Category: Uncategorized (Page 121 of 212)

This little break from work is a time for getting things done! DIY presents: done! Laundry: done! And dinner of little hand pies with beef and potato filling: done by 11 am!

Monday and Tuesday I trekked up the mountains once again to begin the school musical.  We held an information meeting and dance workshop Monday.  Today we auditioned 34 kids – each with dancing, singing, and acting; then cut it down to a callback list for Thursday.

I sadly had to return to Denver, back to life and nursing.  I get so excited to do the musical every year.  I really love teaching the kids to dance, and it’s nice that the director does not care about my lack of credentials.

This year Amanda’s assistant volunteered to do a behind-the-scenes film series.  He’s serious about it!  Look what he’s already posted about the first day.

I should cast the little 2.5 foot guy, right? Good moves on that one 😉 This will be so fun to have movies I can share with you.  Of course, that means subjecting you to my ever-increasing jiggliness.  Seriously, what do I call a post-partum pouch that is now 18 months post-partum?

And if this prompts the same question as Ben (“What are you wearing??”), teachers use one legwarmer to make it easier for kids to differentiate legs.

My shellac nails were immaculate for 14 days as promised. This chip on my index appeared tonight after:
6 shifts at work
2 candy making sessions
3 Jack baths
Cooking and scrubbing up after a full turkey dinner on Sunday
Plus normal wear and tear
Color me impressed!

Remember way back when I used to post photo-heavy blog entries of Jack every month?  And then he turned The Big One Year and I stopped doing it?  Well guess what.  It’s been six months already!

While I was desperately trying to get a fistula to work this morning (end of story: I failed) Ben took up the old Nikon to take some adorable portraits of our buddy.  Our dude.  Our little guy. 

With his haystack hair

 And buck-toothed devilish grins

Strutting around the house like he owns it.  He not only walks, he runs and dances too. He can go down the slide by himself and climb up on the chairs to sit at the table (or on the table, if he can get away with it).

Killer abs 😉

So many teeth!  He is getting the first of his canines now.  I’ll be glad when that’s over.

He’s a total charmer.  He signs really well and is adding some small words.  He can say “teh tah” to ask for the Turtle song.  He likes Itsy Bitsy Spider and Monkeys Jumping on the Bed too.  He picked up the choreography to each song right away. 

He’s curious and gung-ho.  We have many head bumps and scrapes and tumbles from his adventures. 

This is a paltry description of the many wonderful things Jack can do and is learning every day.  It’s incredible how he absorbs everything.  I’ll give up trying to summarize it here.  Every new age is my favorite age.  I miss my baby, but I love my toddler even more.

PS: Here is Jack one year ago.  Mind = Blown.

It doesn't feel like Thanksgiving without my grandmother's buttery rolls. Here's a photo of her making them today, sent from my dad.

It's off to work I go!

I should be done by dinner. Please please stay quiet, stupid pager.

Yay!  I’m done with my scheduled shifts this week.  I only have to be on-call on Turkey Day and I’m low on the tree (so finger crossed no calls!).  Then I have three glorious days off.  The Grandparents Mason are here giving Jack almost non-stop giggles.  There’s a cheese log in my fridge.  What could be better?

I’m unwinding with Newsies mash-ups.  You know I love me some Newsies.  I have my ticket from the original release almost 20 years ago.  (Whoa.  I am getting old.)  I would LOVE to see the new musical in New York.  I hope there’s a performance on the Thanksgiving Parade tomorrow.

Oh, what’s that?  You want to see the mash-ups too?  Let’s do it, ah-break it dowwwn!  (Love me some DJ Lance too.)

I just watched 14 of those.

There’s a solo of Christian Bale dancing to Santa Fe too.   I kid you not: I memorized this as a pre-teen.  I think this works amazingly well with Gaga.

This was fun to make!  I might have missed some childhood drive-throughs.  Surely a girl born in Maryland has been to more small eastern states?

(Map has been updated with new info from my fam: increased from 54% to 70%)
visited 35 states (70%)
Create your own visited map of The United States

My world map isn’t as impressive.

Visited 14 states (6.22%)
Create your own visited map of The World

I’d love to see the maps from the impressive travelers in my family – like the one carousing in Paris right now.