LIFE BLOG - JANUARY 2008
01.31.08 | 1 2 3 4, I DECLARE A THUMB WAR
Bryni and my dad had quite a few thumb wars during my parents' recent visit. By this photo you would think that my dad would have had a decided advantage, but Bryni pulled off quite a few victories. ;)
It's fun for me to watch them having fun together.
01.29.08 | I WANT TO REMEMBER...
...that, when she was five, Ani called her favorite lunch, "Peanut Jelly And Sandwiches."
Today's agenda: laundry, freelance work phone calls, laundry, lunch with my two five-year-olds (see above), more laundry, two freelance meetings, even more laundry (seriously, do you feel sorry for me yet?), more freelance work, violin lesson with seven-year-old, dinner, dishes, try to finish the blankety-blank laundry, maybe a few stolen moments to craft and then, at last, blessed life-giving sleeeeeeeep.
01.27.08 | FROM THE FILES: SONJA'S EYES (JULY 2005)
01.26.08 | A PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECT: PHONE BOOTHS
I plan to make this an ongoing project: photographing unusual phone booths as I find them in my travels. It seems to me that the phone booth may soon be a thing of the past as more and more of us acquire cell phones. So I plan to capture some of the cooler phone booths before they're gone forever.
The phone booth on the left is in Olympic National Park near the Hoh Rain Forest. The top was covered with a gorgeous cornucopia of mosses.
The phone booth on the right is built into the outside wall of Wall Drug in South Dakota. Wall Drug was historically a westward travelers' oasis, one of its biggest attractions being “Free Ice Water.”
01.24.08 | AN ARTIST AT WORK
Our little Bryni loves to create. To color, to cut, to sketch, to sing, to dance, to express. An artist indeed.
01.23.08 | WINTER WHITE
The sun shone brilliantly on these new fluffy flakes this morning. A wonderful reward for venturing out into the icy cold.
This photo is my contribution to Winter White Week over at The Glass Doorknob. What a fun way to celebrate the stark beauty of the season.
01.21.08 | ANOTHER WINTER WEEKEND IN HELENA
My parents came over from Kalispell this weekend, and we had a great time with them, hanging out in wintry Helena. On Saturday, we went downtown and enjoyed walking around a bit.
It started snowing on Saturday evening and didn't let up for more than twenty-four hours, so my parents stayed put and we declared Sunday a snow day. The kids braved the elements and worked on building a snow fort while the grown-ups stayed inside and enjoyed playoff football, homemade hot chocolate and some chili for dinner. It was very nice.
01.17.08 | MORE FROM OUR SATURDAY HIKE
The big sky.
Taken from the mouth of the cave.
“Expelliarmus!”
A self-portrait.
01.15.08 | ONE OF THE MANY REASONS I LOVE HIM
He likes to be my sous chef. (Not like I'm actually a chef or anything.) But he likes to chop stuff so I can do the fun part of cooking. Also, he puts up with my special brand of crazy year after year, which is really nice of him.
While sitting back watching him in a comfortable reclined position, I saw what so many artists before me have seen — food is beautiful.
We had some friends over for dinner. We made homemade pizza...
...and these for dessert.
And we played Canasta and started a band. Right Matt?
01.14.08 | A HIKE TO A CAVE
On Saturday, we took a hike up Mount Helena to Devil's Kitchen Cave. The girls are such great hikers now, and it was lovely to get out in the mild weather and enjoy the views of Helena and the surrounding mountains.
A good-lookin' bunch. (Notice the girls' technical hiking footwear, a.k.a. Mary Janes from Target.)
Our fair city.
Devil's Kitchen Cave on Mount Helena. Isn't it scary? The girls love it there. They brandished sticks as wands and channeled Hermione, casting spells in every direction. “Wingardium Leviosa!”
01.11.08 | A CONVERSATION
Bryni (very excited): Momma, I think I invented two new numbers!
Me: Really? What are they?
Bryni: 101 and 150!
Me: Wow, those are really great numbers Bryn, but I actually HAVE heard of them before.
Bryni (incredulous): What?
Ani: What about 129?
Me: Yup, I've heard of that one too. Guys, most numbers have been thought of already. It's going to be pretty hard to invent a new number.
Bryni: 498?
Me: Nope. Not a new one.
Ani: 935?
Me: Sadly, no.
01.10.08 | JUST A WALK
Just a little walk up along the trail and back down through the neighborhood. We enjoyed the sunshine and the view and just being together.
01.09.08 | HAND IN HAND
My daughter and I hand in hand. Subconsciously giving and getting affection. Me checking email. Her watching cartoons. An everyday morning moment at our house.
01.08.08 | MORE THAN A FEW RESOLUTIONS
Things I will do in 2008, no matter what:
- Turn 35 years old. (There will be no midlife crisis, I can almost guarantee it.)
- See my youngest daughters off to their first day of Kindergarten. (Now, THAT will be a crisis, I guarantee it.)
- Celebrate 12 years of marriage. Almost all of which have been deliriously happy.
Things I really need to do in 2008:
- Work out 3-4 times a week. Hmmm...a worthy goal. Entirely attainable in theory.
- Get more sleep.
- Eat less after 8 p.m.
- Get more whole foods into my diet. Fruits and veggies and such. Oh, and fewer Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. After 8 p.m.
Things I really want to do in 2008:
- Bake more often.
- Use the crockpot a lot more often.
- Blog, blog, blog and blog some more.
- Sew, knit and crochet as much as possible.
- Get a "real" job. At which I will actually "earn money." (This will definitely cut down on the sewing, knitting and crocheting. Darned pesky job.)
- Buy a house.
- Make my first quilt.
- Make my first granny square blanket.
- Sell something in a craft fair, even if it's just one pair of knitted baby booties.
- Make more friends.
- Start writing my novel. (According to Eric, my novel will be a guaranteed best-seller. He's crazy. Crazy sweet.)
- Take lots and lots and lots of photographs.
- Print and display more of said photographs.
- Continue to make my home a warm, cozy place in which my family can rest, play, work and love.
01.06.08 | MY FUNNY GIRLS
I took this funny picture of the twins recently, while on a freelance assignment. We were visiting a couple who has a comedy duo called “Two Funny.” They are this amazing husband and wife who were so kind and welcoming to us. As we left, Ani said, “Well, I guess they’re my friends now — and they’re grown-ups!”
We had so much fun that day visiting and interviewing Dan and Stevie. I’ve grown to enjoy taking the girls on assignments with me. They never think they’re going to like it, but we always seem to have a good time.
In related news, I’m grieving today the fact that my little girls will be starting Kindergarten in less than nine months. Now that 2008 has arrived, that reality is hitting me hard. I need to start looking for a job, but I can’t help feeling like, “Wait! I already have a job. These girls ARE my job.”
But of course, next year they will be at school all day, and Eric and I are a little at odds about the extent to which that will change things in our daily lives. To him, I’m just a mindless, soulless money-making machine. (I’m kidding, he’s watching over my shoulder right now.)
In truth, neither of us knows what life will be like this time next year. We’ll have to wait and see. In the meantime, I will cherish the last few months I have at home with my silly, sweet, beautiful little girls.
01.03.08 | WATER BABY
We had so much fun in the pool at our stop in Chamberlain, South Dakota. Bryni jumped into the pool a bunch of times, and Sonja learned to do a full-out cannonball! The girls are all getting more and more comfortable in the water. It’s a joy to watch.
01.02.08 | MORE FROM THE MIDWEST
In the Midwest they really go all out at their rest stops. This giant concrete teepee was in South Dakota.
This was a rest stop in Iowa. So fancy. In Montana a rest stop is pretty much just a place to pee. Seriously.
The Corn Palace in all its glory.
The famous Wall Drug located at the center of the universe.
The girls leaving milk and cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve.
They had sooooooo much fun with their cousins. As we were packing up, Ani cried, "How are we going to say good-bye?" So sad.
01.01.08 | HOME AGAIN, HOME AGAIN
When you leave Montana, it’s easy to forget what the Big Sky is really like. When you return to Montana, it’s impossible to ignore.
It’s great to be home again after a wonderful trip to Iowa to visit Eric’s sister and her family for Christmas. During our journey, we enjoyed an excursion to the Mall of America, spent time with the girls’ great-great-Aunt Gen in Minneapolis and hunkered down for a day during a beautiful Iowa snowstorm. On the way home, we drove past the South Dakota Badlands and stopped in at the iconic Corn Palace and the awesomely kitschy Wall Drug.
We were so thankful to have great roads for most of the trip. The girls were wonderful in the car, enduring several 10-plus-hour days. They kept busy playing with new Christmas toys, reading, coloring, eating and watching movies.
Since we’ve gotten home, it’s been all-Webkinz-all-the-time at our house. The girls love their new toys and we have all enjoyed settling back into our cozy home.
Happy New Year!
