The Sturm Family

Colin in Cabo

2010-11-09T09:40:00.000-08:00

Colin’s Cabo Top 11

2010-11-09T09:38:00.001-08:00

Mexico from Colin's point of view, with commentary from Mom and Dad

"Lizards and Guacamole!" : Two resort dweller iguanas stalked Dad's guacamole while he watched Colin go down the waterslide. The biggest iguana raced over and nabbed a big chunk of avocado, getting it stuck in his frill and then wiped it off on the plate. Colin saw all of this happen and laughed uproariously!
Making "Bar Friends": Colin made friends all around the resort who knew his name. Funny thing about being one of the only kids at the resort. (See #9)
Spanish: Colin learned "Me llamo Colin" and "Un momento por favor!"
Pool Buddies: Colin made friends with San Francisco brother Jack and Thomas and discovered new action figures like Sand Man, Star Wars droids, The Incredible Hulk, and Iron Man. He also had fun with Indiana twins Charlie and Max.
Discovering New Drinks: The Spiderman is a yummy strawberry smoothie with chocolate syrup poured on, thus resembling Spiderman.
Sea Gull Stalker: He watched as a seagull stalked Luke's uneaten pizza at the side of the pool. This big bird flew in for the robbery and then flew away with the pizza in his beak. Here's a comment direct from Colin's soul, not directed at anyone,"Oh, I wish I could fly!"
Picture Recap: Looking at pictures with mommy taken the night before by the resort staff: "Luke's crying in all of the pictures. He's cried everyday in Mexico." True, unfortunately.
Toy Story Diving Adventures: Playing with dive sticks and going down after them is so much fun, especially when the sticks are Buzz, Woody, and the alien.
Waterslide Adventures: Racing down the waterslide while onlookers and fellow slide participants cheered him on was super fun. He relished the attention, though unaware that many of the onlookers had been partaking of the bar for a majority of the afternoon and many were getting pretty giddy!
Crash!: A full week of pool play 8 hours a day took its toll. The last full day there he crashed for a self imposed mid-afternoon nap while the surf and sand lingered outside, begging him for just one more outing to the pool.
Buzz Lighty: Lastly, we can't forget Colin's creativity early one morning while the rest of us slept. He was so proud that he had stripped to his skivvies and had colored Buzz Lightyear's costume onto his body using his markers. He even wrote Buzz's name on his left wrist. He was so proud of himself that we just had to laugh!

Colin's First Day of School

2010-10-22T11:07:00.001-07:00

Colin had a good first day of school and enjoyed being back in Miss Christina's class. Some of the students were the same from last year, along with a few new faces.

He continues to ride the bus both too and from school, which works really well for our family. His morning bus driver comes roaring up our hill earlier than we are scheduled for, so most mornings are a mad dash to get out the door and down the street in time. His afternoon bus is like a preschool party with him and his friends laughing, singing songs, and about as wound up as one could imagine. God bless that school bus driver -- literally!

Visit from Texas Grandma

2010-10-22T10:57:00.000-07:00

After our visit to Colorado we had a visit from my mom, and the boys had fun hanging out with her. Colin, in particular, enjoyed taking her to Toy Story 3. Dare I share that my mom hadn't been to a movie in the theatre since Jerry Maguire, which was in 1996. Ehmh, it had been a while, and that was back when Tom Cruise was still an enjoyable actor to watch (before the whole Oprah couch jumping incident, etc.).....but I digress!

Anyhow, Colin enjoyed his third watching of Toy Story 3 and we have had many a recap of the garbage truck incidents and discussions about Lotso Bear not having a happy heart.

We are glad you came to visit us, Grandma!

Back from the Dark

2010-10-22T10:52:00.000-07:00

Shortly after my last post our home computer was having serious issues. We nursed it back to health so that we could recover files and some of the programs, but with no connection to the internet.

We were fortunate that I had Matt's iPad for use for email and other social connecting, but their Blogger ap is only as good as you know how to use it, and with no access to my pictures to post, what was the point, right?

Well I am happy to say I am back in business thanks to the help of my brother and I am lovin' my new "toy!" I've still been a little slow to catch up, as that's just life when you have sick children.

But, in the interest of wearing my "family curator hat," I hope to catch up on some of the big events of the past almost 2 months.

Odds and Ends from CO

2010-09-02T22:25:00.001-07:00

Star Wars Holy Grail

2010-09-02T22:01:00.000-07:00

Colin discovered Darth Vader and Storm Troopers at a recent parade where several of the characters marched in the procession. He was delighted to hear of Daddy's stash of related toys and begged PaPa to get them out of the garage. I had heard of this stash for over a dozen years, and now I got to meet his childhood love!

This later turned into the need for a Skype call with Daddy to identify all of the spaceships and characters, and Colin was then hard pressed to the leave the house because he had located the Star Wars Holy Grail of toys. Ebay folks would pay big bucks for these originals in great condition, but our 4 year old just played gleefully with them and began asking lots of questions about when his Daddy was growing up (thinking, "hey, my Dad really WAS cool!")

Colin is showing off Dad's speeder bike, which is just like the one he bought a friend for a birthday party. That manufacturer in China has gotten a lot of mileage out of that mold!

Following in Dad's Tippy Toes

2010-09-02T21:53:00.000-07:00

Luke was not sure about the grass when we were in Colorado. When I sat him in the yard he got up in a push up position and kept his knees off of that spikey green-stuff (though he was happy to sample it with his mouth!) Apparently this is exactly how Matt acted in the yard at this age. I don't recall Colin being this way, but he was never a crawler when the weather would have been warm enough to have sat him down in the yard. And I think our grass is less spikey here in the PNW (much softer, probably from being drenched by the rain much of the year! )

Feeding PaPa's Blue Gills

2010-09-02T21:30:00.001-07:00

The pond in PaPa's yard is home to 5 larger blue gills who are so domesticated that they come begging for food each evening during the nightly ritual of "the night crawler, hand-fed, all-you-can-eat buffet!" They're PaPa's pets! Colin enjoyed this evening ritual, though he wasn't too sure about the slimy nature of the worms and eventually just sat with PaPa each evening and watched. Such sweet photos of the two of them together at the water!

Since our return home he has talked a lot about those blue gills!

Colin isn't too sure about grabbing on to the slimy night crawler. In the water below, the fish patiently wait!

I just love the gleam of the sun off of the water and through the sky. It was a gorgeous evening!

Butterfly Pavillion

2010-09-02T21:16:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed a visit to the Butterfly Pavillion. Colin was so excited to see the large praying mantis (termantis, as he called it) in front of the building, as he remembered it from last year. It had moved locations, which he quickly noted. It may become a tradition to have a photo with this "guy" over the coming years.

2009

2010

The butterflies were a delight, as usual, and several landed on Luke's stroller, which he was unaware of. He was more interested in grabbing the ferns.

Travel Visit to Colorado

2010-09-02T20:51:00.000-07:00

The weather this summer has killed me. Really. We dubbed this summer the summer that wasn't. And for 2 of the great weeks in July, first I was sick for a week with a fever (virus, sore throat, etc) and then the boys both got sick for a week. How do we get sick during 2 of the best 4-6 weeks of the year? Just Murphy's Law, I suppose!

I took matters into my own hands and was a willing party to a measure of insanity: I travelled alone with both boys to warmer weather! We made a 5 day trek to Colorado on a direct flight to see the grandparents and to let my bones thaw before fall hits. You know the weather is bad when you are a willing party to this kind of travel!

We allowed a sufficient time to depart, but a 45 minute wait to check the bag made me plead for mercy with a customer service rep to check my bag (the kiosk denied me because I was within an hour of the departure time.) Tears, tears. This man was standing between me and some heat, for crying out loud! The man took my bag and put it through, but told me I would not make it to the gate in time. Those who have known me my whole life know this: You wanna make a bet? I'll take that challenge. Just take my bag and I'll worry about the rest. Game on!

We took off running (literally) through the terminal and I went to the Gold member/pilot check-in and begged for mercy. The kind agent let me through and then I begged at two other security check points to cut in line. Gracious others held Luke while I got situated after going through security and then I took off on a mad dash with an 11 month old and a 4 year old to catch an elevator, a train, and an escalator all before my stinkin' United flight closed the doors. Whew! We made it on board with 3 minutes to spare and about 8-10 people in line behind me. take that, Mr. Customer Service Guy!

OK, so that kind of stress was not my idea of fun, so anything that happened on the flight was a breeze. And it was.

Ahhhh, heat, sweet heat! I had arrived to the paradise of my in-laws house (the backyard really is paradise, as you will see later in the pictures).

The rain somehow followed us our first day, but it was a warmer rain and only lasted a day. We then enjoyed a visit to the Butterflies and a Carnivore Animal Preserve called Wild Animal Sanctuary. I was shocked to learn that there are more tigers in captivity in the state of Texas (people with them in garages, basements, etc.) than there are in the wild in the whole world. Sad, so sad. The tigers were all so hot the day we were there that they were a bit lethargic, but it was good to see them.

We enjoyed lots of Grandma and PaPa time and also helped Uncle Dave celebrate a belated happy birthday. Lots of fun!

On the return flight, I flew Alaska (Amen!) and sailed through check-in, security, etc. Thank goodness, because the flight back was....well, it was bad. Screaming child # 2 was such a hard one to contain, and the lady next to me was none to happy about drawing the short straw and was certain to let me know it! And to top things off, I was so frazzled at the end of the flight that I left Colin's beloved Pooh bear in the overhead bin. I submitted the obligatory online claim the next day but we will never see dear ole' pooh again.

Travel aside, the actual visit was so fun, ESPECIALLY for Colin, so I will share a more upbeat post next with lots of pictures.

The "Someday" of a 4 Year Old

2010-07-28T17:05:00.000-07:00

Many days as we are out driving, Colin likes to tell me things for his "inner most thoughts." I guess he's all strapped in without much else to do!

Lately he likes to tell us about, "Someday when I am big" types of things. Today he was "pontificating" on his future as a Daddy. Makes me smile thinking about it:

"Mommy, someday I will be a Daddy."

"Probably so. What kind of Daddy will you be like?"

"I'll teach my kids things, we'll decorate (like for holidays), I'll help them make things, and I'll teach them about Jesus."

"Oh, yes, that's an important job to teach them about Jesus."

"Yes."

"So how many kids will you have?"

"Hmm. Two."

Later he told me they would be three years apart.

You can see how important holidays and special occasions are to our lil' guy. He still talks about our 4th of July as our "America Party" since it was America's birthday we celebrated with streamers and balloons.

December 2009

2010-07-25T14:48:00.000-07:00

Catching up a bit from my 9 month blogging break....

Here's our "Santa Baby" at a smiley 3 months old.

I love December -- the holiday parties and festivities are such a fun time to gather with friends and family! We had our annual "crazy first week of December" where we attend the Providence O'Trees Gala, then I have my women's Christmas Friendship Dinner at Crossroads Bible Church, and then we cap off the weekend with Matt's company holiday party. Two of these events require formal attire, which I usually love, but wearing an evening gown while acting as the dinner source for your 3 month old can be a bit challenging!

Hanging with Santa at Providence O'Trees

After the week of parties, December was a month of getting appointments lined up for Luke. He had appointments with a manual physical therapist, a doctor who conducted a frenotomy (a strange, strange experience), and other regular doctor visits. If I wasn't at Pediatric Associates at least once a week I was very amazed.

Because of all of the appointments and "running around," we (I especially) felt a bit isolated from life as we knew it before. We were really looking forward to our Christmas party with our Bible study group, but Luke got an ear infection that day and he and Matt stayed home while Colin and I joined our friends.

Luke starting taking Zantac (I pressed really hard on the doctor, explaining the symptoms that I had known all along for the past 2 months) and we began to see the signs of having a much happier eater. Bliss in a bottle of medicine, I tell ya! It's just so miserable to have a baby who is hungry but can't eat because of the pain of acid reflux. If I had been blogging back in December I would now lamented that my 3 1/2 year old got a hold of this bottle of bliss and poured it down the sink. I forgot to put the cap on and he decided it needed to go down the bathroom drain. I called the pharmacy, and about $80 later I had another bottle of bliss. I was madder than a hen with a rooster in the henhouse (is that how the saying goes?) But, time has lessened this, so it can now just be one of those stories I pass along to his wife someday when her children do similar, maddening things.

We took 2 nights and headed to Suncadia right before Christmas, and it was so nice to just get away and have nothing but a few small Colin activities planned. He STILL talks about Suncadia and building a gingerbread house. We will definitely make that a tradition in future years! Hopefully we won't continue the tradition of me being sick on vacation. I was sick on this trip and was also sick on a recent trip to Cama Beach. Sickness on vacation begone!

On Christmas, we enjoyed a visit from Sarah's mom. No deep snow like last year (fortunately.) This Christmas was special because it was Luke's first. And Matt had a good Christmas because he got an elk 2 days before Christmas. He was a happy man! Finding a meat processor on Christmas Eve was a bit of a challenge, but he finally found one about an hour away.

The annual tradition of balloons on Christmas morning. Makes it very festive!

The holiday was a bit somber, however, as Matt's Grandma from Cleveland passed away on Christmas. Matt's parents headed back east over New Years rather than heading our direction.

Cama Beach 2010

2010-07-25T14:11:00.000-07:00

We joined 10 other families for a few nights this past week for our first family cabin camping experience. Cama Beach state park, on Camano Island, is a short 1 1/2 drive from home and we got to enjoy the great outdoors while still having electricity, running water, a microwave, and heat (yes, nights on the island get pretty cool and heat in July at 2 a.m. is a MUST!)

Most of the families stayed for 4 nights, but with Luke just crawling around and kind of hard to contain on a rocky, shell-filled beach, 2 nights was our limit. Good prediction, since we had to book way back when I was still pregnant. This place is pretty popular!

Isn't this a great view? We especially enjoyed watching the occasional eagle overhead.

Colin had lots of fun playing with his other friends and it was great having other families to visit with. Matt fished some each night and they caught all kinds of different "stuff," including crabs, sharks (Matt catches sharks whether we are in South Texas, Washington, or Alaska....his pole always seems to attract sharks and NOT the fish we are actually fishing for), and various other fish.

This is an "I'm not a sleepy camper" Luke who would rather play than go to bed. Colin was zonked out in the next room from a day of non-stop play in the sun.

More Pictures - November 2009

2010-07-15T22:32:00.001-07:00

Colin met Santa as soon as the Santa Train arrived and then we drank hot cocoa and had cookies.
Nothing better than a grilled turkey on Thanksgiving. Yuuuummmyyyy!

In honor of the Santa Train, our Gingerbread kit was shaped like a train.

Luke, 2 months old

November 2009

2010-07-15T21:29:00.000-07:00

I have been hesitant about recapping November of last year. It was just a flat out difficult month. November is why I quit blogging. I couldn't think of anything nice to say, and my Great Grandma Peggy would have reminded me to just say nothing at all. It's raw. It's not pretty. It just is. And I am so happy I can look back on God's mercy to love me during such a rough patch. With that in mind, here goes.

When you have a new baby you think of all of those special baby moments but you don't ever stop to consider what happens when your journey as a parent takes an unexpected twist. I was thrown for quite a few loops in November.

At Luke's 2 month visit it was apparent that he, like his brother had had when he was a baby, had torticollis. When treated early, outcomes are generally good, and so I was prepared to take Luke to a physical therapist. I also had a list of things the pediatrician and I began working through....sort of a "baby punch list." Things like cradle cap, feeding issues, unexplained fussiness at feedings, the torticollis, etc.

I took Luke to a physical therapist who showed us a few exercises via some handouts. I was unimpressed to say the least. I cancelled my next appointment.

A few weeks later as we were driving to Kohls, I decided that something was just wrong with Luke and I called the office for a sick visit. I thought he must have silent reflux, but I was just told the screaming at feedings was just a nursing problem that required an Occupational Therapist's assistance.

The Big Visit

Did you know there is an occupational therapist here that specializes in breastfeeding issues? No? Me either?! This visit was to be the beginning of a long road of visiting many specialists. Our 2 hour visit began with her concern over his torticollis, first and foremost, and her concern caused me some concern. Then we determined that I had only a few choices to get Luke to nurse if that was what we wanted to do. And with family coming to town in the coming days for Thanksgiving, neither was an option. My days of holding a child screaming bloody murder at my body to forcefeed were absolutely over. It alienated the other 2 members of my family when the screams began, and it made me want to cry. The torticollis made it too hard for Luke to turn his head to nurse. And he was tongue tied. His poor little tongue was forked like a snake because his frenulum was too tight.

When I met once again with the Occupational Therapist, she watched him try to eat his bottle. He gulped 2 oz. and then cried. It looked like a text book case of reflux and she urged me to see a doctor immediately. I knew my gut instinct was right when he was just a month old!

So November revealed a myriad of health issues that I would spend the following months unravelling. I navigated issues with insurance, as well, proving that I have had to learn WAY more about insurance for neurodevelopmental therapy for children in the state of WA than I would have ever imagined possible. My oldest son's pediatric neurologist once sat us down and explained all of his lobbying efforts to secure this basic level of insurance coverage in our state, and little did I know I would have to follow in his efforts with our own insurance, which is self-funded and doesn't have to follow state mandates. I think people have to take more charge with their insurance companies, and that is exactly what I did. I realize the discussion of insurance is kind of a "yawner" but I worried now that I had a child who needed help and I might have to pay hundreds to seek care each visit.

I felt like a failure in November. I couldn't believe the same feeding issues I had with Colin had resurfaced in some similar, and some not-so-similar, ways with Luke. Living in this part of the country and not nursing a little one can carry its own stigma that is hard to explain. And now I had to delve into the world of therapists and figure out what all to do to get our little boy the help he needed.

During this same month our oldest's tantrums peaked and we faced huge discipline issues. I even called his preschool teacher one morning almost in tears seeking her insights and seeing if she had this same problem in class. There were many mornings I was pleased to put him on the school bus so that I would have a break from the constant battle. Friends promised me that my nice child would return but it might not happen until he was four. I kept praying for four to hurry up and get here!

On a more pleasant note, we enjoyed a lovely visit from Matt's parents for Thanksgiving. We made an excursion to the Santa Train and also enjoyed the parade. Our Thanksgiving Day tradition is for Colin to work on a Gingerbread House as the food cooks all day (this kicks off Christmas season). He keeps asking me now (in July) when we can make a Gingerbread House again as he just loves it!

Teething Times Two!

2010-07-15T21:13:00.000-07:00

I have been fully prepared for teething for the baby -- as much as one can prepare. I have lots of Motrin and Oragel tooth swabs to accompany lots of cuddles for a little one in pain.

But my mommy friends all failed to tell me it is WORSE with the 4 year old. Yikes! What teeth are these? Six year old molars? (I repeat, he's not six!) For the past three nights Colin has howled at night with such fierce pain that even the Motrin and swabs are just barely taking the edge off it. And the more worked up he gets, the more upset he gets.

Last night he told me between sobs, "Take me somewhere!"

"Where would you like to go?"

"Anywhere so that I can be healthy. Can I go downstairs with you? Can I go see Grandma? Anywhere!" And thus Grandmas can always help the pain!

He was so worked up that his ears began to hurt (displaced pain from the molars coming in on both bottom sides) and then he thought his tummy had a cold because he was so worked up his tummy hurt.

After many snuggles last night I had a few minutes of quiet, And then the howling began again. I let it go for 5 minutes and then went back to Colin's room and he was sound asleep. Wrong room! Next door Luke was so worked up that it took a while to get him unwound.

Fortunately after that all was quiet in the house for the remainder of the night. Whose teeth will break through first? Tune in later to find out!

October 2009 - More Pictures

2010-07-11T21:28:00.000-07:00

Luke is one month old!

Colin frolicks in the Leaves

Luke's first Blackberry picking; just a few remained in early October from the great summer

Sticker Chart Success!

2010-07-11T20:52:00.000-07:00

A happy (not "crabby") Colin, holding Twitch

What do you get when you combine one full sticker chart with a cool new digital clock and a quirky Toy Story Toy named Twitch? A little boy who has successfully not woken up the entire family before 7 a.m. for three weeks!

....When Colin was younger I would hear of parents putting a clock in their child's room so the child would know that he couldn't leave his room before a certain time (generally 7 a.m.) I finally decided he was old enough to be taught how to read a clock, and I invested in a cordless one with a light-up screen so he could learn to stay in his room until it was time to roust the family. We even set the clock to military time so that there was no confusion what 7:00 meant, and we even taped 7:00 on the bottom of the clock for reference.

For almost 4 weeks Colin has been working on not waking the entire family (including Luke) before 7 a.m. One morning he called for me through the monitor at 6:49 a.m. Nope, no sticker that day; it was 11 minutes early and the thought was that he didn't look at his clock before calling for me - whether it was 11 minutes or 51 minutes early.

Colin has been working hard each morning so that he can earn a character from Toy Story 3 named Twitch, the "big bad bug" from Sunnyside Daycare. Whey he took a liking to this odd character from the show I'm not sure, but he's a very buff action figure. And when you squeeze his legs together, he beats his wings.

Colin has been telling all of his friends that he has been working on getting, "the big bad bug." And guess who he played with non-stop all day long? Yep, Twitch even somehow made it to the dinner table this evening.

Sweet success! Now if I can only get younger brother to understand that 5:30 a.m. is unacceptable, that will be great. In 4 years (or less!) he will be getting his OWN clock!

October 2009

2010-07-09T10:22:00.000-07:00

Heading into October, Luke was almost 3 weeks old. By this time I had already had a few nights alone with both boys while Matt attended a conference, and I was now settling into that zombie state that occurs with several night wakings, night after night.

As I look back. October is a blur. At his one month visit I told the doctor he seemed overly fussy related to feedings, but he was gaining weight and she just asked if my diet was impacting him or if I was drinking enough water (my fault, right?!) It only I had known then.

We managed to make a few small outings, including the annual pilgrimage to the pumpkin patch. Luke howled much of the time because it was windy. Fortunately it wasn't rainy and Colin quickly found a pumpkin and we did the necessary photo op and checked that off of our list. Next year will be a little more fun when we don't have to move quite so quickly.

For Halloween, Colin dressed up as Superman. He wore his costume to preschool and Luke and I joined him as he trick-or-treated in the halls at school. Luke wore Colin's black cat hat. Then we headed to the annual ECG Halloween party and Luke wore his caterpillar costume. According to Colin, Luke was, "The Very Hungry Caterpillar."

Speaking of outfits, the boys wore matching polar bear jammies and I got some of the cutest pictures of them together -- we weren't sure what Colin would think of matching, but he was so excited to have something just like Luke!

First Haircut

2010-07-09T10:13:00.000-07:00

With pictures coming up this week, I decided Luke was looking a bit shaggy. His soft, blond locks need a trimmin'.

We went to one of those kid places, as I figured they would be most understanding if he was particularly fussy. However, he seemed overly relaxed as the clippers trimmed the back of his hair. He wasn't too sure about the scissors part for the top of his head, but overall it went really well.

What a Difference a Few Days Makes

2010-07-09T09:55:00.000-07:00

Luke watches it rain outside on the 4th - note the long sleeves.

It's hard to believe that just 6 days ago we were cold, drowned rats! I am so thrilled that summer is FINALLY here and that we can all dress in shorts and go to the pool.

We hosted a 4th of July party for our home fellowship group -- 6 couples with a total of 16 kiddos and 2 on the way. We had planned a big backyard BBQ, complete with yummy food from the smoker and grill, as well as outdoor crafts and our bouncy house.

We had watched the weather all week and it looked like the 4th might have showers in the morning but be partly sunny by the afternoon. They (the "royal" they) were SO wrong! Our party started at 4 pm, and just like clockwork the downpour started at 4 pm.

I had no plans to have everyone in the house -- what now? It was a soaker, not just a little bit of drizzle.

We pulled the cars out of the garage, moved the tables to the garage, and served the food there, as well. It felt like a party in Houston where people use their open garages just to escape the heat of summer. Only we were escaping the wet and cold.

It all worked out, and the outdoor activities will just have to happen another time. We were so happy to host our friends and feel so blessed to celebrate the 4th with them, rain OR shine!

Little Mr. "Cleany"

2010-07-02T16:32:00.000-07:00

A few nights ago I was putting Luke to bed when I heard Colin downstairs wailing. When I went downstairs to check on the commotion, he was sobbing because his toy room was a mess.

Colin: "Mom, will you help me clean up my toys? It's such a mess!" (sob, sob!)

Me: "Sure! (thinking, "Really? Of course!")

15 minutes later the room was clean and all of the toys were in their proper container/cubby. Colin signed and looked at me saying, "Now I'm all better."

As I told Matt the story he said, "That's my boy!" He's a "cleany" just like his Dad and hates disorganization.

Recap of September 2009

2010-06-27T19:53:00.000-07:00

So I thought I would do a "fast-forward" recap of the last 9ish months." Time has given me perspective to see the big picture and I think I can look back a bit more clearly now through the fog to give an overview of our first 3/4 year with Luke. So here goes:

September

I gave birth to Luke 13 days past my due date. So, instead of being the youngest in his grade, he will now be one of the oldest (cut-off for schools here is a strict Sept. 1). He's a smart lil' fella already!

Luke was born big at 9 lbs 4 oz. We felt fortunate he didn't loose much weight and didn't have jaundice like Colin. We actually made sure the nurses stuffed him like a piggie for the 5 hours we sent him to the hospital nursery each night. It was a "full" six days before I was actually able to provide a food source for this hungry boy, who ate 3 oz bottles the second day his was born, so we just ran with it!

During the month of September, Luke had visits from both Grandmas, as well as two of my highschool friends. He also joined me at my MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) meeting and on trips to take brother to/from the school bus.

At night, Luke adjusted to getting back to sleep fairly quickly after a feeding, as we put him in the swing all night -- thank goodness for rechargable batteries and that papasan swing. Such a lifesaver! He is definitely a swing/swaddle baby!

Lastly, we found a pediatrician we really like. At his first office visit we saw someone we had never met and instantly clicked with her (a Christian, as well.) Looking back I can see how important it was going to be to have someone on our side as we worked through a number of issues in the coming months.

Here are some pics from our friend Kellie that were taken the very first Saturday of his life:

Funny Colin Story

2010-06-27T19:47:00.000-07:00

Conversation with Colin yesterday:

Colin: "Mommy, you remember when you went to the hospital to have Luke?"

Me: "Yes"

Colin: "And Daddy and the doctor pushed Luke out?"

Me (a little perplexed at his understanding of giving birth): "Well honey, Mommy pushed Luke out with their help."

Colin, "No Mommy, when Grandma and I came to the hospital I saw Daddy and the doctor pushing Luke in the cart."

Ahhhhh! I then realize he is recalling the very first time he ever saw Luke. He and Grandma were just getting on the elevator to come up as Dad, Luke, and a nurse were taking him to the NICU for a blood panel to be done. And thus they were "pushing him at the hospital." Funny how we can read things in to what our kids say without realizing their point of view...

I'm Still Alive!

2010-06-27T19:39:00.000-07:00

After a huge maternity break from the blog I thought I would re-visit it to see if it's still alive. Yep, still here!

I still spend a significant amount of my day sitting in a dark room in a rocking chair feeding Luke, and I have composed many a blog post in my head. This guy is a slow, SLOW eater and my fanny probably logs several hours a day in that chair. Now if only those mental posts transferred to the computer without having to re-type my thoughts.

I'm not promising a big return to the blogging world. I do have mixed feelings about sharing lots of stories about my family only for their teenage friends to read them someday, but I also love to keep family and friends updated, as well as to go back and remember funny stories I might not otherwise remember.

And my computer hard-drive is almost full, so I need a new plan for external storage before I'll be downloading and sharing any recent pics, so stay tuned for more!

Suncadia

2010-01-13T15:55:00.000-08:00

For Christmas 2009 we decided to take the boys on a little adventure to Suncadia Resort, just over the mountain pass about 90 minutes away. They have a WinterFest each year with plenty of fun activities all at the resort, which is ideal since one of us needed to be with Luke who still sleeps away much of the day and was recovering from an ear infection.

We started off the weekend with a breakfast at the Inn with Santa and Mrs. Claus. Then we spent the remainder of the day dashing from one fun activity to another, including snow tubing, Gingerbread House making (house already built and with lights -- all Colin had to do was decorate), Sandy Candy Making, Bear Factory making (Colin chose to make Frosty the snowman and decked him out in a Santa Suit), lots of eating, story time, and a elf tuck-in visit/bedtime story from one of Santa's elves, named Glitz.

It was nice to get away together and we plan to make this an annual Christmas tradition. Colin was so excited about the trip and kept saying, "I love Suncadia!" over and over.

More Pumpkin Patch Pics

2009-10-26T17:21:00.001-07:00

4th Annual Pumpkin Patch Outing

2009-10-26T17:12:00.000-07:00

A few weekends ago before the heavy rains hit, we made our annual trek out to Jubilee Farms Pumpkin Patch. Colin was so excited to get to ride the hayride, which was pulled by a tractor. When we arrived at the patch we took a few quick pics and then Colin spotted his own pumpkin.

This was a super fast trip to the patch, as it was very windy and a bit chilly, and Luke was not amused by our attempt to photograph him in his first hunt for a pumpkin with big brother.

Blog Maternity Leave

2009-10-26T10:41:00.000-07:00

Hello, yes, it really is me! After composing many a blog post in my head at 3 am when nursing a hungry child, I finally decided to download a few of my thoughts. I have taken some "maternity leave" from my blog, and during this time I have debated how much I will continue to write. It is indeed fun to go back and read stories and to share them with you, as well, so I have decided to keep writing....for now.

These past 6 1/2 weeks have gone really well in some regards. Luke now sleeps from 8:30 or 9 pm at night and wakes for a 2 am feeding (which my wonderful husband does....) and then he wakes around 5 or 6 for me to feed. At that point I am up for the day, and sweet baby Luke goes peacefully back to the land of nod. We give one bottle a day so that Luke will be able to take a bottle. He doesn't really like it, but I REALLY don't want to be his only source of food. I don't want to be tethered to him in the evenings for the next year. A girl needs to get out every now and then, even if it is just to run to the store.

Son #1 has been, well, lets just say....he's been a huge challenge for Mommy and Daddy. Fortunately he adores Luke and is so cheerful when he gets to see him. He hasn't retaliated in any way related to Luke, but he is indeed 110% 3 years old. I'll leave it at that, as I am starting to see glimmers of my former sweet big boy. Other veteran moms tell me that the pleasant child eventually re-emerges, so we are hopeful. And needless to say, God blessed our sanity with 4 morning-a-week preschool for this little guy.

Speaking of preschool, Colin seems to be doing really well. He now comes home and tells us some of the things he has done at school that morning. This preschool is part of our local school system's program, so it academically prepares them for kindergarten and combines ages 3-5 in the class. I was sceptical at first, but I have seen how well he does at home with things like his letters, letter formation, counting, and colors. They also work with him on social interactions related to sharing and turn-taking, which I think all 3 year olds struggle with! He also has time in and out of class with his speech therapist, and he is progressing really well. He tells us things now that sometimes really astound me, especially his use of various phrases that I think, "where on earth did he learn that?" Things like protesting following directions by indicating, "I can't do that....it makes me tough that way." (What??)

Fortunately during this time Matt has had very little overnight business travel, and he has been a huge help in the transition to having 4 family members. We were also fortunate to have my mom here a few days before Luke came and then for about 5 days afterward, and then my mother-in-law came out for another week. And the meals from friends after that have been such a huge help. I think I'm going to have to actually start cooking again soon. It's been a nice break from weekly meal planning!

So that's a quick recap. Next I'll post some pics (if blogger cooperates; Facebook is MUCH easier) and a few other stories, as well.

Welcome Baby Luke!

2009-09-10T15:19:00.000-07:00

Thanks, friends and family, for all of your prayers and support!

As you know by now, baby Luke was born at 2:42 a.m. yesterday morning. And yes, he does indeed have a cool birth date that will always be easy for his wife to remember!

I kept many of you up-to-date even when we were waiting for the doc to arrive at the hospital, and then complete silence through last night, so here's a bit of what transpired during that time.

Baby didn't come all on his own, so my doctor broke my water to begin the "eviction" process. He was 12 days past his due date, and we decided it was time to move on!

The laboring process itself went extremely well, and by 7 pm I had the pleasure of seeing once again the anesthesiologist who gave me the epidural when I had Colin. Funny how I recognized him immediately! With his assistance, I was a happy woman through the remainder of the process of bringing Luke into the world.

Luke joined us as such a big boy! At 9 lbs. 4 oz., I learned that babies over 9 lbs. are automatically tested in intervals for blood sugar levels, so poor little guy has endured having his heel stuck numerous times, and his levels are just fine. He was just in the cooker for a long time making him a big boy!

Immediately after he was born, I begin to have the chills. That can be normal, but they got uncontrollable and I had a fever reach 104 which they couldn't get under control with some simpler measures, so I ended up with iv antibiotics and ice packs on my body. We still don't know the cause of my infection, but my fever is now gone and baby seems to have had no impact. As a precaution, however, we are both being held until tomorrow (at least) for observation.

So, mom and baby spent much of yesterday being poked and prodded and trying to rest while a parade of people came in and out of our room. And we fully welcomed baby's invitation to the nursery last night so we as parents could rest after our first all-nighter.

And here we are today with a gorgeous, sunny day in the PNW, and baby is sound asleep. He seems to be a fairly mellow lil' guy (and thus was in no hurry to leave mommy's tummy!) and we feel so very blessed! Thank you again for all of your prayers and support!

And now you know.....the REST of the story!

Humbled by a Pair of Socks

2009-09-06T15:30:00.001-07:00

I decided this week that if baby wasn't coming, I wasn't just going to sit at home and wait. One morning while Colin was at school I ran a few shopping errands, which included scoring some fabulous deals at Old Navy.

As I was checking out, the woman in line behind me was waiting simply to buy a pack of size 6-12 month Halloween socks. I listened as she talked with another lady in line behind her. This woman explained that her grand baby, her first, turned 6 months the following day. The other lady commented how tough those first 6 months can be. The grandma replied that, yes, her daughter had had a tough pregnancy and the baby barely hung in there and was so little, but that he made it. It had been a long road.

Her daughter would have given anything for even two extra weeks with baby in her tummy, and there I stood, humbled that this grandma was just so grateful that she was able to buy a pair of size 6 month socks for baby's first Halloween.

Thank you, Lord, for the gift of this extra time!

In Case You Were Wondering....

2009-09-06T15:27:00.001-07:00

....Still here!

Colin's First Day of School

2009-08-31T08:55:00.000-07:00

Colin was so excited this morning, as he got to ride the school bus to preschool! His preschool has a special transport (some with special needs) and they each have their own seat belt -- it was cute to watch him get on board. His driver, Sherri, was sure to make him smile and I got a cute pic of him all settled in. I also had a great pic of him as we waited down the hill at his bus stop and I somehow deleted it. I gotta figure out what I did wrong before I delete a baby picture in coming days on accident! We have a newer camera with some sort of spin dial which I am not too fond of...

Colin went to this same school for the last 6 weeks of the previous school year with the same teacher and 5 other of the same students (4 others are new for a total of 10 kids in his class), so he's going back to a familiar place with people he knows, or I might have been a little nervous about sending our 3 year old off to school on a bus with a stranger!

I woke up several times last night dreaming vividly/having night mares that I would go into labor during the night before his first day of preschool school. Whew! Avoided that one!

Knock on wood, but here in a few hours I think we can all safely agree that baby has decided to be a September baby and thus he will certainly enter Kindergarten one year later, since Sept. 1 is the strict cut-off around here (smile!) He wants to be a football season baby and not a pool-party baby, I suppose! That outta make Grandaddy proud! Thanks for giving us an "extra year" to save for college, kiddo! Hey, someone has to be practical about the matter!

So, my big fluff ball, Elliot, and I are resting all morning while "Big Brother Colin" is off at school. I go see the Dr. again this afternoon and will keep you all posted. And for now, the baby car seat is installed, the pack-n-play is up, and my wonderful husband has the house all ready for the newest family member. He even pulled an ugly bush from the front yard yesterday....(though attaching a chain to the truck and pulling out anything at the roots is probably a great stress reliever....)

Last day(s) As An Only Child

2009-08-27T15:47:00.000-07:00

I thought before the craziness hits of baby arriving I would capture a bit of what Colin is like BEFORE baby brother joins us.

Colin is 3 years and 3 1/2 months old and, as I had suspected would happen, has figured out how to throw some really good temper tantrums. These peak when we want him to nap or go to bed and are mixed with lots of yelling and "No, I won't do it!" as well as lying down and kicking and screaming. Sometimes I am able to laugh, knowing that this too shall pass, but when you are this big an pregnant it takes a lot of energy to think of creative ways to get him to his room for some much needed rest.

We have started taking toys away (favorites, like ALL cars, pirate ships, and his castle) and in recent days he is working on being cooperative (having a "happy heart") to earn back his prized possessions. And he's quite the negotiator and will even tell you which item he wants you to take next when he is planning to be disobey.

On the more cheerful side, Colin is making greater strides with his language and articulation, though we still have a ways to go. He uses longer sentences and does quite a bit of pretend play on his own with his Veggie Tales pirates and pirate castle. He saw "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything" over the summer at the Regal Cinemas Free Kids Movie Day and now talks non-stop about the storyline.

His passion for anything from the Cars movie is quite intense and Cars have been a huge motivator. He potty trained this summer quite easily with the motivation of receiving a car for his success. At least one thing was easy, right? We didn't push him, and it just seemed to happen. I count this as a blessing, as many of his friends a few months older are still wavering between pull-ups and the real McCoy. If you had asked me in April if I thought this was possible I would have doubted you, but we have been very fortunate.

He played soccer all summer with a buddy from his PEPS group, and each Monday after soccer we would go to lunch with his friend and his mom. It has been such a blessing to watch their friendship blossom, and a Colin has spent all summer watching his buddy adjust to being a new big brother, giving Colin a sense of what to look forward to. These unexpected blessings of friendship for both Colin and me (with his buddy's mom) are such great gifts from God that help encourage us along life's way.

Colin had his first swim lessons earlier in August (without me in the pool with him) and though he had great 1-on-1 time with the instructor, he needed someone who woukd push him a bit more to put his face under the water. On one of the days he had a more mature (older) substitute instructor push him a bit more and he had his head under water several times, so I know he can do it! We will do lessons this fall, as well.

And last week he had his first day camp experience -- our local swim and recreation club had a dino camp-themed week and at the end of the morning each day he got to play in the wading pool for 30 minutes. He loved it and the weather was great! We'll definitely be signing him up for camp again next summer.

I'll close on this recap as I remember a tender moment with Colin the other night. I am not much of a sappy crying type of person, but I was having a bad night. Colin said, "Mommy's sad and needs blue blankie." He went to his room and got his beloved blankie and took the corners of the blanket and gently blotted the tears from my cheeks as if to say, "Mommy, it's gonna be all better." This tender, sweet side makes me so proud of his sweet and giving heart! Ahhh, the power of the blue blankie!

40 Weeks and Counting

2009-08-27T15:34:00.000-07:00

For my entire prenancy, as with any other women, people ask, "when are you due?" Friends and family, and so often complete strangers! Each time I would say, "August 27" as though that date had any meaning. And here we are, August 27, and I am resting in bed, waiting for any sign that baby wants to enter the world. Nothing; zero; nada! I have come to nick-name him "Mr. Snug and Happy!"

I'm actually not that impatient, as I'm not uncomfortable (by pregnant standards) AND I actually slept almost 7 1/2 hours straight last night. Usually my bladder isn't that cooperative! In just a matter of days I will be so bleary-eyed from a newborn that I will long for this quiet and rest. I will beg for it! So again, no recommendations of "just be patient!"

However, there is a little green monster named high blood pressure who is attempting to lurk his ugly head. I am only borderline high, but we'll see how things go at the doc tonight. Unfortunately I also suffer from white coat syndrome, so this isn't too helpful. So while I am patient for baby to come on his own, I would only prefer him to come sooner if it means beating an induction to the punch...

I have mostly packed my bags and have done most everything on my to-do list (if that is ever really possible.) The slow leak in my tire will just have to wait to get fixed some other time. We have my Grandad's air compressor in our garage, so it's no big deal to give the tires a bit of air every 2 weeks (I have never been happy with the tires Mazda factory put on this CX-7!)

Colin starts school on Monday, so the timing of his return to some structure (and 4 mornings a week out of the house) is ideal. He went to an open house to see his teacher and school friends today, so he is all excited to head back!

Baby Sturm will indeed be here soon, though, and we will keep everyone posted!

Meeting Frank the Combine

2009-08-02T15:17:00.000-07:00

Any Cars Movie-lovin' preschool boy knows of and is enamoured with Frank the Combine from the tractor tipping scene, and Colin is no different.

On the 4th of July we ventured just north of town and found a red combine which looks just like Frank. Wow! Colin was so excited, but a little scared to see it up close and in full sized dimensions (unlike his 7 inch long version at home.) Matt also scared him a bit by whispering, "Don't wake Frank" as he got out of the car to "meet" Frank.

Visit to Texas and Colorado

2009-08-02T14:57:00.001-07:00

Last month we made a brief, 2 part trip down to Texas and then up to Colorado. Our visit to Texas was mostly because of the O'Neal family reunion. It was good to see lots of my cousins and their kids, and Colin got to experience West Texas critters, such as HUGE toads and bull snakes. He had fun chasing around his cousins Halee and Tristin, as well.
I enjoyed a girls lunch outing to celebrate Jama's 35th birthday. Pam, Tulle (3), Jama, and I all went to lunch at Napoli's over in Amarillo, did a little shopping afterwards, and then had a cherry limeade at Sonic happy hour. I miss Sonic, which we don't have in my neck of the woods (though I hear rumors there is one about an hour away....)

Our trip wasn't complete without the small town experience of a 4th of July parade. Colin thought it was fun to chase after the candy tossed into the streets and thought all of the old cars in the parade must have names (from the Cars movie...) He also got to see cousins on the Walker side of the family and got to have some Grandparent and Great Grandparent visits.

We ended our trip to Texas with lunch with one of Matt's fraternity brothers and his family. His wife is pregnant and due a few days after me, so we had many stories to share and ideas to toss around while the guys got all caught up from their Baylor days.

After a delayed trip to Denver (due to thunderstorms looming south of Denver) we finally arrived for another 2 nights of visiting. We went to the Butterfly Pavillion and Colin also got to go fishing at the Kids' Pond in Boulder where he caught a few trout. We're not sure who had more fun -- Colin or Grandpa (Pa Pa).

This was our last travel as a family before our new family member arrives.

The Great Carrot Harvest

2009-07-18T12:39:00.000-07:00

The second week in July we decided that the carrots in our garden were ready for harvest. Matt loosened up the soil around them and then our "Colin bunny" had so much fun plucking them from the ground. He was then anxious to come in the house and get them all washed up. I wish he has this much zeal when it came to washing dishes.

More pictures from San Diego

2009-07-18T12:25:00.000-07:00

This was the view at sunset from the balcony of our beach house. Imperial Beach is about 4 miles north of the Mexican border, and is a quaint SoCal beach town.

Here is a statue of a prehistoric mastodon at the zoo -- you can see how huge he was!

Colin was super excited to ride the top level of the double-decker bus at the zoo (here he is waiting in line.) You can see who came to the zoo with us (in his left hand.) "We" don't go much of anywhere without a car in hand, and this was Lightning McQueen with night vision goggles, which he proudly earned right before the trip as part of potty training.

San Diego '09

2009-07-15T21:57:00.001-07:00

In June we enjoyed a 5 day trip to San Diego to celebrate Rick and Marilyn's 40 year wedding anniversary. Matt's brother joined us all, as well, and we had a good time together.

We hit Sea World our first full day there and had a yummy buffet breakfast next to Shamu's practice pool. It was incredible being so close to these huge animals! Colin enjoyed seeing the sharks, watching us feed the seals (such beggars!), and playing in the Sesame Street Area. He's still afraid of large mascots, and thus when we stood by Shamu (Shampoo, as Colin calls him), Matt had to stand between Colin and the whale.

We then hit the San Diego Zoo for the next two days -- there's just too much to see in one day! Colin requested we do a family "self portrait" while at the zoo -- it turned out pretty well. The new Elephant Odyssey area is great prehistoric animal statues that are life-sized (and huge!)

We ate dinner at Casa Guadalajara in Old Town San Diego and listened to Mariachi Bands play while I ate one too many fajitas. They were so yummy I couldn't help myself. We also enjoyed dinner the Edgewater Grill in Seaport Village (with views to Coronado Island), as well as nice Mexican Seafood restaurant in Imperial Beach, which is where we stayed during our visit.

Our last day there Colin figured out how much fun it was to jump in the waves on the beach. He loved the sand and water and keeps asking when we will go back to the beach and ocean. As much fun as the cold water was, though, he loved going back to the beach house and having Dad put warm shower water down his wetsuit from the outdoor shower -- ahhhhhh!

Our Lil' Baseball Player

2009-06-16T16:49:00.001-07:00

Colin is enjoying playing with his new baseball t-ball set. He is learning that you have to face a certain way to hit the ball NOT at the BBQ grill or the house, and he seems to have little care as to whether he bats right or left handed.

The Death of Mommy's Camera

2009-06-16T16:31:00.000-07:00

My camera made it 3 1/2 years, faithful to take tons of pictures of each little Colin and family activity. It survived several drops (oops!) and many snorkel trips in the ocean in it's special water case. But for some reason and without warning, the digital screen decided at the end of May that it was done.

I took it out while in downtown Seattle to snap some pics while on a date night with Matt and nothing. Nada.

So, with another trip in sight, we ventured out for a mommy proof camera -- this new thing is shock proof and waterproof to 3 meters. I had fun taking some pictures of my roses, which are so thrilled that we gave them some plant food late this spring!

More from Grandma's Visit

2009-06-16T16:19:00.000-07:00

Colin enjoyed spending time with his Grandma for a belated birthday celebration.

And while she was here, Colin beat the heat in the yard while Dad watered the garden. Sprinklers are SO much fun! He ended up in his "skives" this particular evening (below) because he was soaked. A few days later while it was still hot outside in the evening, he just went ahead and stripped down to his birthday suit and frolicked in the water. Ahhhh, to be three and without a care in the world!

Beach Heat Playtime

2009-06-16T16:14:00.000-07:00

Colin enjoyed a visit from his Texas Grandma the last weekend in May. Grandma brought some hot weather with her, so we hit the beach! Colin had fun playing in the water and sand!

Memorial Day

2009-06-16T16:00:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed a relaxing Memorial Day BBQ with friends and Colin's favorite lunch buddy and soccer pal. I decided to have a little fun with the dessert (you can't go wrong with a fruit trifle) and finally got around to fixing the salad I had last summer, recipe compliments of my MOPS and Bible study friend, Carly. Here's the recipe (it's absolutely delicious!):

Dressing:
2/3 c. extra virgin olive oil, mixed with canola oil
1/3 c. rice vinegar
1 tsp salt
3 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp oregano
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp black pepper

Add to romaine lettuce torn on platter:

green onions
avocado
dried cranberries
candied pecans (2 c pecans, 1 c sugar, constantly stirred over med/high heat until sugar is melted and nuts are golden brown. Spread immediately over foil and let cool)
pears
blue cheese
optional: tomatoes, jicama, orange slices

Colin and his friend had fun playing outside with the golf go-cart and other fun outdoors toys. So nice to relax and enjoy the fellowship!

Beach Exploration

2009-06-16T15:52:00.000-07:00

Catching up from the third week in May, we made a trip over to West Seattle and visited a beach at low tide. Colin was not pleased that he was expected to walk over that slimy seaweed ("Yuck, seaweed, yuck! Daddy hold me!")

When Dad and Colin walked over a particular patch of large seaweed, I saw it starting to really move and out came a HUGE eating-sized dungeness crab, followed by 2 others. They had rafted in at low tide and wanted to make a quick escape from us. Colin had talked all the way to the each about seeing crabs, and boy did we ever!

No starfish on this trip, though. We'll have to check out a different beach next time.

Zoo Fieldtrip

2009-05-19T14:37:00.000-07:00

Colin started at his new preschool last Thursday and on Friday they had a fieldtrip to the zoo -- what a great way for Colin to think, "this school rocks!" Since the buses were mostly all full, we drove and met them for our outing.

For much of the morning, we explored the safari animals on our own, and I was so glad I had the stroller because he decided it was more fun to sit/snack/watch animals than to walk. I definitely got my workout for the day! Right before lunch Colin watched the old-fashioned caroussel ride and quickly pronounced, "My turn!" You can see from the smile on his face how much he loved it!

We met up for lunch in the meadow with his classmates and I got to meet an assistant teacher in his class, as well as a few other students and parents. Colin then decided we should join a few of our friends to check out the rest of the animals, including the new penguin exhibit. And as I was pointing out a little fish swimming in the penguin tank, he quickly became penguin's lunch. Well, glad Colin's a boy and that he thought that was cool to see lil' fish get gobbled up!

They are talking about animals all month in his class, so this helped jumpstart his thoughts about his favorite animals.

Fishin' Fun

2009-05-19T14:29:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we took Colin to a local fishing (or rather, catching) trout farm to have his first experience with a fishing pole. No sooner than Dad had baited the hook and helped place the little bamboo pole in the water, a little trout would quickly nibble, nibble. We caught 2 trout (which Colin wasn't too sure of when they were flopping around in the bucket) and called it good. It was a good first fishing experience.

Stepping Stones

2009-05-10T20:50:00.000-07:00

Because Colin turned 3, he no longer qualifies for his special Stepping Stones class and will begin classes next week at the local school district preschool program. For his last day, he enjoyed having his friends sing him Happy Birthday and enjoyed one last hug from all of his great teachers! It was a bitter sweet morning -- we have spent a ton of time at the Kindering Center, which is where he went to class and speech therapy, and now it's time for us to move on.

Mother's Day Tea

2009-05-10T20:44:00.000-07:00

At Colin's preschool last week they had a special event for Moms. We joined our kids in class for a special breakfast treat and then they sang us 3 different songs (including, "Jesus Loves Me, Skinamarink a Dink a Dink, and I'm a little Tea Pot). It was fun to come to his class for a special morning!
Colin is doing the "Little Teapot" motions with his friends.

Campfire Fun

2009-05-10T20:34:00.000-07:00

I'm finally getting around to posting pictures from last weekend's fun -- Dad had been talking to Colin about camping, so he then promised him a campfire. We have a fire pit in our backyard, so I headed to the store for marshmallows and Dad got the fire going after dinner.

Ooooh, this marshmallow is yummy! I'll have more of these!

Yummy delicious!! And now Colin has nicknames for the family: Colin Marshmallow (barshnellow), Daddy Campfire, and Mommy Flower. He decided later that baby could be nicknamed "Baby Hotdog!"

Mothers' Day

2009-05-10T20:29:00.001-07:00

We celebrated Mothers' Day by going to church and then heading to brunch at the local Hilton. It was a special day since it was also Colin's Grandma's birthday! We ate ourselves silly at the buffet and then enjoyed a family picture together at the event. And I actually got to hear the words from Colin's mouth today, "Happy Mother's Day, Mommy!" -- that was the sweetest treat of all!

Happy Birthday, Colin!

2009-05-10T17:40:00.000-07:00

Colin turned three and had fun celebrating with a Cars party. As you can see he had fun wearing his birthday hat, as well. Here he is, happy to kick off his party with Doc and the rest of the gang!

We had anticipated taking Colin to Top Pot Donuts for breakfast on his birthday, but birthday boy slept in and Dad and "Pa Pa" went to Starbucks and brought him a chocolate Top Pot donut home to enjoy while we prepared for friends to arrive at the party.

I prayed for a non-rainy day, as the days leading up to his birthday were cold and super wet! God answered our prayers with a clear, sunny, warm day -- yeah!! I sent the boys outside and we played red light, green light (with a Mater light, which meant going backwards!) Here the boys all are holding their race car steering wheels.

The boys all had fun playing with cars, decorating cars shaped cookies (including those shaped like Mater and Mac), and munching down hot dogs. Colin was so tickled to have his friends join him!

Colin was thrilled after the party to get a cars scooter, which he has had fun taking for a spin in the cul de sac. And going down the driveway fast and over a bump is lots of fun, too!

Grandma and Grandpa (Pa Pa) came to town to help Colin celebrate, and we enjoyed lots of sunshine during the afternoon while he played with new toys and opened one last present before nap -- a Lightning McQueen plush pillow (perfect for heading off to the land of nod to dream about his fun cars party.)

Thanks to everyone who joined us for this special day!

Unearthing the Past

2009-04-30T16:31:00.000-07:00

In an effort to clear out the guest room for Colin's new room, we moved a large metal file cabinet into the nook off of our master bedroom, creating a bit more of a formal office. And while I don't love having the office off of the bedroom, for now it works.

We started going back through old files to really clear out those we don't need. Some things, like really old tax returns (oh, I earned "big bucks" at Arby's in 1992....) were easy to toss. And then there was the stack of files that were like a time machine. A time machine where I visited each of my former jobs.

There are the happy things you run into: the copy of a long letter crafted to the company president applauding a customer service experience with me that resulted in him remaining a loyal customer, with a note from the president to me thanking me, as well. The promotion and raise letter that so swept me off my feet with surprise that I ran home from the mail box as fast as I could to share the good news with Matt. The offer letters, with hope of a new tomorrow. The resignation letters, with hope of a new tomorrow.

Then there are all of the personality assessments that each company does, with some variation on a theme. Many of them make me laugh because they are so true in how I deal with life as a parent. I'm a "quick start" with a bit of "fact finder." An analysis of this explains that one should not expect me to document procedures...and the last job I left I am certain I drove my replacement nuts -- I didn't exactly document how I did things. Because that might mean I had to do it the same way everytime, and that's not very much fun, now is it?

And then there are all of the personnel reviews, which remind me of all of my old bosses, including one I was so scared to death of (yeah, me) that it still makes me shutter to think about. But there were the ones that perplexed me, infuriated me, inspired me, encouraged me, "went to bat" for me, and had confidence in me.

I easily tossed old files from job searches, which largely included the time after I was laid off from "the firm." Dang, I can't believe how many places I applied to and interviewed with, only to land a job with one of the first ones I had applied with. I can recall interviewing with an ad agency who asked some of the dumbest questions that it's no wonder I ended up going back to work for a bank!

I haven't been in "Corporate America" for over 2 years, so I figured it was time to clean house and narrow down these files. I saved the "good stuff," and gleefully tossed the rest. My file cabinet can finally breathe!

Big Boy Bed

2009-04-27T16:01:00.000-07:00

In preparation for our newest family member, we bought Colin a big boy bed last month and we have slowly been transforming the guest room into his new "Cars room." It's actually more of a transportation/vehicle theme, and we had fun painting the walls with green hills, trees, and mountains, a blue sky with some clouds, and a road on the wall with some stick-on vehicles. The stick-ons are fun because each unique vehicle is driven by an animal. Very whimsical!

Here is one very happy Colin

We finally cleared the closet of all of "Mom and Dad's" stuff, and when I returned from Portland weekend before last, Colin spent his first night in his big, blue bed. He slept really well and we are also pleased that he is still napping. I hear stories of kids moved to a big bed who stop napping. Yikes! Not here!

The road is filled with things like a pink gorilla driving a bug, a bunny driving a race car, and a penguin driving the ice cream truck. Also note that the train table no longer lives in my front living room (yeah!)

Family News

2009-04-14T21:55:00.000-07:00

We would like to introduce our 20 week old bun in the oven, Baby Boy Sturm, due sometime end of August. We went today for our ultrasound and baby appears healthy and is doing well.

He cooperated with showing us the "gender goods," but no matter how hard we tried to make baby move around, he insisted on covering his face with his arm (and thus his face with his arm crossing him.) The picture looks a bit like rough clay-mation, but you can see his lips and cute lil nose, with his thumb and cute little fingers crossed just above his forehead.

It is amazing the see the functions of the heart and to realize it's only the size of the dime. Very fun to see God's craftsmanship in progress : )

So we went out for ice cream tonight and told Colin that baby will be a brother, and he just seemed happy to have his ice cream. We had asked a few weeks ago what he would name it if it was a boy. His reply: "Stinky Pirate!" (From his Pirate Pete's Giant Adventure book...) And we asked him what he would teach baby to do: "Brush his teeth!" He seemed to know it wasn't a girl. We asked what he would name a sister and he just said, "Nah!"

Happy Lil' Peach Tree

2009-04-12T22:11:00.001-07:00

In addition to planting a garden, we have planted several fruit trees (cherry and peach), and one of the peach trees is in the front yard. It's currently in bloom and looks like such a happy lil' tree!

Victory Garden

2009-04-12T21:58:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, unlike today, was gorgeous! It was our first weekend with temps in the 70's, and we basked in the sunshine and planted our first victory garden. Colin had fun helping Dad plant the seeds, and he seemed to understand the concept of planting and growing a garden (thanks to Curious George.) Now he wants to, "Eat peas," but that'll be another several months.

We'll see what actually grows. We have planted a range of things, from carrots and lettuce, to bell peppers and green beans. And later when it warms up we are going to plant watermelon and cantaloupe. Sorry, Grandma Sturm -- no zucchini! Should be an interesting experiment and it will give Colin and me something to go tend to each day in the summer.

Soccer Fun

2009-04-12T21:43:00.000-07:00

Colin is enjoying soccer each Friday with his lil' buddy from his PEPS group. We occasionally join him and his mom for lunch after soccer, so it makes for a fun morning for the boys! I think Colin has a secret crush on his mom, as he always asks if she will be there, as well.

He has a great coach who is lots of fun, and we even had a surprise visit from Coach Dan, his coach from last summer who recently returned from Iraq. It was good to see that he had returned safely from his duties abroad and he seemed so excited to see Colin.

Easter Sunday

2009-04-12T21:12:00.000-07:00

This morning Colin woke up to his Easter basket of goodies, as well as some eggs hidden around the house, a few of which were filled with mini-cars. Why go for candy when you can have a mini-tractor in a plastic egg? He DID, however, really enjoy the chocolate bunny, which is currently sans ears from all of his munching (the boy loves his chocolate like a true Sturm.)

We celebrated Easter by going to the 9:30 a.m. service. With no childcare for kids Colin's age on up, we took him to church with us and he lasted for the first 45 minutes -- pretty good! He was happy to come to "big church," especially since it meant he got a scone right before church (a tradition in our Crossroads Cafe each Easter.)

After church we made a trip to Starbucks, where Colin enjoyed his milk using the new bunny straw he got in his Easter basket. And the whole morning, he clung tightly to his new Dinoco helicopter which was also a treat from the Easter Bunny.

It rained all day, but Matt braved the elements to mesquite BBQ our turkey and we had a yummy turkey dinner complete with the fixin's. We have enough turkey to feed a small army, so guess what we'll be having all week?

And after dinner Colin decided he wanted to hunt eggs outside, even if it meant being in the rain. So Matt hid eggs in the rain and Colin had a blast hunting them down. He even wanted to do it again! It was a true PNW egg hunt! I don't EVER recall braving rain in West Texas to have an egg hunt. A sunburn, perhaps, but never the rain!

The Big Egg Hunt

2009-04-12T21:02:00.000-07:00

This past Thursday we hosted a household of kiddos from my MOPS group and we had an egg hunt playdate, complete with Easter story time, craft time (decorating/icing sugar cookies and eating them promptly, of course!), making bunny ears, and snack.

The house was full of 8 boys and 2 girls, so it was a fun and rambunctious group that was psyched to go outside and hunt eggs. Fortunately it was dry and 50 degrees, so it was decent hunting weather.

As you can see, this is the year of Lightning McQueen from the movie Cars, and he has car rain boots and a Lightning McQueen Easter basket. Make no mistake about his current toy love interest!

We had so much fun with all of our friends!

Easter Celebrations

2009-04-12T20:54:00.000-07:00

Easter celebration season lasted especially long this year, especially since this past week was spring break, and he celebrated Easter at preschool the week before.

His class had an Easter party, and I indulged a bunch of 2 and 3 year olds with a cute fruit treat I saw in my Parents magazine. They turned out pretty well, but cutting the cantelope into flower-shaped pieces was pretty labor intensive. I later found marshmallows cut into the shape of bunnies, which would have been a cute addition.

The day I picked Colin up from class, the teacher opened the door and all the kids rushed out, wearing their bunny ears and holding their cute milk jug bunny Easter baskets. Very creative!

Something New

2009-03-25T14:47:00.000-07:00

I will admit that I am not too creative in the meal planning department lately. We have been trying to fix meals that Colin might also like, which he usually doesn't really like, and then we all end up eating something none of us is too fond of. In my mental food prep list each week, I tend to think of food categories by nationality: Mexican, Italian, Thai, American, etc....but I found something a bit more inventive this week and fairly easy: Korean!

I bought some short ribs in the clearance section at Safeway (a great way to get great meat for 30 - 50 percent off). The check out clerk asked what I was going to do with the short ribs and I mumbled something about having to find a recipe....so here goes -- and it was pretty yummy:

KOREAN STYLE BROILED BEEF SHORT RIBS(Compliments of cooks.com)

2 lbs. short ribs
4 to 5 tbsp. sugar or honey (I used agave nectar)
3 tbsp. oil
6 tbsp. soy sauce
2 scallions, chopped (which I didn't have and it tasted fine)
2 cloves garlic, minced
Dash of salt and pepper
1/4 c. rice wine or sherry

Have ribs cut into 2 in square serving pieces. Score both sides of each piece deeply with knife. Cut away excess fat. Add sugar and oil to ribs. Mix well. Let stand.

Marinate 2 to 3 hours. Broil on both sides. Combine remaining ingredients; mix well with ribs. Serve hot.

Happy St Paddy's Day

2009-03-18T15:13:00.000-07:00

We joined friends yesterday at a place called Jump Planet. Colin had so much fun chasing around the other boys and jumping throughout the various 6,000 square feet of pure energy zapping kid fun! The boys then agreed to sit together so that I could capture them in all of their "green-ness" before we headed to lunch at Wendy's.

Winter Sledding Adventures

2009-03-18T14:39:00.000-07:00

Yep, still lots of snow around here! We had big cotton ball snow at the house last weekend, which turned into rain, but up in the mountains it made for at least 4 more good inches of fresh powder. We took Colin up to Snoqualmie Pass for some sledding fun, and he had an even better time rolling in the snow and having snow ball fights.

Max the Dog

2009-03-18T14:30:00.001-07:00

Our neighbors spent the past 3 1/2 months dog sitting a golden named Max since his owner was over doing missions work in Rwanda. Many afternoons in late February, particularly when the sun was out, our neighbors would go out into the cul de sac to throw a ball for him. I would then take Colin outside so he could "play" with Max.

Max has now gone back to his family, but Colin still talks about him and calls the neighbor's house, "Max's house." And every golden he sees is now named Max. Good bye, Max the Dog!

My Little Protestor

2009-03-18T14:25:00.000-07:00

Colin still hates the camera. This second picture was taken at home on picture day for his preschool. He looked so handsome that I wanted to get a picture of my own. I hope the Yuen Lui folks had better luck than I did....guess we'll find out in a few weeks!

Pirate Ships, Airplanes and Clown Fish, oh My!

2009-03-18T13:51:00.000-07:00

Colin enjoyed a visit from his grandparents the end of February. We were on the go much of the weekend, exploring new places.

We joined Matt at work that Friday and then walked down to Pike Place Market, which is always an interesting sensory experience with the flying fish. Colin gawked at all of the huge fish on ice, and one of the fish mongers was a bit of a comedian with Colin: he put the fish on the ground and pretended to do chest compressions as though he was doing CPR to revive the fish....silly, but interactive and cheap entertainment nonetheless.

We later had a traditional seafood dinner down at Ivar's on the waterfront. We sat next to a window where we could watch the ferries come in and out, and we were parked next to one of the fire department's fire boats, which Colin coined a pirate ship. Arghhhh! Too bad he didn't have on the cool pirate hat his grandma brought out for him.

The following day we made a visit to the Flight Museum, which was Colin's first visit there. The last time I was there was for a company event, so I didn't realize how many interactive exhibits there are for kids his age. He sat in a small airplane and had fun running through the space capsule. After lunch at the cafe we headed over to tour the Concord and Air Force One, which was retired in 1972. Gotta love the early 70's design that has been captured forever in this plane.

Colin and Dad aboard a retired Air Force One

The following day we headed over to the Aquarium, where Colin loves the wall of water right as you enter. It has so many great fish and is fun to observe. And this time he enjoyed watching (not touching, just watching) the starfish. He's a recent Nemo fan, so he called them "Pete the starfish" (Pete is from the fishtank in the movie.) The aquarium even has a special tank filled with 2 clown fish (Marlin and Nemo) and a Dory fish...kids just eat that up and now we know why! And thanks to one of his favorite books, he successfully named a stonefish, leaf fish, lion fish, and sea horses. Can you name those, too?

Thanks for a fun weekend together, Grandma and Grandpa!

February in Review

2009-02-26T14:22:00.000-08:00

Somehow I let February get away from me without many posts. This mamma has been a bit tired and sick, so my bed calls at nap time rather than the laptop!

For Valentine's Weekend, my mom came here from Texas for the weekend. Thanks, Grandma! I got to enjoy a date night with Matt in downtown Seattle, starting with dinner at Purple (an incredible wine and cheese bar/cafe) and a night at the show -- the Lion King. The Lion King was SOOO good, and I loved the music and the costumes! When the elephant entered in the beginning and walked down the aisle near us, people were cheering and clapping with such enthusiasm that is was obvious those around us were enjoying it, as well!

Colin enjoyed spending more time with Grandma, and Colin's mom and dad especially enjoyed sleeping in a bit over the weekend (such a rare treat to "see my eye lids"past 7 am!)

The following week was mid-winter break, and all the schools were on vacation, thus we had no preschool. Probably a good thing, though, as Colin joined the masses in getting the stomach flu that Thursday night. Yep, starting at 9:45 pm until 5:30 am I hung out with him, wishing he knew how to hug the porcelain goddess! I finally just built a palate in his room about 3 am so I could rest between sickness. And Matt was a trooper -- he did 2 loads of wash into the night, and we now know Pooh bear can go thought the washer and dryer twice in a night if he needs to and still look and smell pretty fresh! Poor guy must have thought his crib was jinxed. At one point he cried, "no bed, mommy, no bed!"

Then over the weekend our cat experienced a near death experience that we are glad neither Colin nor the neighbor girls witnessed. Elliot, our cat, snuck out the garage door when it opened (he's not an outside cat as he has no front claws!) Our neighbors and the 2 year old, very undisciplined 75 lb dog they are dog sitting saw Elliot and salivated and took off after Elliot. Elliot ran for his life to a bush in the front yard and Matt leaped into action like a Pappa Bear. Matt (a former dog owner of 2 dogs of a similar breed) ran and gave the dog a full body tackle before he chomped the cat. It took all of Matt's 200 lbs to tame the feverish excitement of the dog. I ran & rescued the cat, who at this point was trapped and was leaping up about 7 or 8 feet at the door frame looking for an escape. Bet he won't try an escape from the house anytime soon!

We've been battling the same crud that seems to be going around with others. It's just that time of year! Unfortunately I got it and it turned into an ear infection -- ouch! I don't recall having one of those before, and I woke up literally crying in the middle of the night. I felt like a helpless 12 month old! Is God trying to build my sympathy reserves for our offspring? Hmmmm.

And here we are, towards the end of Feb and we have yet another snow day and no school. The snow can take a hike for all I'm concerned. This one didn't stick around -- the roads are now clear and the lawns are white with glimmers of green grass showing through, but the "no school" thing was not in my plan today! But is it ever? Guess I really should watch the weather more closely before I head to bed the night before...

...and that's the month in review!

2 3/4 Old Today

2009-02-09T13:43:00.000-08:00

Colin "turned" 2 3/4 old today, In light of his 90 day countdown to turning 3, I thought I would capture a bit about what Colin is like today.

In the past few months Colin has begun to use lots of 2-3 word phrases, especially when it relates to something really motivating like a certain toy. Right now he likes to describe things with lots of possessives, and refers to himself in third person. Over the weekend when we left the house he said bye bye to Colin's house and bye bye to Max's house (Max is the neighbor's dog; not the neighbor's house, but the dog's house). He also talks a lot about Mommy's car and Daddy's truck, and reminds us "Colin sits in back."

Colin goes to preschool at a local church 2 mornings a week, and he talks lots about his friend Reggie, and has even named a few of his Little People after Reggie. Each night we ask him to tell us the things he wants to thank God for when we pray; Reggie usually makes the list. Very sweet. He also tells us "no hit" when we ask him about school, so you can imagine he has heard those words often at school....it's a class of 6 boys and 2 girls, so go figure, right?!

Colin still likes to spend time telling us about certain Veggie Tales stories, though we limit him to his Veggies coloring book (which has an abbreviated version of about a dozen stories) and some audio stories...the TV stories were becoming to much of a problem; he would sit and watch them all day if given a choice, so last week the Veggies videos made a disappearing act.

His favorite toys are his Pirate ship (loves pirates) and anything from the Cars movie, including Flo's Cafe and his Mac truck. We usually leave the house with a few cars tucked into his hands, and I am often amazed we have not yet lost McQueen or Doc, as they often make their way with him into a store when we run errands. He has also been known to stick a few cars into my purse as though I am his personal pack mule.

He still hates the camera, although he somehow learned to say "cheese" when I get out the camera (though he says it while looking away.) It's impossible to get him to "pose" for a picture, thus no cute family pictures of us together on the beach from our recent vacation. He squeals when you try to hold him for even 10 seconds and usually sticks out his hand in protest...here's a typical Colin photography moment:

And then there's the lovable side of Colin that makes my heart smile. When he hears me laugh it makes him so happy he has to give me a kiss and then a hug. I suppose he needs to hear me laugh more often so it doesn't seem like such a special occasion. He is tuning in more to the emotions of others, and his teacher tells us he is indeed a more sensitive child.

Colin LOVES to take a bath both before nap and before bed. I know, we're not exactly on the low water usage blue ribbon list, but he's such a fish. And he prefers the "big bath" (our master bath) over his own...hmmm, maybe because I have a TV and he is hopeful he could have a bath AND watch a show....not likely!

He takes after Matt in that he loves chocolate. Guess what the flavor of his cake and ice cream will be at his birthday this year? Yep, he is indeed a Sturm, no worries there, Grandpa! He also loves slightly defrosted frozen cherries and watermelon. The kid lived on watermelon and cantaloupe when we were in Mexico, so he should be fine for a few months until they are back in season.

At night, he likes to talk about the moon and the stars on his ceiling (the glow in the dark stickers) but he was so thrilled to actually see the real thing when we were in Mexico. We sat on the pool deck and watched stars each night so he could count them, "six, nine; six, nine" (Colin's current counting method.)

His current book favorites include anything with Pirates, as well as SkippyJohn Jones, Mister Seahorse, and Llama Llama Mad at Mama. We often remind him of the Llama Llama book when we are out shopping, though the little llama gets a treat at the end, so reminding him of the book then reminds him of a post-shopping treat. Not always practical, but it's a good book for my little anti-shopper.

Beach Playtime

2009-02-06T15:07:00.001-08:00

Colin had fun digging in the sand, as most kids do. But this time a year ago he wouldn't even set foot on sand. A lot changes in a year! He and Matt made a mini sand Colin, as well as a sea turtle which was covered in shells on his shell.

Food Favorites

2009-02-06T14:21:00.001-08:00

Since the resort was all-inclusive, there was an abundance of food all around pretty much whenever you had a tinge of hunger (OK -- who ever really goes hungry at these places?)

Here was Colin's favorite snack: Yep, that's pizza with hot dog ON it:

And here was my favorite dessert: Fried bananas and ice cream with a dash of chocolate. You really can fry anything and make it taste better...

And here are Colin and Dad at Fujiyama, where Dad is eating with his chop sticks and Colin is chowing down on chicken nuggets (notice all of the Veggie Tales friends that came to dinner with us.) the waiter accidentally brought him chocolate milk rather than just plain milk, and Colin took one sip and said, "Mmmmmm!" We explained it was just a Mexico thing so that he didn't expect that at home once we returned. He accidentally knocked about 1/4 of the glass over and made a mess and he was so distraught about the mess that we had to grab a waiter to get some help cleaning it so he would quit worrying about it.

Soaking in That Mexican Sunshine

2009-02-05T15:49:00.000-08:00

Colin is excited to head to the beach!

We have returned from our trip to Mexico relaxed and well rested -- and very happy with our decision to head down south for our winter "defrosting session" rather than over to Hawaii. The sunshine was fabulous and temps were in the balmy mid to high 80's. Both the ocean and pool water temps were great!...Not to mention the direct flight is a bit shorter than the haul out to the lovely islands...

We selected a very kid-centric all inclusive resort so that we could all have a fun time. Because of the Central Time zone, Colin woke around 8:30 am (loud outside our hotel window much after that) and we headed down to breakfast and then the beach. We took digging toys and buckets with us, so he enjoyed making many sand creations on the beach, which is huge for him since he wouldn't even walk on sand this time last year. At one point he was rolling on his belly on a sand mound, and we were just amazed at how far he has come!

He was fascinated by the "sales people" roaming the beach to sell their Mexican wares. The big items were hats, dresses, braids for your hair, trinkets carved out of wood or stone, and silver jewelry. We learned how to say , "no thank you" about 50 times a day. And Colin even learned to look them in the eye and say, "No thank you." Boy did they taunt him, though, with the mini toy version of a parasailer with a superman type of figure attached. They would fly around the mini parasailer right above Colin's head and walk around us in a circle, knowing the kid would beg for one. Sorry, Charlie!

The beach snack bar opened at noon, so Colin had a generous snack of fries and either hot dog pizza, a hot dog, or cucumber. Yep, in Mexico they have pizza with sliced hot-dog on it....how much better does it get for a 2 year old? We did then have lunch a few hours later at the buffet, though I got tired of having a tostada with refried beans, chicken, and pico de gallo. I was staying away from seafood and deli meat from their panini sandwiches, so my options were a bit more limited. I've learned at these things to eat their local dishes, as those are the ones they do the best. Creamed poblano pepper is pretty tasty, as is cactus steamed in butter and seasoning (OK, anything in butter can taste OK...)

After an afternoon siesta for the family, we headed to the Pirate Ship themed kids pool, which had water slides galore, including a froggie toddler slide. Colin had fun splashing around in the shallow end of the pool and playing with the water spray coming from the seal's mouth.

A few of the nights we made reservations at their nicer restaurants, including the Italian and Japanese restaurants. They had kids menus at these places, so while we were eating Dubin Mushi soup, California rolls, and Japanese stir-fry, Colin was chowing down on the chicken nuggets and fries, followed by an ice cream dessert. VERY kid friendly, which I can't emphasize enough. No one minded that he brought several toys with us to the restaurant and he got regular high fives from his waiter "amigos."

After dinner we would go sit and watch the moon and stars for a while, look for lizards coming out at night to snack on bugs near lighted windows, and chase Colin around the resort while he made new friends with other hotel guests. I would say we met very few Americans and mostly talked with our friends to the frigid north (Canada). There was also a large population of Mexicans at the resort, as Friday began a 5 day school holiday for them and many from Guadalajara were there on holiday.

Our room was nice but definitely not luxurious, which we have found to be true of similar resorts. It's not like you're hanging out in the room anyhow, so it doesn't really matter. Mexican resorts have crummy mattresses (read: HARD), so Matt bought us some bed cushions and pillows from the local Wal-Mart, making for much better sleep. Colin had his own mini-room off of ours, which was a nook filled with bunk beds. We brought him a PeaPod tent to sleep in and it worked fabulous! Pooh bear, his pillow and buddy, came with us, so he was cozy inside on his little mini air mattress.

Colin's sombrero

Other than some brief outings to nearby shops, we didn't do any excursions. Colin is too young for many of them, and riding around with no seat belt in a taxi in Mexico doesn't seem like the safest way to get around. We were fortunate that we were near the cruise ship terminal and we had a great flea market/Mexican shops nearby to haggle for some tourist items. I got Colin a sombrero and found a nice silver and amethyst necklace for myself. I was successful in negotiating the price of each of those down quite a bit -- it helped that I had limited dollars in my pocket and that I really had no ability to pay more...I didn't have more "on me!" When your feet start walking out the door, suddenly all you have in your pocket is suddenly enough to complete the purchase. I guess it also helps to go on a slow day, as well...

Birthday Celebration

2009-02-05T15:43:00.000-08:00

Yes, I am officially in my mid-thirties! We celebrated my birthday with a dinner at the Keg (gotta love their free meal coupon) and the following night we had friends join us out to dinner and then we returned to our house to enjoy a Coldstone ice cream cake -- yummy! And Colin enjoyed having other boys to run around with at the house, which meant he was ready to crash come bedtime!

"Don't Lick the Otter!"

2009-01-22T13:30:00.000-08:00

People say that kids say the funniest things. However, on Monday at the zoo, I caught myself saying what, out of context, might sound really funny.

We ventured to the north end of the zoo to see the bears, only to find that they were huddled up on a rock asleep. Across from them is a display with otters, and there are 2 gold otter statues nearby. As I'm checking out the otters, Colin wanders over to the statues otters and proceeds to start licking the otter on the nose (what caused that impulse, I'm not sure!)

In a moment of angst, I yell to Colin, "Don't lick the otter," realizing that every kid that has been that way has placed their grimy hands all over the otter.

And guess who got sick the next day? Yup, Mr. golden otter licker. As a parent with a toddler, we wash hands lots, use hand sanitizer, etc, but I guess I needed something more powerful on Monday.

Christmas in January

2009-01-18T20:54:00.000-08:00

Due to the crazy weather the last week of school before Christmas, Colin's Christmas program was cancelled. We were fortunate that his preschool re-scheduled the program this past Friday.

What could be cuter than watching a bunch of 2 year-olds sing "This Little Light of Mine?" While one boy screamed to the top of his lungs, the little girl next to him covered her ears in sheer terror...very funny!

Colin stood among his friends the entire time and did some of the signs for the songs. However, during the first song, he kept saying, "No, my mommy, mommy, mommy..." and was pointing to me. I think he was meaning to say, "No, my mommy sings with me," since I sang these songs to him every night for the past month...I have it on video...too funny!

Don't you just love the star headbands? They sang "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," thus they are wearing stars on their head...We were pleased to get one more wearing out of his red Christmas sweater : )

Big Government Gone Bad

2009-01-08T21:56:00.000-08:00

OK, so I don't usually post my views on politics or government issues. I have other priorities in life. But when my other priorities in life collide with Big Government, I have a bone to pick.

Consignment Store Shoppers, read and weap.

So I'm watching the big game tonight with friends and another fellow mommy and savvy consignment shopper is asking what I think about this "Bankruptcy" law going into effect Feb 10...the law about lead paint testing. I guess I've been living under a snow pit for too long and haven't been paying attention, or I've been out Goodwill shopping and haven't been reading the news: Buying clothing and toys is about to get a whole lot more complicated and expensive, depending on the interpretation of this new law.

I am a consignment store momma and actually enjoy sifting the racks of Goodwill for a good clothing bargain. Two weeks ago at Goodwill I found 4 pairs of Gymboree pants from last season (barely worn) and a Gymboree button down shirt from last Christmas all for less than $5 each. It doesn't get any better than that. Cute and cheap is my kind of shopping.

So I'm not sure if consignment stores are all about to have to chunk all of their clothing, but with the frailty of the economy this would be a horrible nail to put into the coffin of the children's consignment clothing store business.

The next time I want the government's opinion on my son's clothing I will ask you, thank you very much. Until then, mind your own business and fix problems that really need fixing!!

Bathroom Update

2009-01-04T20:17:00.000-08:00

During our Christmas blizzard, Matt was hard at work indoors, transforming our 2 upstairs bathrooms into a more updated look. We (I mean, Matt), replaced the cabinets, counter tops, mirrors, lights, and paint. It wasn't a full bath remodel but has really freshened up the look of these rooms and I just love my new counters!

Here's the old master counter (I forgot to take a picture before demo; this picture is from '05 when we were having the home inspected, but you get the idea about the 80's white tile counter):

And here's the new cabinets, mirrors, lighting, etc. It really gives the room a whole new feel!:

The Stocking IS the Treasure

2009-01-04T20:06:00.001-08:00

Last year I looked high and low for a stocking for Colin and just couldn't find one that I liked. As I was lamenting the lack of great stocking designs on our family blog, Great Aunt Betty came to the rescue! She offered to make Colin's stocking, and she designed one with 2 puppies just as we had wanted.

This Christmas as Colin peered into his stocking for goodies from Santa, I couldn't help but admire and treasure the stocking itself, such a special gift from Aunt Betty. Thanks so much!!

Snow, More Snow

2008-12-29T21:16:00.000-08:00

Sledding fun!

Santa Snowman

Our outside tree with lights looked gorgeous under the blanket of snow!

The police cruiser went undercover.

We are finally thawing out here in the Tundra of the PNW, and I thought I'd give a glimpse into what it was like for the past 2 weeks of snow:

It all started the day Matt was in Utah on a business trip with my car at the airport. It had snowed all day and when his 5 hour delayed flight finally made it back to town, he had to navigate some hairy roads and hills to make it home. The interstate hadn't been plowed and it was a mess! Fortunately most people were already home by then and he managed to eek my car into the neighborhood just behind our house, as there was no way he could make it up the hill to our house.

The coming days were a mix of snow off and on, followed by my mom's flight arrival on Monday. On Tuesday, Matt and Colin took the ladies of the house in to Seattle to the Nutcracker. This was our first time to the the PNW Ballet's Nutcracker, and it was great! Seattle roads, especially in Belltown, were just a mess. Seattle refuses to use salt (environmental reasons) or any kind of chemical de-icer, and they use rubber-tipped snow plows. They just considered these past 2 weeks of snow a nuisance that must be tolerated; commuters and drivers considered it a hazard and a nightmare!

It rained Christmas eve over the snow, making the packed snow into a mucky road slush that was even harder to drive through. Rain over snow is a weird phenomenon. and then....

....It snowed here Christmas morning, adding to the white beauty and slush. We were happy to have the snow plow arrive in our cul-de-sac the following morning. It's a rare occasion to have roads groomed even into our neighborhood. It was so helpful, though, as roads were getting difficult and scary to drive before the arrival of the glorious snow plow!

I will always have a lasting memory of the UPS man who deserves kudos for his service to deliver on Christmas eve. He parked half a mile away and trekked through the slush and snow with his hand truck to deliver Christmas packages to us and to others. He traversed up and down hills to get to us and our neighbors on foot. That's more than we can say for USPS, who didn't deliver for the 3 days before Christmas. The next time we see our UPS man he's getting a great big thanks!

Christmas 2008

2008-12-29T20:54:00.001-08:00

My mom's flight made it into town on time (can you believe it with all the weather problems?) and we enjoyed having her in town the week of Christmas. The snow was around all week and just kept coming every few days, making for some crazy road conditions. We were so glad to have Matt's 4x4 truck to navigate getting out of our neighborhood and around in un-groomed parking lots.

Colin is a little camera shy; actually, he hates the camera, so this is the best we could do for the Christmas Eve picture after church. He did pretty well sitting in "big boy" church and really enjoyed clapping with the rockin' tunes from the Three Wisemen.

Take a picture quick before I dig into presents, mom! Notice Elliot in the background sneaking behind the tree to get at the curly ribbon, which he just loves, and which makes him so sick!

This was a year of Cars. he just loves everything Cars related, especially McQueen, which he is holding here. He also really likes pirates and has a pirate ship fleet that will have many fun pirate battles. He also enjoyed reading the "Pirates Night Before Christmas" this Christmas season.

After enjoying presents, Dad and Colin headed down the hill to go sledding. Colin enjoyed riding backwards, which is what he and his dad called, "Mater style," since Mater drives backwards in the movie Cars. Remember...all things Cars!

Snow Play

2008-12-18T16:28:00.000-08:00

This afternoon I pulled Colin around our cul-de-sac on his sled. Talk about a good cardio workout! Needless to say, we didn't make too many rounds! Remind me of this in August when it's roasty and 90 degrees (smile!) It's actually fun out there because it is super powdery and somewhere in the mid 20's. Good thing I bought snow boots at Target a few days ago because we sure did need them today!

Colin greets the neighbor's snowman. He kept telling me the snowman needed a hat.

Yep, the snow is up past Colin's knees. He tried his best to follow in my tracks to make for an easier path.

Update on Elliot

2008-12-18T10:11:00.001-08:00

Thanks for those of you who have asked how Elliot is doing. As I reported last month, a cancerous skin mast re-appeared on his head and he had surgery the first week of December.

He did well in surgery and once again sported a gorgeous e-collar for a few weeks, which he is happy we have now removed. The surgery successfully removed the mast, and we will hope yet again that this is the last of it.

Non Snow Day Cookie Baking

2008-12-18T09:58:00.001-08:00

Yesterday on our non-snow, snow day, we baked cookies.

As is the tradition at our house, we use non-traditional shapes, such as ducks and fish (both salmon and angel fish.) Salmon are actually very Christmas-y if you paint them in their spawning green and red (see above.) And for some reason Colin liked the stars and dictated they must all be blue. Then he proceeded to eat them all, so we have no more stars.

To Snow, Or Not to Snow....

2008-12-18T09:33:00.000-08:00

Colin's Police Cruiser is Snowed In

...That was the question...

Yesterday was Colin's last day of preschool and was to be his Christmas Party. I was so disappointed when they cancelled school (we follow the local school district closures.) They were cancelling not because it was snowing but because forecasters said it would snow later in the day.

So, erring on the conservative side, we sat at home and baked cookies all day. And it warmed to a balmy 38 degrees during the day and the last traces of snow from over the weekend were completely gone. The roads were bone dry. No snow. Nada. Zero. Zilch! Even when I went to bed at 11 pm last night there was still no snow.

But "funny" thing happened in the middle of the night. The snow started falling in buckets, and it hasn't stopped yet. No school today, of course, and stranded motorists are everywhere! It's kind of pretty to watch from home, but the only problem is that Matt has my 2 wheel drive car at the airport and his flight returns in a few hours. Hmmmm. I took the truck in case I needed it in getting Colin from school yesterday and it looks like he's the one in need of his 4x4 truck to get home from the airport. Murphy's Law, you know.

It's hard to explain to outsiders how just 2-4 inches of snow can shut a city down. I grew up in parts of Texas that could easily have 2 feet of snow in a bad storm. Four inches of snow would have never closed school. Let me explain. In Texas, we had NO HILLS to navigate. Add to the cold weather a layer of ice under the snow and put your vehicle on a steep incline and see if you can even make it down the street (I live at the top of a hill in my subdivision...) Then, add to that a lack of snow removal equipment, as well as people who rarely drive in the snow, and you get one big mess. Really, it's the ice that makes it so scarey around here. Once you get going, the only thing to stop you going down the hill is your neighbors car or house. Doesn't sound like much fun to me, right?!

Best Mashed Potatoes You'll Ever Eat!

2008-12-18T09:17:00.001-08:00

The first week of December was our "busy" week for the holiday season, as we then had Matt's company party on that Saturday, Dec. 6. The party was held in the Pampas Room of El Gaucho, a locally renowned steak eatery. If you don't like steak, this isn't the place for you. Fortunately I am the offspring of a whole family of cattle ranchers, so I was right in my grove.

I won't bore you with another picture of us in tux and formal...it was the same "get-up" as the Group Health Gala back in October. And besides, I was having so much fun visiting with all of my former co-workers that I forgot to whip out the camera.

Our dinner was divine! I had a steak topped with some very caloric tasting lobster and creamy sauce...and then the sides came around. And this is where is gets super yummy. The mashed potatoes are the best mashed potatoes I had ever eaten -- they were filled with lobster! How yummy, clever, and oh so tastey!

As is also the tradition at these parties, each employee gets 10 tickets to put into various gift bag drawings...Matt stuffed all of his into the bag for Purple Cafe, and won! While others were competing over the flashy Gene Juarez Spa, Nordstrom, REI, etc, Matt went for one of the "quieter" contenders and his strategy worked...so guess where our next date night will be?

Women's Christmas Friendship Dinner

2008-12-18T09:04:00.000-08:00

Nadene, the mentor mom for our table, designed and created this gorgeous centerpiece.

These were the guests at our table.

The day after the big Providence Gala, my MOPS group hosted a table at the annual Women's Christmas Friendship Dinner. For the past 2 years I have hosted a table on my own, and having to provide and set-up all the items myself is always a challenge -- it takes over 2 hours alone just to set-up and decorate a table for 8. This year, three other women from my MOPS group provided various components for the table and set-up was a breeze!

We used my Christmas tree dishes (gotta love Christopher Radko for Target) and had a gorgeous star centerpiece (designed by Nadene), as the theme of the night was "Star of Wonder." The entertainment for our evening was Taproot Theatre's "The Foolish Wiseman," and they did a great job. It was indeed a fun evening among friends!

Ho, Ho, Ho!

2008-12-08T23:13:00.001-08:00

ps -- Our evening at the Providence Gala wasn't complete without a visit with Santa. This guy was the real McCoy! None of this fake cotton beard stuff! He reminded me of the late George Roberts.

Providence O'Trees

2008-12-08T22:28:00.000-08:00

This was a mid-course palate cleansing sorbet served in an ice sculpture - wow!! What a magnificant display.

And this was the version of the ice sculpture at my plate.

The aviation-themed tree was super fun, and the Fisher-Price Little People, in particular, caught my eye. I'm with a 2 year old all day long...what can I say?!

This was the Dr. Seuss tree and display.

Last week we attended the Providence O'Trees Gala as a part of Matt's work, and I was so excited to go as I have seen video footage of the auctioned trees on TV for the past many years....

This delightful evening, a fun "excuse" to get dressed up in our formal attire, was a great way to start our Christmas Holidays. The evening included both silent and live auctions, and the live auctions were conducted while we ate dinner and were "entertained" by Evening Magazine's John Curley.

Designers decorate themed trees that are auctioned at a premium, and part of the exciting part of the evening includes milling about, looking at the trees and meeting the tree designers. I liked the one with the aviation theme, which had aviation toys on it (Little People's blue and pink planes - see the pink plane above), and well as other toys Colin would have loved. The Dr. Seuss themed tree was fun, as well!

And no, we didn't go home with one of those gorgeous trees, but we had a ton of fun!

Happiness Comes in Small Packages

2008-12-08T22:22:00.001-08:00

16 oz pkgs of Candy Cane Joe-Joe's to be exact. Mmmmmmm!

OK, so I do have more to blog about than Joe-Joe's right now, as last week was a busy holiday week. I'm taking a breather and will post more throughout this week to update you on our adventures of the week. Until then, sit back with a glass of cold milk and Joe-Joes and listen to some Christmas tunes....

Thanksgiving

2008-12-02T15:05:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving Day -- yes, Colin is not fond of the camera!

Colin was happy to chase these free roaming geese at the Denver Zoo. Forget the animals in their cages!

Colin and Grandma "go fishing" at the Denver Children's museum.

Colin adored the dog at his Grandma and Grandpa's office. She played endless amounts of fetch and then waited for her treat from Colin.

We spent last week in Colorado for Thanksgiving and enjoyed the week with Matt's family. Colin had fun exploring the Denver Children's Museum, as well as the zoo. Thanks for the special treat, Grandma and Grandpa!

Colin was a good travel buddy this trip and only screamed briefly out of protest when we he figured out he had to sit in his car seat on the plane and couldn't sit like Mom and Dad in the plane seat. He is definitely exerting his opinion on certain things he never cared about until the past few weeks. On the way home we skipped the battle and just gate checked the car seat, which also let him sit in the middle seat between us.

We enjoyed seeing all of the home updates Grandma and Grandpa have done to their home - they have been hard at work over the past few years and it looks great! Thanks for having us out to Colorado!

In Memory of Ms. Adel

2008-11-23T22:14:00.000-08:00

Adel and Colin, January 2007

The Tuesday morning after Labor Day in 2006, I returned back to work from maternity leave. I honestly had not fully expected to return at all, but this was something I needed to do for our family for a time.

The first day I brought Colin in it was a little past 7am, and Ms. Adel, Colin's care provider, was buzzing about the room with her coffee while she listened to Phantom of the Opera. I can still remember it so clearly, as though it was a foreshadowing of our coming relationship together as parent/care provider:

No more talk
of darkness,
Forget these
wide-eyed fears.
I'm here,
nothing can harm you -
my words will
warm and calm you.
Let me be
your freedom,
let daylight
dry -your tears.
I'm here,
with you, beside you,
to guard you
and to guide you . . .

Ms. Adel had such a special way of understanding just how to work with Colin through feeding challenges -- how to get him to nap just right. I never doubted her ability to care for him in a way that at times far surpassed my expectations. I was emotionally running on empty much of the fall while she cared for him (5 months total) and she was my lifeline.

Many days when I went to pick him up, she was singing to him a Russian lullaby and she was speak to him such beautiful Russian words. Colin was lucky to have her full love and adoration, as were do many other children at The Ark.

Sadly, Ms. Adel passed away just 2 short days ago. We are shocked and saddened that she is gone. Thank you, Ms. Adel, for standing beside us as new parents and guiding us and for loving Colin.

I had so much I wanted to share with you about Colin from the last time we spoke. We will think of you often and will tell Colin all about you.

Family Fall Pictures

2008-11-18T14:03:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share with you some of the pictures we had taken last month in the beautiful fall foliage -- Emily did such a great job, as we realize photographing Colin is probably harder than herding cats....

Iron Chef Competition

2008-11-16T21:28:00.000-08:00

Our team's meal is the one on the left.

Chef Matt prepares the gorgonzola cream sauce.

The heat was on last night as we enjoyed a fun evening at Matt's company team-building event. His division divided in half and competed in an iron chef-style event at the Blue Ribbon Culinary Center.

Each team had 1 1/2 hours and one chef each to plan, cook, and present a meal to a judge for competition. After cooking the meal, we would then all share in the "spoils of war" and have dinner together.

Put together a room full of super competitive, Type A consultant personalities, and even the details of making a molten lava cake can get a bit "hairy!" And thus the term "having too many cooks in the kitchen."

Our team was given secret ingredients of steak and chocolate (yum!), and the competition was given secret ingredients of salmon and pears. From there, we met with our chef and hatched a plan for our dinner.

Matt was on the "steak" prep crew, preparing the steaks and a chimichurri sauce, as well as the gorgonzola cream sauce for the asparagus. I worked with others to create the oh so yummy molten chocolate lava cake and freshly prepared caramel sauce. Our team also made a risotto and some awesome asparagus, using a 60 second pyramid cooking method. Sounds fascinating, doesn't it?

We were led by Chef Mike, an absolutely awesome chef, and it was so much fun! The feverish pace to have our plate all prepared at 8 pm sharp to beat out the competition was intense, and it's amazing that that many amateur cooks in a big kitchen can actually get dinner prepared in that amount of time.

Our competition created a salmon cake topped with avocado and a chipolte cream sauce, as well as a potato salad and a side of veggies. For their desert, they prepared a pear cobbler with whiskey infused fig sauce and whip cream topping.

Both meals turned out really well, and it was a fun, fast paced way to get to know everyone better. And, of course, this was indeed a competition. And yes, we WON!!!!

Thank You, Veterans!

2008-11-11T13:29:00.000-08:00

When I was in 8th grade, I gave an address to hundreds of people gathered in the highschool auditorium of my small home town. I can remember the preparations that went in to planning my speech and rehearsing, as well as the exact dress I wore for the occasion. And although the lines of my speech have faded in memory, the memory of the Veterans gathered that day will always stay in my heart. There were still a few WWI veterans in attendance at the time, as well as many WWII vets who still wore as many portions of their uniform as they could still fit into.

Words cannot properly express how thankful I was then, as I am am today,for the sacrifices made by the veterans in our country. Uncle Clint, Great Grandpas Sturm and Walker -- we thank you for your service to our country.

And this year we have special prayers for someone special serving in Iraq. We recently heard from Colin's soccer coach, who is currently serving in Iraq. Coach Dan, we pray the Lord continues to keep you safe and that He brings you home safely.

O.W.L.ing

2008-11-06T15:43:00.000-08:00

For the past few months, Matt and I have been taking an intense parent education class called, "It Takes Two To Talk," which follows the same titled workbook created by our great friends north of the border (Canada, for those of you geographically challenged!)

This class is designed to equip parents with strategies and extra support to use on a daily basis when interacting with your child to develop language. This hands-on class is with 5 other similarly-suited sets of families, and is led by a fantastic speech pathologist who then does video sessions of us with our children to provide feedback.

And we have homework and our guidebook to read, as well. Who knew the business of communicating with a 2 year old could be so multi-faceted and rigorous!

It has been a great support for me to hear from other moms, in particular, who struggle to communicate with their own children. It's a blessing to meet each week with others who understand us so well and who offer what had worked for them in their families, as well.

Many have asked what we are learning in this class. One thing they emphasize from the beginning is an acronym "O.W.L." which stands for Observe, Wait, and Listen. This is what we are do with our kiddos to see what they are interested in so that we can develop their communication skills around the things they are interested in (they learn best when we connect with what interests them most -- duh, isn't that how it is for us as adults, as well? How easily we forget!) So now, we have an OWL magnet on our fridge, compliments of our teacher, to remind us to OWL. If only she knew it's on our fridge with about 40 other animal magnets and kinda gets lost.

And I kinda get lost when OWLing, too! OWLing is harder than you think, but we're trying! One day at a time and with God's grace, we are trying!

Halloween Weekend Fun

2008-11-05T15:11:00.000-08:00

We had fun this past weekend with a Halloween Party with friends and then a busy weekend with Grandma in town from Texas. We saw The Green Sheep, a children's play where you sit in the sheep pen looking for the green sheep (just like the book by Mem Fox). We also hit the children's museum, as well as the aquarium. Now that it's colder outdoors, it's nice to have some fun indoor activities to check out!

Thanks for the visit, Grandma! Colin had fun watching the Texas/Tech game with you! Go, Tech!)

The Unwelcomed Return

2008-11-05T14:34:00.000-08:00

A few weekends ago we sat cuddled on the couch watching a movie -- our furry feline lay between us and was enjoying some quiet time with his adult humans while the little on was off to the Land of Nod.

It had been a particularly long week, as Matt had spent the majority of the week in Hawaii on a project with work, and now we were enjoying some quiet time, watching a movie. Elliot got an extra dose of loving, as he particularly enjoys when Matt give him a good rubbing between his ears and anywhere on his head.

But sadness hit us with this all too innocent cat cuddle. Matt discovered a lump on Elliot's head. It was small and would have gone unnoticed by most people for quite some time. But you see, Elliot has had 2 rounds with cancerous mast cell skin tumors, and this is exactly what they had looked like before.

We spent the following few weeks hoping it was just a bug bite, and knowing in our heart it was not. I prayed for him lots and wished it would just go away. it didn't.

So today I made the trip I am all too familiar with and hauled Elliot in to our local pet hospital for the typical procedure - aspirate it with a needle to grab cells for testing. It all went very quickly and Elliot was a trooper and didn't do too much hissing in the process. Hey, I'd hiss if someone stuck a needle in my forehead just to sample a bump on my head. A bump, mind you, that is no larger than the head of a small pencil eraser.

And the vet, like the two times before, said the sample contained mast cells, indicating this is another tumor. Though we don't need to operate tomorrow, over the coming weeks he will need to make a return visit. I was also offered the opportunity to seek out an oncology specialist in our area to discuss alternate treatments and regimens going forward. But no one knows the cause of this particular cancer, and no one knows a way to prevent it.

So I cuddled up my 14 lb. Indiana farm kitten into my arms, offered him a sweet hug and rubbin' on his scruff, and then placed him back into his carrier. Sad, not surprised. Hopeful this is the last time; prepared for the battle ahead.

Yes, cancer is an ugly and unwanted guest in our house right now. We love you, Elliot!

A Tip for all Caffeine Addicts

2008-10-30T15:30:00.000-07:00

A friend recenly tipped me off on a way to save 20 % on your future Starbucks purchases -- at Costco you can now buy $100 worth of giftcards for just $79.99! And if you forget about it the next time you are in line at Costco, never fear -- their marketing machine is out in full force handing out Starbucks cards to stuff into your cart right before you empty your wallet at check-out.