covering the pork. Sprinkle seasoning over pork. Wrap pork with bacon slices, and secure with wooden picks. Place pork on a lightly greased wire rack in an aluminum foil-lined roasting pan.

2. Bake at 425° for 25 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted into thickest portion registers 155°. Increase oven temperature to broil. Broil 5 inches from heat 3 to 5 minutes or until bacon is crisp. Remove from oven; cover pork with foil, and let stand 10 minutes or until thermometer registers 160°.

Note: For testing purposes only, we used McCormick Grill Mates Montreal Steak Seasoning. Yield: Makes 4 servings
Southern Living, APRIL 2008

This one is SUPER easy and SO incredibly good. Pick your veggie side....can't think of many that wouldn't be good with this one:-)

**I used Weber Chicago Steak Seasoning to make it safe for Rusty to eat

A contribution from my husband (who is starting his day with cartoons)

2008-07-22T07:21:00.003-06:00

"Weanies, shmeanies....Zimm needs no meat!!"

I swear it makes sense if you live in our house;-)

Who knew a doctors appointment could make me so happy??

2008-07-17T15:28:00.005-06:00

Ok, now for those of you who DON'T know the story of our past year, that title probably sounds just a little on the odd side. No worries, I'll explain. At schnitzel's 9 month well-baby appointment, his pediatrician was a little concerned that he wasn't gaining weight as quickly as she expected him to and advised me to "add more fat" to his diet in the form of cheese, yogurt, butter, etc. No problem, I did just that. Well, at his one year appointment, things kind of "hit the fan" as it were. He had only gained 10 oz since his 9 month visit and hadn't grown in length at all! He only weighed 15lb 15oz and was still 27 1/2 inches long. For my fellow mothers out there, you know that's not good and for the non-mothers, let's just say he had fallen off the bottom of the growth chart and you can imagine that's not exactly what doctors are hoping for!

So, blood tests were ordered and luckily they all came back normal except for slightly elevated eosonophils which normally indicate that some kind of allergic reaction is occurring. Since Brad and I both have seasonal allergies, this wasn't all that suprising.

At the same time, I had started giving him whole milk because that's what everyone says you're supposed to do when your kiddo turns one (and we all know what a rule-follower I am!) Well, very quickly he went from being an easy-going child who slept like a dream to a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde impersonator with incredibly erratic sleep. I almost lost my mind trying to figure out where all of THAT was coming from, but thought that maybe it was just that whole toddler thing coming into play.

Fast forward one month. One Friday night, I made the schnitz some creamed corn with sour cream for dinner. He ate two bites and wouldn't touch the rest of it. The next morning he woke up with some rash around his mouth and I just figured his skin must have been sensitive to something he'd gotten on it. I left shortly after that to drive to Scottsbluff (NE) for my grandfather's memorial service and didn't get home until around 9 that night. Brad told me at that point that Rusty's rash had been spreading throughout the day. The next morning, he had hives over most of his body and we took him straight to Urgent Care. The doctor there said that it looked like an allergic reaction, told us to give him Benadryl immediately and referred us to a pediatric allergist.

A week, a consultation with the allergist and one blood draw later, we received a call letting us know that he had come back positive as being allergic to wheat, eggs and dairy (so much for trying to get him to gain weight with the dairy products, huh?). Ok, a little on the shocking side, but a relief in an odd kind of way because at least now we knew what the problem was and could actually begin addressing it. Surely now life could calm down a bit, right?

Nope.

About two weeks later, Rusty started developing bruises all over his body for seemingly no reason. Now granted, kids that age get some bruises, it comes with that whole "discovery" phase, but this was going beyond the pale. Honestly, he looked like he was being beaten on a regular basis! So, back to the doctor. She took one look at him and got really concerned. This is definitely an argument for having a good relationship with your pediatrician because her first thought was not to blame me or Brad! In fact, I heard her on the phone with the specialist from the Childrens Hospital actually having to assure them that this wasn't an abuse case. Talk about a conversation I never thought would be connected to me!

Now our pediatrician's office is located at a hospital and so they finally decided to send him down to the lab to have some blood drawn and find out what was going on. A few hours later the results came in: extremely low blood platelet count. My heart stopped. And it didn't help when I went online and started seeing all of the possible causes of low blood platelets that included leukemia! We went back into the pediatrician's and were told that he had developed something called "idiopathic thrombocytopenia". In my opinion, there should be a rule that your child should never develop anything that hard to pronounce! Apparently, his immune system had been so hammered by the food allergies that he had contracted a virus that was destroying his platelets. His numbers were down to about 3,000 and they're supposed to be at least 30,000. They started him on steroids and said that it could take anywhere from 1-6 months for his levels to go back to normal. In the meantime, he had to have his blood drawn once a week to check on him. A LOT of fun, as you can imagine. Fortunately, he was actually back to normal within 2 weeks...praise GOD!

This gives you just a bit of an idea of the issues that we have been dealing with this year. Not to mention the fact that since the first allergy diagnosis he has also developed allergy issues with soy and beef. It's taken most of it to get a handle on what to feed him and how to protect him from getting food that he's not supposed to eat. Plus, the stress of knowing how much "catching up" he has had to do both in weight and height. I mean, the rapid growth generally happens when they're babies and a lot more stationary not while toddlers and in perpetual motion, you know what I mean?

Which brings me to the reason for my happiness today. Never mind the fact that this 2 year appointment involved the last vaccination until he's 5 which is a reason to be happy in and of itself! The biggest contributor to my happiness has to do with the measurements that they took!Take a look:

1 yr

Weight: 15lb 15oz

Length: 27 1/4"

2 yr

Weight: 22lb 4oz

Length: 34"

Woohoo!!! Six 1/2 pounds and 6 3/4 inches in basically 11 months...he's on the charts!! This may sound ridiculous, but I can't even begin to explain what a relief it is to go in for a well-baby check and have a well-baby! I'm SO looking forward to what I hope are now going to be years filled with good health and just the occasional "normal" childhood illnessess that are pronounceable and don't require specialists! I wouldn't wish stomach bugs or ear infections on my child for the world, but in comparison....they seem pretty manageable:-)

Thanks for bearing with me through this very long explanation for my overwhelming feelings of relief and happiness today. As a reward, here's a rather entertaining series of pictures taken last night when we were testing him to fill out his development questionnaire for today's appointment. (FYI: this particular task was to stack 7 blocks...as you can see, I was pretty comfortable checking this one off the list;-)

One more....

Yay...14 blocks...so cool!!!:-)

A Busy Month for the Schnitz: Part I

2008-07-16T14:50:00.001-06:00

Crazy times for the schnitz over the past month, but a lot of fun too! At the end of June we got a visit from his Granddad and Grandma Atwell. They got in on a Thursday and we left almost immediately to go camping up at Sylvan Lake. Yes, the same one I posted about earlier! As I said before, it is absolutely beautiful up there and we were excited to be able to share it.

This time, however, we got smart and rented a cabin for the night because, well, we're just that fond of creature comforts such as a bed and heat:-) It really does get crazy cold at almost 12000 feet, even on summer nights! Had a great time cooking steaks over the fire and making smores for dessert. When we got up the next day we had a GREAT breakfast and then went hiking. Apparently all of the fresh air can wear a critter out, as you'll see in the pics!

Isn't this a cute little cabin??

Bobby hanging out and enjoying the view.

Hanging out with Grandma while dinner is cooking.

Is this where I get to sleep tonight??

Ok daddy, it's morning, now LET'S GO!!

Well, maybe I could find time for a little oatmeal first:-)

Finally...the hiking begins!

And after all of that anticipation...someone didn't make it through the whole hike:-)

Well, the schnitz may have missed a large portion of the hike, but rest assured that the rest of us thoroughly enjoyed it! There's nothing like being out in God's creation to just kind of "reset" a person, you know?

Suffice it to say that this was a great start to a really nice weekend of visiting with Brad's parents. We always enjoy having them here and Rusty loves to spend time with them whenever possible! Hope you enjoyed the pictures! Stay tuned for the next installment of "A Busy Month for the Schnitz". As the name implies...sometimes one post just can't cover everything!:-)

Happy birthday, sweet boy!

2008-07-14T11:33:00.000-06:00

Two years ago today, our family was blessed with a wonderful little boy. It's unbelievable how quickly the past two years have passed! I had no idea before that day what being a mother would actually be like and could never have imagined the joy and love that it would bring.

July 14, 2006 - So tiny!!

He has had so many experiences over these past two years: been on a plane six times, driven to Dallas 3 times, visited several new cities (e.g., Dallas, Raleigh, Washington DC, New Orleans, Kansas City), the mountains and the beach. He loves to explore new places and seems to absolutely charm people everywhere we go. He loves them and they love him! We certainly have a little extrovert on our hands:-)

November 2006-Checking out the Air & Space Museum at Dulles Airport

January 2007 Mmmm...Cafe du Monde - New Orleans, LA. It's always good to experience the wonderful things life has to offer, right from the start!:-)

May 2007-1st outdoor concert in Raleigh, NC

June 2007-Estes Park, CO

July 14, 2007 In Dallas to celebrate his 1st birthday with the grandparents!

September 2007 - 1st camping trip to Sylvan Lake, CO

December 2007 - 1st trip to the beach! Myrtle Beach, SC

April 2008 - Hiking Castlewood Canyon - Franktown, CO

July 4, 2008 - Fun at the lake with the family - Scottsbluff, NE

July 7, 2008 - Exploring the Kansas City Zoo with his cousins - it was a hit!!

Sweet boy, you are such a blessing to our lives. You are growing up into a wonderful little boy and brighten our every day. The past two years have been full of new experiences that you enjoyed to the fullest and that helped us to do the same. You are full of energy, humor, and love and your daddy and mama love you more than we ever thought possible. Happy 2nd birthday!

Weekly Recipe #1

2008-07-09T15:40:00.001-06:00

Ok, I was inspired by my friend Summer's last post concerning grocery shopping and the periodic difficulty in deciding what to make for breakfast, lunch, dinner, you name it. So we are asking all of our bloggy friends to post one recipe per week on their site to give us all a little assistance! I mean, who doesn't appreciate a recipe already tested and tried by your friends??:-)

So, here's my first contribution, an old favorite from my grandma's cookbook. Hope you like it as much as we do!

Chicken Rice Casserole

2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/4 C finely minced onion
1/4 tsp thyme (dried)
2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 tsp parsley flakes
1 tsp celery flakes
2 2/3 C water
2 2/3 C Minute Rice
3 C cooked chicken
1/2 tsp paprika

Combine soup, onion and seasonings in a pan, mixing well. Gradually add water. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Pour 1/2 soup mixture in greased casserole dish. Making two layers, add rice and chicken. Top with the rest of the liquid. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes (covered). Stir, cover and cook 10 minutes longer. Sprinkle with paprika. May be made in microwave.

*I usually use one large can of chicken or leftovers from a grocery store roasted chicken. Makes GREAT leftovers:-)

Books I'm Reading.....

2008-06-28T21:26:00.000-06:00

Ok, seriously...how is it possible that some people don't like to read? I was just pondering this the other day and came up with no good answer. I mean, no matter what your interest...there's a book that fits. And you can take them almost anywhere; handy! Ah well, I probably won't ever get that one answered. But, since the topic of books and reading was one of a very few consistent thoughts floating through my mind today, I thought I'd share the three that I'm reading right now (why limit myself to just one, right??)

The first one is actually for a womens Bible study that I'm attending this summer. We wanted something a little less labor-intensive than what we do fall and spring semester, but this has actually turned out to be great! I actually am planning to use this with Rusty when he gets older because I think it's a fantastic way to learn the basic framework of the Bible that too often gets pushed to the side.

It does a great job of going through and explaining the purpose of the different books (eg, history, prophecy, poetry, etc), timelines, locations and the main individuals associated with each section. Amazing how much more sense some things are making and I've been in church since birth! Highly recommend this one.

And because I think it's just a good plan to always have some good fiction to delve into (especially in the summer!), I'm reading "Captain Blood" by Sabatini. If you like historical fiction at all, this guy is great! This one takes place in the 1600's during the time of King James the II beginning in England and moving on to Barbados. Very well written and fun!

And finally, a more serious book of a sociological bent that I really think is an important read, especially for anyone with sons or who works with kids on a regular basis. I tend to be of the belief that there's not a big problem with admitting that boys and girls are different. Actually, I think it works out really well because I tend to think that it's harder to get everything done and enjoy life when everyone is exactly the same. Mind you, I don't think girls are inferior in any way, shape or form, but once again, I'm not freaked out by noticing that there are differences. This book looks at the "girl crisis" that some very well-funded groups are focused on solving and how that crisis not only doesn't exist, but actually ignores the "boy crisis" that is going on (eg., higher dropout rates, less aptitude in reading/writing, etc). And worse than that, is the idea that boys are seen as bad (and not simply bad, but likely future batterers and rapists) and in need of reform, just because they're boys.

Apparently the way to deal with that is to simply raise them as girls. Ummm...what?? Here's a lovely tidbit from a conference as an example: "...one of the participating teachers boasted of her success in getting boys in her kindergarten class to dress up in skirts. Another proudly reported that she makes a point of informing boys that their action figures are really dolls."

Ok, it's late and I think it might be uncomfortable to actually camp out on my soapbox, so I will wrap this up now! If ya'll decide to read any of these books, let me know what you think!:-)

Parker Days

2008-06-27T21:04:00.000-06:00

As most of you know, we currently live in a town called Parker which is approximately 20 miles SE of Denver. It was incorporated back in 1981 and had about 260 people at that time. Now, 27 years later the population is closer to 45,000, but the town council has worked really hard to keep a "small town feel" with a lot of different town festivals and activities which are really pretty cool.

One of the town traditions that helps keep that "small town feeling" is an event held every June that is offically the "Parker Country Fair", but is actually called "Parker Days" by everyone...old habits die hard, I guess! It is a LOT of fun because it's a combination of carnival, fair, and non-stop concert events and it's held right in the middle of town just down the street from our house. Talk about convenient parking!

We had a great time this year. It started on Friday night when my friend Janice and I went to hear a U2 cover band and they were actually really good! Topped it off with a funnel cake. Friends, music and fried food...you know you just can't go wrong with that!

The next morning was the parade which, conveniently, takes place on a street approximately 30 seconds from our front door. We decided that Rusty would probably find it more entertaining this year than last and so we headed on over.

It's starting!

This is a replica of a church right down the street...so pretty!

Oh come on...a Republican donkey...I can't be the only one to get a kick out of this one;-)

The next day we walked down after church to take Rusty to the petting zoo. The baby animals were too cute:-) He gave a few goats and a llama hugs, but spent a lot of time watching the pony rides in the next pen. You know, the ones we DIDN'T pay for because we thought he'd like the petting zoo more. Can we say "grass is always greener"??;-)

And We're Off!!!

2008-06-14T14:01:00.001-06:00

Ok, as I'm sure you have all assumed, the schnitz has recovered since my last post and is now off and running FULL SPEED AHEAD once more! And fortunately, in spite of losing quite so much of the food he did manage to eat during that time and eating almost nothing the rest of the six days he was sick, he's been eating non-stop since and has gained back whatever weight he lost. This is a very relieved mama!

So, for just a sampling of the non-stop entertainment we've enjoyed since his recovery...here goes!

Ahhh...beans...the breakfast of champions. Oh and I'll take a cup of coffee, please!

Oh no...caffeine denied!

Cartoons with Daddy make up for the lack of coffee.

Man...I'm chilly...surely Mama will never miss her slippers (what do you MEAN I should put on some britches??)

Woohoo...Mama will NEVER find me in here!

Does Louie look a little less than relaxed to you?;-)

Our lives definitely go a mile a minute when the schnitz is healthy, but he is an awful lot of fun and I'll take the chaos (and exhaustion:-) over him being sick on the couch any day of the week!

The Face of Misery

2008-05-29T08:56:00.001-06:00

I have discovered that the only thing sadder than when I myself am sick, is watching my poor baby when he is sick. So crazy, Tuesday morning he was feeling SO good that he was an actual danger to himself just because of the way he was careening through the house. Woke up from his nap at about 3:30 that afternoon and seemed fine until about 15 minutes later when he proceeded to lose the contents of his stomach no less than 5 times before 6:00. Yikes! Took him up to urgent care because he doesn't have any weight to spare. Fortunately the doc gave us a script for phergan as it made it possible for him to keep down at least water yesterday. He didn't have a fever on Tuesday night, but by the time we took him in to see his actual pediatrician yesterday at 2:00, it was up to 101 and she diagnosed him with his first ear infection. In order to get him feeling better ASAP, she decided to give him the antibiotics via two shots instead of oral antibiotics which he just LOVED. So basically it seems that in a matter of 24 hours, he's managed to come down with a stomach virus AND ear infection! Doesn't that just seem like a bit much?

Needless to say, the day was spent on the couch yesterday alternating between sleeping on me and his pillow/blanket combo. Now, those of you who haven't spent time around him don't realize how bad this means he's feeling. My child has fallen asleep on me maybe 3 times in his life and never on the couch. He's definitely a "put me in my bed and let me sleep" kind of kid. Poor baby.

Here's hoping that today is better!

Memorial Day Fun at Red Rocks

2008-05-29T08:04:00.000-06:00

Ok, so I've had to readjust my thinking, since living here, that Memorial Day should be spent around a pool. For some reason, no matter what the weather conditions just before or after, Memorial Day is never pool weather.

No biggie...I'm nothing if not flexible, right?;-)

And so we move on to what I did do for Memorial Day. Actually pretty cool. I agreed to have lunch with my friend Ivi and her friend Kristen up in Morrison, CO. This is a small town that is located in the foothills overlooking Denver and the home of a place called Red Rocks Amphitheatre. Now, although I have lived here for what is rapidly approaching the 6 year mark, I had never actually been out to Red Rocks and Ivilina found this fact appalling. I guess I've hit some kind of statute of limitations in such matters;-) Needless to say, lunch wasn't the only thing on the agenda...I needed a proper introduction to an important part of the Denver landscape!

Little bit of history just because I think it's cool. Red Rocks is a huge outdoor amphitheatre that plays host to any number of events from concerts to outdoor movies to Easter Sunday services (during which it always snows and thus, your's truly, will likely never be able to verify this personally:-)

Sorry for the tangent...moving on...Red Rocks was actually one of the works projects completed during the Great Depression. It began as a private venture before the depression, but was finished after being sold to the city of Denver and having the labor provided by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and Work Projects Administration (WPA).

(Is it just me or are there an awful lot of amazing things that came out of the Great Depression...hmmmm....food for thought.)

According to what I've read, the theatre is bordered by two three hundred foot sandstone monoliths, has perfect acoustics and was once listed as one of the seven natural wonders of the world. Who knew?? I just know that it is really beautiful up there and I'm thinking that I'll have to go to an event out there at some point.

Hey Steph...if you ever make good on that vacation promise maybe we can catch one of the movies out there...fun!!!

And now some additional pics...just to fully share the day with all of you. Enjoy!

Now if this view doesn't make your heart happy...nothing will.

How cool is this??

Isn't it amazing when plants seem to be growing out of sheer rock?

Time to play catch-up!

2008-05-24T11:00:00.000-06:00

Ok, things have gotten a little on the crazy side over the last couple of weeks and so I've decided to do a "catch-up" post. That's allowed, right?:-)

Well, as some of you know, I have been helping out at my old office a couple of days a week this past month and will finish up by the end of June. So, on Tuesdays and Thursdays while I'm at the office, Rusty is spending time with my friend Janice and her two children, Ashleigh and Ethan. Rusty has a great time at their house, especially playing with Ashleigh, as you can tell from the pictures!

Hmmm...seems to have a thing for blondes;-)

Last week, my parents came into town and we had a great visit with them both. Rusty, of course, loves getting to spend time with his Mimi and Papa! Mom actually watched him while I was at work last Thursday and had a great time, according to all reports:-)

Mom's excuse for this visit, in addition to getting a "Rusty fix", was actually to attend a family baby shower on Saturday morning. We had a great time getting to visit with family for a couple of hours!

Aunt Colleen, me, Jackie, Brooklyn, Stephanie, Emma, Aunt Penny, Michelle, Mom, and Bailey

Saturday night we had our good friends, Chuck and Ivilina, over for dinner and feasted on grilled steaks, courtesy of my wonderful husband, potatoes, salad and key lime pie for dessert! Yum! Chuck and Ivilina just recently returned from a trip to visit her parents in Bulgaria followed by an eight-day driving tour of Greece. How fun would that be? They very kindly brought me the following gift from their travels and I absolutely love it!

It was such a nice evening. Good food, good company, and good conversation....doesn't get much better than that!

Happy and full...note the empty plates!:-)

The rest of our time lately has been spent being VERY thankful that the weather has finally gotten nice enough to spend a good amount of time outdoors. Rusty's days are awfully relaxing (in my honest opinion) and generally start off cuddling on the couch with his blankets, leisurely enjoying his oatmeal and then moves on to hours of playing at the park, in the backyard, or with his new "scooper truck", interrupted only for a two-hour afternoon siesta! What a life, huh?

Oh yeah...big stretch!

Car blanket & oatmeal..check..

The playground is ALWAYS a hit!

Who doesn't like a scooper

truck?

Sorry Mama...just have a few calls to make!

I'm sure he's just getting my flowerbed ready for planting;-)

And just because we thought these were too cute, I feel the need to show ya'll the shoes we picked up for the schnitz this afternoon. Aren't things just so cute when they're in miniature??

Well, there is my not so short version of the terribly exciting events in our lives over the last few weeks. I hope you found this novella absolutely stimulating and if not just remember...caffeine is a most wonderful thing!!

Seven Random Bits of Info

2008-05-12T14:27:00.000-06:00

Ok, my friend Steph posted her seven random things approximately a million years ago and tagged me to list seven random things about myself, so here goes:

1) Ok, let's start with the most random....the pinky nail on my left hand is crooked. Apparently, when I was about one, I wasn't always so good at doing what I was told and when my mom asked me to walk ahead of her through a door, I turned around and the tip of my pinky got snipped off in the door. No need for a lot of sympathy here (well, you should probably have some for my mom!), the doctor did a great job putting me back together and my memory doesn't extend back that far!:-)

2) I am completely incapable of answering the question, "where are you from?" without a five minute explanation. I'll put the shortest explanation here and see if any of you can help me out with a shorter response (map provided to help you follow along):

Born in Scottsbluff, (western) NE then left for Loveland, CO a few weeks later. Apparently, my parents had technically moved prior to me being born, but my mom didn't want to change doctors at the last minute.

Moved to San Jose, CA at 6 months, on to Henderson, CO at 1 1/2 years old and then back to Scottsbluff about 2 months later.

Moved from Scottsbluff to Mitchell, NE (just down the road) when I was five.

Moved from Mitchell to Herndon, VA at age eleven (beginning of sixth grade) and to Plano, TX at sixteen (middle of junior year).

Graduated from high school and left for Tech.

Stayed in Lubbock for two degrees/seven years then moved back to the Dallas area.

However, during those seven years, my parents had moved to Phoenix for one year and then to Richardson, TX.

Lived in Richardson for two years with my parents while finishing the 3rd degree (because I am a TOTAL glutton for punishment!) and then moved into an apartment across town. Stayed there for two years until I was thirty at which point I got married and moved to Denver....making a GIANT circle!

I'm sorry, is it just me or would that make it a difficult question for anyone to answer??:-)

3) I have something of an unnatural level of irritation revolving around the delivery of phone books. I'm sorry, but who uses an actual phone book anymore and why would anyone need one from every phone company in the area plus a local edition? Seriously, give me a choice to opt out on this one...I don't need anything else cluttering my house and even my environmental consciousness kicks in when I think of all of that wasted paper!

4) I absolutely LOVE to read, but have an almost equal loathing for writing. Thus the reason you should all be very impressed that I'm actually making an effort to keep up this blog:-) The most tormented times of my scholastic career were initiated by a teacher saying, "Take out a piece of paper and write a story". "A story about what??" "ANYTHING"!!!! Uggghhh. I am a total imagination parasite...just give me a book and test me on it...don't make me troll the wasteland which is my imagination:-)

5) The only thing I craved while I was pregnant was tomatoes. Any kind really. I would down a bag of cherry tomatoes in a day and a jar of salsa almost in a sitting. Crazy! Oddly enough, my child is a big, big fan of them too!

6) There are a couple of commercials that, without fail, make my head want to explode. The first are the Pepto commercials where they sing about a variety of bodily functions over and over and over and over. Ugghh....do they really think the entire population is made up of 13 year old boys? The other series of commercials that make me crazy are those new "Clearasil gives you confidence" ones. You know, the ones where they use Clearasil and apparently lose their zits AND all sense of socially appropriate boundaries?

Feel free to laugh at my rant about the commercials....Brad does frequently!:-)

7) My husband and I were just friends for nine years before we ever decided to date...even though everyone we knew said we would get married one day! What can I say, neither of us listen very well:-)

Ok, I'm tagging Janice and Andi...can't wait to see what you come up with!

You Gotta Love a Sense of Humor!

2008-05-04T14:01:00.000-06:00

Those of you who have spent more than about 5 minutes with me know that I love to laugh. I figure that most of life can be pretty much separated into "laugh or cry" and the former is SO much more fun! And while I like a good joke as much as anybody, one of my favorite reasons to laugh is the humor that can inevitably be found in everyday events.

Well, it seems that the schnitz has inherited this particular trait which I really love! He's been demonstrating it in a variety of ways over the past couple of weeks. And thanks to the wonder of internet access, now I can share them with you!

Vignette #1:
First to set the stage, you must know that my child has decided over the past several months that the FASTEST way to get my attention is to emit an ear-piercing shriek that truly, only dogs should be able to hear. My only bit of hope where this behavior is concerned comes from the fact that he is a boy and eventually will be unable to hit those high pitches! As you probably ascertained from my description of this shriek, this is not exactly my favorite behavior.

Well, one morning a couple of weeks ago (before the epiphany about the coffee maker when he was still waking up at 6 am), I was standing in the kitchen when he starts shrieking from the living room. Now, if we lived in a bigger house, this might have minimized the sound, however, we don't and the sound travelled just as well as he intended:-) Given that it was only about 6:45 and I hadn't finished my first, much less second cup of coffee, my ability to respond to just about anything was somewhat....shall we say, retarded? So I'm standing at the counter just staring at my screaming child thinking, "wow...that is SO annoying" and "hmmm...what am I actually going to DO about this?". While these thoughts were moving like sludge through my foggy brain, the schnitz stops screaming and starts staring back at me, probably wondering if I were all there (he's perceptive, that one!). All of a sudden, after about 30-45 seconds of our inadvertent stare-off we both started just cracking up, apparently simultaneously finding the stare-off more entertaining that whatever we had been occupied with before the whole episode began. A much more pleasant end to the situation than it could have been!

Vignette #2
Later that same day we made a trip to the grocery store. Since it was getting close to snack-attack time, I stashed a container of oatmeal in my purse. Sounds weird, but when your kiddo has multiple food allergies, the snacks tend to get increasingly odd:-) Well, we finished the shopping and were heading to the car when he decided that he was hungry and needed some oatmeal RIGHT NOW. I was wanting to get home and he's gotten really good with a spoon, so I decided to leave it up to him to take care of the oatmeal craving while I drove. About five minutes later, I pulled up to a red light and realized that he'd been really quiet for a while. I look in the rearview mirror and see him holding the spoon in his mouth, arm up and sticking out perpendicular to his body, totally just staring off into space. That was amusing enough, but he sat like that for probably another 30 seconds (long light!) while I'm thinking, "what does a 21 month old get lost in thought about anyway???" All of a sudden, he catches me looking at him in the mirror and just gets that look on his face that we all get when we've been caught and just cracks up! I think I ended up laughing as hard as he was!

Vignette #3:
This one tells me that I am in SO much trouble! This past Friday night, Rusty and I were hanging out after dinner, just playing until it was time for him to go to bed. We were in the kitchen playing with this Leap Pad barn toy that sticks to the refrigerator when I noticed that the back half of one of his animals was missing. Logically, I ask him, "Hey Rusty, where did the back half of your sheep go?". He looks at me and then gets down on his hands and knees and points under the refrigerator. So, being the trusting individual that I am, I lay flat on the floor to dutifully retrieve said sheep piece from under the refrigerator where my child has informed me that it resides. Yeah, about 1.2 seconds later, he TACKLES me and once again starts cracking up!!! He totally got me! The intentionality of this was confirmed when I saw that the piece was actually right behind where I'd been standing. He'd actually glanced at it right before he got down and pointed under the fridge. Ok, if he's able to pull things over on me this easily before he turns 2, I have a feeling that I am SO in for it!

I am firmly convinced that part of the reward for all of the diaper changes and lost sleep is the sheer entertainment value that kiddos bring to the table!:-)

Allergies are from the Devil!!!

2008-04-30T13:38:00.000-06:00

Ok, I am going to take this opportunity to just say that there is NO way that it can be fair that I live in what is essentially a desert and yet am THIS CLOSE to dying from the allergies that have so unfairly attacked me. I'm not usually a drama queen, but this is not a normal time. Ugggh...I can't breathe, see, stop coughing or think straight.

We won't even go into the fact that my poor child now not only has to deal with being allergic to wheat, eggs, dairy, soy (and possibly beef...good grief!), but he apparently was unable to escape the double-barrelled threat of having not one, but two parents afflicted with this stuff. So, you guessed it, he's sneezing, coughing and requiring 3,000 tissues just like we are! Poor critter.

Ya'll aren't going to believe this, but I'm so desperate at this point that I actually just guzzled luke-warm water with 1/2 tsp of cinnamon mixed in because I read somewhere online that it would help. Ummm....can you say GROSS? But, if it works I'll let you know! Who knows? I tried water with cucumber and lime for my swollen ankles when I was pregnant after reading about it online and that worked so maybe I'll get lucky again!:-)

Anybody have any other remedies that have worked? By all means...let me know! I have fantastic timing and have agreed to help my old office out 10 hours a week for the next month or two and I'm pretty sure they expect me to have some sort of cognitive functioning. Needless to say, that is an unrealized hope at the moment.

Just to leave you with something not quite so pathetic, here is a picture of the world's MOST patient cat. Sweet Nala actually stayed by my side all night even once my incessant coughing had driven my poor husband to the basement to sleep! Such a good kitty:-)

Cycles......

2008-04-25T14:41:00.000-06:00

I have found myself thinking about cycles this week and how often we are in the midst of them sometimes without even realizing it.

Case in point, for the longest time, I've been setting the coffee maker to come on at 6:00 am. The reason for this is that Rusty wakes up between 6-6:15 each morning and knowing that there is fresh, hot coffee waiting at the bottom of just one measly flight of stairs has been very beneficial to my mental health.

mmmm...coffee

Until this past Tuesday.

My husband, who I have deemed "Genius of the World" (no sarcasm intended!), got up a little bit earlier than usual for work. He noticed that the schnitz slept soundly while he was shaving and brushing his teeth, but he woke up almost immediately after the coffee maker gave off its 3 shrill "beeeeeps" announcing that it had finished its coffee-brewing duties. Who knew those beeps actually made that much noise?? So we decided to experiment on Wednesday and only turn the coffee on once we made it downstairs. Result...my child is now sleeping until 8 or 8:30 in the morning!!!!!! (Does anyone else hear strains of the "Hallelujah Chorus" playing????)

No wonder he'd had trouble transitioning to just one afternoon nap....I had inadvertently been waking him up 2-2 1/2 hours early!

Lesson: no coffee beeps at 6:00....child sleeps until 8:00...cycle broken!

And so on to another cycle I've been reading about that I thought ya'll would find interesting. I know I've never really thought about it in this way.

I've been attending a women's bible study at my church since last fall. This semester we studied the book of Ephesians which, as you know, includes instructions for husbands/wives in the sixth chapter.

In a nutshell: husbands love unconditionally, wives respect unconditionally.

As we talked about this particular portion of the chapter, what we focused on a great deal is that while everyone KNOWS that love should be unconditional in marriage (and even implying otherwise would cause some serious issues) our culture is skewed dramatically to the idea that respect must be earned. Hmmmm....

At the same time that I was working on the study lesson for Eph. 6, I also finished a novel I'd been reading and picked up a book that my in-laws gave us last Christmas called "Cracking the Communication Code: The Secret to Speaking Your Mate's Language" by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs. Oddly enough, his take on the marital relationship is basically taken directly from that same passage in Ephesians. He explains that men and women have inherently different needs for love and respect and this creates a cyclical relationship. Basically, when each need is met it creates a motivation to meet the other.

As he puts it, "His love motivates her respect->Her respect motivates his love".

Now that just makes sense to me. Then he went on to the part I'd found a bit more convicting in bible study. We are commanded by God to do these things whether our mate is doing his/her part at the time or not. We are to do so out of our love and obedience to Him and He blesses us for this obedience.

"His love blesses regardless of her respect->Her respect blesses regardless of his love".

Finally, here's the part that I think it is so easy to forget especially when I'm tired or just cranky in general. He states that we need to remember to see each other as goodwilled persons. We need to trust that even if things are said/done that are annoying or even hurtful, our spouse generally speaking, intends to do us good. I loved how he summed up this idea,

"When the tension rises...we need to remember when we first met and fell in love. We did not say, 'I hate you and you hate me, so let's get married.' The same person each of us met and married is still there, even though, at that moment, it doesn't seem that way."

I am so very fortunate to be married to my best friend in the entire world. He is a fantastic husband and father and truly a great guy. I am thankful for the reminders that God provides to always treat both my husband and our relationship as the amazing gifts that they are!

Obsessions del Shnitz

2008-04-21T09:00:00.001-06:00

Ok, I don't know about the rest of you, but pre-motherhood, I assumed that toy stores were full of toys because that is what children wanted to play with. No one told me that kids are actually incredibly random in terms of what they find interesting and that it is RARELY what I as an adult would think they'd like! Now....it is also entirely possible that my perception has been skewed by having a sample size of only one. I do remember learning in my research classes that results should not be based on such. So, I will state for the record that I recongize the possibility that my child may just be a little "unique":-)

That being said, here are the objects that the schnitz has found to be entirely captivating over the past week, month and some of them even the past year. If you have a child or children that have developed similar fascinations, by all means share and set my mind at ease!:-)

The Musically Talented Lion

First on the list, we have an actual toy. Woohoo! This is a more recent obsession, but has certainly been an entertaining one. This lion has a button on his paw that, when pushed, starts a recording of "In the Jungle". Much like Ross' monkey Marcel on "Friends" the schnitz has taken to playing this song over and over and over and over......you get the point. The really entertaining part is that he will pick up the lion, put it on whatever surface he deems appropriate, hit the paw and then back up and start dancing and snapping his fingers. Should I ever manage to actually get this performance on tape, rest assured that I will post it here for the sheer entertainment value! I made the mistake the other night of letting him take the lion to bed with him and was awakened the next morning at 6 by the sounds of "a-weem-ba-wep, a-weem-ba-wep" coming through the monitor. Now THAT was an interesting way to wake up!

The Phone

This was perhaps the first of the obsessions. I'm afraid that I'm just the tiniest bit responsible for this one. I can remember driving back from Dallas after Christmas when he was about 6 months old and the only thing that stopped him from screaming as we were heading into Amarillo for the night was repeatedly flipping open my cell phone. Apparently, that was his "gateway experience". Since that time he has been of the opinion that all phones exist to be enjoyed by the schnitz. This ranges from all cell phones to hotel phones (that are immediately unplugged upon entry due to our desire to avoid racking up bills equivalent to the national debt) to a payphone located all the way in the back of a convenience station when we stopped for gas. This child has more phones, play and otherwise, than a person could ever possibly need. And if a phone isn't immediately available, things like high chair straps and remote controls are held up to the ear and used for the same purpose. I finally got smart and started locking the keys on my phone after I realized in the middle of a mom's group meeting that he had called my sister!

There are times that he really makes me wonder exactly who he's talking to and what kind of business he's conducting on these phones. A while back I watched for about 10 minutes while he would alternate between picking up the phone, letting out a stream of "blah, blah, blah", placing it on the coffee table, walking to the fireplace hearth to sit for about 30 seconds and then back to pick up the phone. He did this probably 12 times until the last time he was "on the phone" he ended it with "k bye", put it down and walked off into the kitchen. Apparently the discussion was over!:-)

Kitchen Appliances

Now, I will preface this by saying that while I would really like to think that this particular obsession is an indication that my child will one day be a famous chef (or a least a TOTAL catch of a husband), I hesitate to put all of my eggs in this basket since he shares an equal obsession for vacuums and brooms (as will be demonstrated momentarily). So, chef or janitor, who's to say?? I have found myself actively regretting that I replace the metal pantry doors (well, not entirely, as they were very ugly and loud) with curtains because curtains are a very inadequate barrier to a persistent toddler. On any given day, the request (doesn't that sound so much nicer than "demand"?) is made for my mixer, crockpot, rice cooker, blender, the list goes on. A person walking into my house would be at an absolute loss to figure out what kind of crazy people live in a house where every appliance in the pantry is strewn about their living room. I mean really, what could POSSIBLY explain such a situation (please read with the heavy sarcasm intended here;-)? His latest trick is to set up the cup to the shake maker and put the ONE remaining beater to my hand mixer (I'm sure the other beater will be found when we move one day) into the cup. He then walks around the living room/dining room making "mixer" sounds that get louder the further away he gets from his contraption. The only thing we can figure is that he feels the mixer needs to be able to hear him to remember its job. I sit and ponder whether or not we could find a quieter mixer:-) And finally the second picture is what I walked in on a month or so ago when he decided that the crockpot was his appliance of choice.

Vacuum...le piece de resistance!

And finally we come to the obsession object that is looked for almost immediately upon awakening each day and that allows us to make a graceful exit when dropping him off at the church nursery. We have NO idea where this particular one came from and it applies to both real and toy vacuums. I purchased the above toy with the (unrealized) hopes and dreams that he would like it so much that he would shun the REAL vacuum cleaner and I would no longer have that particular obstacle in the middle of my living room floor each day. No such luck. However, it serves a purpose for now as all we have to do is point out the vacuum in the nursery and we become absolutely unneccesary. And my hope is that if I can JUST allow this vacuum fascination to go on for a few more years, I may be able to parcel out a certain household chore! Ok, ok, stop the collective laughter. A person has to cling to a certain amount of optimism! To support this minimal level of optimism, I leave you with the following video. His grasp on the appropriate use of the vacuum may be minimal, but at least it's a start!:-)

Songs and memories

2008-04-18T14:16:00.000-06:00

I read a friend's post the other day about how young she was when she began to recognize her love of this country and the things that influenced her personal politics. I too have a great love for this country and some pretty definite personal politics which got me to thinking about the first clear memory I have related to this topic.

I found this video of the opening ceremony for the Pope's speech at the White House earlier this week. It's of the Army Choir singing "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" and I think it is fantastic (disclaimer: I have been informed that this is not a popular song with those from the south, but my purpose of this post is not a north/south debate...promise:-) I have the most distinct memory of being not more than five or six, standing on a pew in my grandparents' church in Gering, Nebraska singing this song while standing next to my Uncle Les, dressed in his Marine dress blues. Even at that young age, I felt an incredible amount of pride to be a part of this country and to have my beloved uncle (you would love him too...he's awesome:-) be such an integral part of defending it. That same emotion gets stirred and honestly brings tears to my eyes every time I hear this song. It is a powerful reminder of how incredibly lucky we all are to live here. No matter what is going on politically, economically or otherwise, there is NOWHERE in the world I would rather be.

I only hope that as Rusty gets older, Brad and I are successful in teaching him what a truly great nation we live in, how very blessed we are to do so, and to be truly appreciative of all those who continue to defend it with their lives.

Pinky's Meme

2008-04-16T14:41:00.000-06:00

Pinky from Cheese in My Shoe tagged me with this meme.

The Rules:
1. Write your own six word memoir.
2. Post it on your blog and include a visual illustration if you want.
3. Link to the person that tagged you in your post and to the original post if possible so we can
track it as travels across the blogosphere.
4. Tag at least five more blogs with links.
5. Leave a comment on the tagged blogs with an invitation to play.

A cheerful heart is good medicine

I tag Janice, Amanda, Andi, Elisa, and Laura.

Have fun!

Karrie

Hope Springs Eternal!

2008-04-14T09:35:00.000-06:00

So, after the dismal weather showing of last week consisting of grey skies, cold temps and 8 inches of snow on Thursday, we finally got a break yesterday! I now have at least a glimmer of hope that Colorado will in fact indulge in spring and maybe even summer this year!

In celebration of this change in the weather, we went on a hike after church to an area called Castlewood Canyon with our friends Chuck and Ivilina. It's a beautiful spot and only about a 20-25 minute drive straight south from our house. Needless to say, it's one of our favorite spots.

Rusty loved the hike! There were dogs of every size and shape all along the trail and so we were treated with a continous stream of "dog" and "woof woof" as well as a lot of smiles. He was also fascinated with the boulders. I can't say as I blame him. I think they're pretty cool too!:-)

We had a great time and decided that we definitely need to take advantage of the scenery we're surrounded by here in Colorado by going on a lot more hikes this summer. We're also planning on another caming trip to Sylvan Lake. It's located about 20 or 30 minutes west of Vail (about a 2 1/2 hour drive from our house) and is one of the prettiest spots I've ever seen! We went over Labor Day weekend last year and loved it. The only downside is that by that time of year it got REALLY cold at night! So, this next trip will probably take place closer to the middle of summer and less likely to lead to potential hypothermia:-)

Here's a few pictures from last year's trip. Isn't it gorgeous??

Ahhh.....Colorado in the summer is much more up my alley than winter, can you tell? Kind of makes you want to come visit and go camping with us, now doesn't it?:-)

Random tidbits from the last few days

2008-04-11T13:09:00.000-06:00

Just to give a bit of insight into the interesting goings-on around our house...

Last week, Brad took Louie and Nala to the vet for their annual visit. Upon returning home he left the cat carrier in the front hallway. Mere moments later, we walk into the front hallway to see this:

I was a little bit concerned that someone might come over and think that we considered this an appropriate "time-out" spot! He's actually done this a number of times since then, so apparently the allure is strong. At one point while he was in the carrier, Louie walked over and just looked in as though he couldn't quite figure out how this situation made any sense at all! I had to laugh a few mornings later as I watched him crawl in with his toy vacuum in tow; I guess he decided it was time to tidy up?

And speaking of vacuums....this is one of his all-time obsessions. (Not that I anticipate this particular obsession will last long enough to be helpful in keeping house.) Three days ago I bought a new mop since a good portion of our house is now either tile or laminate. I haven't actually gotten to use it yet because the schnitz has decided it's the best thing since sliced bread and plays with it for HOURS on end. He even took a nap with the top portion because he wouldn't relinquish it and I'm a loyal member of the "pick your battles" club:-) Here's a sample of his sublime happiness with this newest gadget:

In the meantime, the cats have chosen a new "favorite napping spot". This is an ongoing project as I've been trying to get the back of our basement organized and with each bit of progress for me, another of their niches disappears. I'm hoping that this chosen spot doesn't mean that they want to be shipped out because they're tired of living with us and their new human who continues to insist on giving them hugs!

And finally, while in my mind it is only appropriate that spring in April should look like this:This is what we were ACTUALLY looking at all day yesterday:

My prayer is simply that "real" spring will show up soon:-)

Making a start....

2008-04-11T08:33:00.000-06:00

Ok, so after many, many months of enjoying the blog postings of almost everyone I know and simultaneously feeling REALLY guilty about my deficiencies in keeping in touch with many of those same people, I have decided to jump into the world of blogging myself.

I will offer a caveat in advance. I am not the world's best at these sort of endeavors. Case in point, my poor child's photo album is completely empty (although the computer has hundreds of pics just waiting to actually be printed) and his baby book is only partially filled out. Heaven help any other kiddos we have! They'll be able to join the CIA and with no fear of anyone learning about their past:-)

A note about the title of this blog. My husband and I got married in September of 2002. At the time, he lived in Colorado and I lived in Texas. Due to the fact that we are not celebrities, a commuter marriage was out of the question and I moved to Colorado. Four months later, we bought our house and decided that it would be incomplete without a kitty cat and promptly started our search. We found our new family members at a shelter in NW Denver. They were about 7 months old at the time, a brother and sister from the same litter. Although the shelter had named them Ricky and Lucy, we renamed them Louie and Nala. Louie after King Louie of "Jungle Book" fame because we are convinced that he too actually wants to be a human (with the schedule of a cat, of course!). Nala's name came from "The Lion King" after we watched the scene where she thoroughly trounced Simba. While Nala is still literally half of her brother's weight, she can take him down in a heartbeat and seems to have periodic urges to "thin the herd" just a bit!

Moving on, we have discovered in the past 5 years that orange cats must have some gene that makes them, well, unique. They are completely crazy and have provided us with entertainment that we've always said was better than cable! However, we have also discovered that Louie is basically a perpetual toddler with all of the behaviors that go along with that, thus managing to babyproof our house FAR in advance of Rusty's arrival by breaking everything of monetary or sentimental value. He doesn't listen when you tell him no and even found our attempts at "disciplining" him with a water bottle to be "one of the best games, ever!!". Nala is almost a polar opposite. She follows the same schedule every day, absolutely HATES to even be scolded, and is the most graceful cat you've ever seen. I'd be willing to put money on her in a china shop while Louie would rack up a LARGE credit card balance in a matter of minutes!

Needless to say, when we found out we were expecting our first child, I started praying that God would give us a child with Nala's personality and not Louie's!! What I got was a kiddo with Nala's willingness to follow a schedule, but a much greater interest in Louie's method of exploring the world. Heaven help us all:-)

As to the "schnitz" moniker....while I was pregnant, my husband, who is quite the creative one, started calling the baby "schnitzel" and I'm afraid that it has stuck. As time has gone by, it has morphed into a more regular "shnitz" when addressing him directly or "the schnitz" when he's being talked about. My mother has expressed regular concern that he is going to be unable to recognize his actual name and may be mocked by others in the future for this. Don't worry, we took her concerns seriously and are in the process of setting up a therapy fund for him:-)

Although, I wondered what it would be like when I left the world of pharmaceutical research to be a stay at home mom, thanks to the three of them, my days are actually filled with a pretty regular stream of entertainment which I will hopefully be faithful at sharing with all of you!

Thanks for taking a look at my first attempt and I promise to do my very best to make it worth your while to come back!