walkabout

Avery's learning all sorts of new tricks. i hope she's not trying to beat Madeline's walking record of 8 months, i want her to stay a baby for a while longer.

just look at this face

guess who had a lollipop today?

oh no!

so, it's been almost a year since we ended our subscription to Dish Network. right after we got rid of it, Jason and i were like dvd junkies. but since the initial shock, we'll go weeks and months without turning on the tv, and then rent a season of 24 and watch episode after episode every night for a week or two. of course we wait 'til the kids are asleep. except for this one saturday, Anna woke up from a nap like 10 minutes before this episode was over. she was coloring in the other room, so we just finished watching. then today, we were outside playing with the neighbors. some of the boys had water guns. i'm tying Maddie's shoes when i hear, "put your hands on your head! i'm a federal agent!!!!!!!" this was said by Anna in a very authoritative voice. when i turned around (slowly, with my hands on my head) she repeated, "i'm a federal agent!" i guess coloring wasn't as all consuming as we had figured. later that week, she asked my uncle, "Uncle Jack? do you know Jack Bauer?" we'll be making sure the kids are sound asleep before we rent Season 7.

on a side note - my brother and i were just talking about how we could never understand why our mom didn't want us pointing toy guns at people when we were kids. i mean of course i get it now, but it is a little ridiculous to give a toy gun to a kid and expect they'll never aim it at a person. they are kids after all.

ostrich festival

so, everytime we go to a Chandler library i see statues of ostriches. then, i read about the Chandler Ostrich Festival celebrating Chandler's rich ostrich heritage. i thought, "what is that about?" so, we attended the festival, watched ostriches and pigs race, petted animals at the petting zoo, glimpsed a demolition derby and generally had some family fun. but, i still don't understand the Chandler/ostrich relationship. great festival though!

bathtime with Avery

i'm a sane woman. so, i choose to bathe my baby when the other girls are occupied. usually at Home Depot with their dad. the downside is, ther'e no one to take our picture. i love these moments with my babies, when they're all bundled up in my arms after a bath. squeaky clean and finding her thumb. she is seriously such a little love.

down on the farm

after many years of wanting to plant a garden, and a serious fear of my black thumb, i bit the bullet. i planted tomatoes, red bell peppers, summer and winter squash, carrots, sweet corn, and watermelon. i wanted to be cautiously optimistic about the results, but now i find myself dreaming of eating quite literally, the fruits of my labors. i'll be sure to report our harvest results.

good eats

guess who had her first taste of solids?

mmmmmm, rice cereal!

it's dancey-dance time!

Anna had her second dance recital tonight. (this is Ann'a new "my mom's taking a picture of me face.) it was so fun to see her perform something she's been working on for so many weeks. she was prepared and proud as she got in line and readied herself for the performance. Maddie was ever the proud sister. we cheered and celebrated with ice cream! what a fun night.

happy birthday to Grandma and me

as you may, or may not know, i am lucky enough to share my birthday with my mom. and even luckier, i was able to spend it with her this year. my parents came to town for Maddie's birthday, and stayed for mine. we went up to my old neighborhood of Verrado, to check out some houses. perhaps i can entice them to move my way? it was a beautiful day and the girls had so much fun playing at a few of the 40 parks you can find there. it was sort of a weird thing watching Anna play at the parks where i used to take her before she was old enough to really use the equipment. at that time, i sort of thought this was where she'd grow up, but things have worked out so much the better.

when we came home, my mom and dad watched the girls while Jason took me out for dinner and a movie. we hit up Pei Wei rather that PF Changs so we could see Confessions of a Shopaholic. it was fun. i love Isla Fisher and thought she was a great Becky Brandon (nei Bloomwood), but since i've read all the books i was a little disappointed to have it set in NYC. i just love London, and would have enjoyed the film a little more had it been in England. then Jason unveiled my gift. now, it seems a little weird but this was one of the best gifts ever, the dvd of Get Smart the movie. seems weird, but i never got to see it in the theater and he knew i wanted to, and remembered. now that is the key to a great gift - remembering something random. i loved it, (and the movie was cute too!) he's also learned from past gift giving that a massage gets results. so, he booked me one of those and i feel like a new woman again. great birthday!!!!!!