Eric the Great

So, there really is no particular reason for this post just that I wanted put out there to the universe that I have a great husband. He's not perfect but he's perfect for me. Here are some reasons I think he is nifty:
--He always seems to know when I need to be cheered up and he cheers me up.
--He always tells me the truth. Even when he "accidentally" orders something online.
--He is a great Dad. I mean who else would let their kid paint their back with acrylic paint?
--He worries about me when I'm late.
--He tells me I'm "hot."
--He doesn't care that I don't wear makeup.
--He puts up with my late-night cop-show obsession.
--He loves Christmas and picking out gifts.
--He's my best friend!!!!!
Cheesy, I know. But, I love him:)

Christmas

My long silence from the blog world has come to an end. I'm to tired to concoct complete sentences so I think I will make a list of observations concerning the Christmas season.
-Children have little sense of time. Unless Christmas is today or tomorrow they are unhappy.
-Children ages 4-6 can only look at Christmas Trees (even nicely decorated ones being sold for charity) for so long. Like may 30 minutes. That's really all they can handle.
-There is way too much sugar involved in this season.
-Kids have an amazing ability to give and are genuinely charitable when given the opportunity.
-It's actually a good thing if you husband orders his own Christmas present. It's easier that way.
-I really have no idea what I want for Christmas. A maid, a nanny, world peace I just can't decide.
-Christmas is magical.
-Real trees are better if you can.
-There is nothing funner to me than singing my child to sleep with Christmas songs. Until he doesn't fall asleep, then it's not so fun.
-I will forget to get a gift for someone and they will get me the best gift ever. This causes me stress.
-People who know that I eat GF and Sugar-Free will have a memory-lapse and bring me candy, chocolate, cookies etc. And they mean well....
-I love Christmas I really do. I love the magic, the suspense, the meaning of the season.

The long run.....

So for the first time in a long time (think months or years) I ran 6 miles today. 2 of them were intervals (fast sprints followed by walking). I had forgotten how much I love running. Diana and I ran up the canyon and it was cold but it a beautiful crisp early winter day. Then I went running tonight with Eric. I was a bit sore but the endorphins were amazing. I felt invigorated. I started to think about how muscles only grow when you stretch them (ouch). Later tonight I read a blog of close friend going through a very trying time. I was struck by the similarities in life. Only when we stretch spiritually and emotionally do we truly grow. Just like running, it's painful. Some of the most painful times my life have led to the greatest periods of growth and the struggles I face on an on-going basis slowly add strength and faith to my life.

Amaze

Amaze: To fill with wonder. To show or cause astonishment.

Things that amaze me....
~Modern technology
~Cedar's vocabulary
~Eric's ability to plan and execute activities, lesson plans, workshops etc.
~Babies
~The number of times in a day parents (!) call their kids' cell phones while the children are in class!
~Running Water
~A child learning to read
~You can be married to someone for nearly 9 years and still learn new things about them everyday.
~Faith
~People who believe e-mail forwards.
~The human body
~Animals
~The human capacity to love
~The internet
~GPS
~Texting. Really it just frightens me. I'm incapable.
~The creativity of young minds

My so-called life

So, it has been a crazy couple of days and I wanted to just write a list of things I've learned in the last couple of weeks. Free-style so to speak......
-Children can and will change their minds constantly--this only gets worse after puberty.
-I have the cutest nephews and nieces in the world. No really, I do.
-Even big kids needs parents.
-It is possible to survive a 9-10 hour car ride with a bored 6-year-old. Possible....but not pleasant.
-Even if your parents don't live in the house you grew up in (or even lived in ever), visiting them is still like coming home.
-Women (I can say this as I'm one of them) who only have one child can become extremely neurotic about that one child. True story.
-Never underestimate the number of songs a group of 12 year old girls can sing from memory. And never, encourage them to sing them. Ever...
-You can never be too careful when watching your kids or any kids for that matter.
-Family are the best friends of all (cheesy I know)
-Little girls and little boys are not the same--they're just not.
-Never disconnect the wireless in a home. Never, never, never.
-There are several (at least 2) fast food establishments that find it acceptable to put processed cheese on tacos. I'm not kidding. And yes, it's nasty. very, very nasty. TVP might also be an ingredient. Such a disgrace to the taco!
-It's very exciting to watch your child learn to read and write. Very tender.
-There are some people in the world for whom rules and regulations are unchangeable, final and omniscient. I don't like these people and generally they cannot or will not deal with me.
-Most things are nowhere near as big a deal as I think they are at the time. They just aren't.
-Life is good.

Lucille Bal, Raggedy Ann and Me

Yes, it's red. It was masterfully hennaed (new word) but Bobb, Annette and Shelbi and I love it!

Recently got a full set of teeth.....

So, after several hours of agony (somehow I missed the fact that getting a bridge involves having two perfectly good teeth whittled down to nubby stubs-ouch!) I got my temporary bridge soon to be followed by a beautiful (read: expensive) porcelain bridge. It is so weird to not have my retainer anymore and not have a big whole in my smile! Woo-hoo. It's great!

I swallowed my tooth

It's true. There I was sitting eating a lovely black bean and cheddar cheese quesadilla on rice tortilla when I noticed my artificial tooth that has been a dear friend of mine for over 15 years now was missing. It was nowhere to be found. A few weeks ago the tooth part became disconnected (okay it broke) from the retainer part and I have been wearing it by carefully placing the tooth (which has a small metal stick attached to it) on top of the retainer and then putting it in my mouth. A real trick! But alas, it is gone-lost to my digestive system. I'm hoping that it doesn't get lodged somewhere in my digestive system. Please tell me that can't happen. Eric thinks I should try to recover it (don't think about that too much) but I think it is time to let go. He's been a good tooth but he's gone now. Tomorrow I must find a dentist who will agree to make me another flipper and not a bridge or an implant (very spendy). sigh.....

It's Official the once Yearbook Editor is now the Yearbook Adviser

It is official. I'm now the proud adviser of over 20 eager students who in the course of the next 8 months will create a 56-page full-color yearbook. I'm pretty sure that I have bitten off far more than I will want to chew but I have a passion for yearbooks (i'm weird) and the kids are just so darn excited about the whole thing! This will be the first year that Walden School has a "real" yearbook. We have the challenge of creating something meaningful for 275 students Kindergarten through 12th grade. I have already vetoed some less than stellar ideas (bubble theme?) but I have been amazed at the creativity my students have shown already in their attempts to come up with a theme and book cover. I can't wait to see what they come up with!

Of Monticello, babies and the greyhound station

It has been a long time since I posted on the blog. I have been in Virginia for the last week helping Becca and Mike move with their newborn. I have had a really good time and it has been a learning experience for me. I have always wanted to visit the American South and Virginia is definitely south of the Mason-Dixon line. Due to dietary restrictions I have had no fried chicken or chitlings but I have had a lot of pepsi which is really popular here. I have been called ma'am and today at the CVC pharmacy an old woman blessed me and jack. I'm not kidding it was really creepy. The greyhound station was um...interesting perhaps a preview to what tomorrow holds! I get to ride greyhound from Charlottesville to Union Station in DC then take the metro to Rosslyn metro station then take a metro bus to Dulles Airport and then fly to Atlanta then to Salt Lake. 15 hours. Definitely not a record for me but pretty long for domestic travel. I'm kind of sickly excited for the adventure. Today I went to Monticello. It was an interesting experience. I had some inner ethical rumblings that I will have to write about later. I don't know what it is about old southern ladies but they really don't agree with me. The old lady giving the tour got really mad at me when becca's cell phone (I borrowed it so when I got lost I could call-which did indeed happen) rang (it was becca saying they didn't need me to pick up salt). The tour guide informed I would have to leave the tour if I was going to be on the phone. I felt compelled to explain myself--I had tried to turn it off but couldn't figure it out--but alas it wasn't a scheduled pause in her annoying memorized lines so I didn't get the chance. Well, it is late and I should go to bed. I've had a great time here. Jack is an amazingly good baby. Very happy and very healthy. Becca and Mike are fantastic parents--very calm and willing to approach parenthood with a sense of humor (always a plus). They are going to do great!

Adoption

Dear Friends and Family,

We feel like it is time we update our friends and family concerning our adoption situation. We are still working with LDS Family Services and our profile has been shown to prospective Birth Parents several times. We have also explored other options—Utah State DCFS and international adoption. Due to health conditions that Eric and I are both medicated for, we do not qualify for the majority of international programs. We are still open to a child in state custody should the right child come along. We appreciate all the care and concern we have received from friends and family and feel confident that the Lord has plans we just don’t know about yet!
Should you come into contact with a potential birth parent or become aware of a potential please feel free to contact us. Feel free to give out our phone number, email addresses etc. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions! The following is the web address where you can access our profile with LDS Family Services:

http://www.providentliving.org/ses/birthmother/searchprofiles/0,12268,2133-1,00.html

then search for the profile: EricandSharon

Love,

Eric, Sharon & Cedar

New Blog Background

SO, I decided to spruce up the old blog and give it a new template. I was clever enough to find this swanky snail one online (no idea why I picked this one, I just like the snail) but when I changed over it deleted my pics. So, I guess it is high time I got some new ones anyway. So, new pictures forthcoming.

Of Audits, sleep deprivation and other matters

So, I survived audit week. For those of you who don't know (and I'm sure don't care to know) all schools have to undergo and independent audit every year. It is painstaking two-day process preceded by meticulous preparation and a lot of lost sleep and stress. We have always done very well and this year was no exception but the whole concept of an audit causes me to twitch and makes me really need more caffeine. Well, all I want to say is that we survived, we did well and I'm not doing any work until Monday morning. I feel like I'm in college again and I just finished my last final. YIpppeeeeee!

4th of July festivities!

So, we are back from Mexico. It was a good, productive trip and we had a great time but it is nice to be home. Cedar really struggled with the lack of structure the last week in Mexico but he is doing much better now that we are home. We have had a lot of fun the last few days celebrating the 4th. We promised Cedar we would buy lots of fireworks this year but we got back and realized we can't do fireworks at our house. We are in a restricted fire zone (totally understandable--the mountain is so brown it's scary) so we did all our fireworks with our good friends the Fredericksons. Cedar had so much fun watching the fireworks with 7-year-old Bryant. Everytime we set one off the two boys would run around in circles screaming. It was pretty cute. On the fourth we missed the parade (I took benadryl the night before for some bad mosquito bites!) but we got to go to a reptile show. Cedar loved it! That afternoon the Fredericksons set up a giant slip and slide at the park. Cedar's shorts were too big and they kept falling down but he loved it! Last night we watched the Stadium of Fire fireworks from the lawn in front of the Marriott Center. It has been a great holiday weekend. Some parts of the Fourth of July are nauseating to me (I don't dress my child in red white and blue--I just can't do it) but I really do love the holiday. Now it's back to work. 12 days til my audit and counting. If only accountants had a sense of humor...........

Charros del Sanctuario

Today we had quite an adventure. Eric had a contact from a previous visit to San Miguel (where we have been the last week) and was able to find a real Mexican ranch we could go visit. We had some less than stellar directions and we procured a taxi truck (yes, that says truck). We squeezed nine people into a the taxi and set out. To make a long story short we didn't know where we were going, we got lost, tried to make phone calls and could find no one with a phone to lend us. We ended up nearly 30 KM away near a town called Delores Hidalgo. We finally by luck or chance found the correct turn on our way back to San Miguel. Beto, a very friendly good-natured taxi driver allowed us to uncramp ourselves (we were sitting on top of one another for over and hour) and ride on the back of the truck on the gravel road. It was well worth the journey as we were greeted by Mexican and American transplant Charros (rodeo cowboys) ranging in age from about 14 to 50-ish. The ranch was owned by a Charro named Pancho whose American wife runs a Louisiana Cajun restaurant on the same property. We were able to enjoy some very tasty gumbo, fried chicken and Coke while watching the Charros practice. Cedar was in heaven. Jenni got to ride one of the older horses and Cedar got on with her. He loved it and had to be convinced to finally get off. Eric and Dave and Chris got some fantastic pictures of the Charros and a little 7-year-old Mexican cowboy that I would love to have taken home. So cute. Beto was kind of enough to agree to pick us up about 2 1/2 hours later which was really fortunate as I have no idea how we would have gotten back otherwise. Cedar spent dinner running around the table riding a pretend horse. He said it was his favorite experience in Mexico. I guess that makes up for missing the Pro-Rodeo in Montana this summer!

My life as a Ninja referee and Barmaid

So we had the big opening party for the workshop last night. What an experience. It was truly amazing to see roughly 140 students and 20 instructors come together and get to know each other. We have met some truly amazing people. I was so proud of Eric and happy that he could see all the hard work come to fruition. It was a little crazy with all those people in a small technical college about 1/4 the size or less than Walden. Cedar spent like a full two hours with his little friend Gabi dressing up in the scarves we were selling pretending to be everything from Ninjas to police officers to doctors. Little boys are truly the same everywhere. Gabi speaks Portugese, Spanish and a little English. I'm not sure he understands much Cedar says but most of their communication is non-verbal. They had a fabulous time. They also managed to sell quite a few scarves. Gabi tried to get the priced raised to 100 dollars. He is quite the peddler. I answered questions, maintained Eric
sanity and refereed the ninjas. We have a lot of great "staff" helping us which has taken a lot of pressure off of me. Eric has a little entourage. I spent the latter half of the evening picking up beer bottles. Let me just say that I hate alcohol. I picked up like 400 bottles. All of which stank and I don't understand why people can't finish a bottle. I guess they get tipsy and can't remember which is theirs. My favorite was the cigarette butts in the bottom of the bottle. Nasty, nasty, nasty. Cedar decided to make a bottle cap collection (we had soda bottles too) and so he carried around a beanie full of stinky bottlecaps all evening. I made him wash them as soon we got back to the hotel. I'm a terrible bar-maid I think. Well, cedar wants to play games. I will write more later

More from Mexico

Well we have enjoyed the last couple of days in Mexico. Things are picking up business wise for the workshop and we have met some really cool people. Today we had a little playdate with a photographer, Adrianna and her five-year-old son, Gabriel. We went to the Papolota or Children's Museum. The kids had a great time. They even had a mini interactive Wal-Mart (shameless marketing) that only the kids could go into. I don't think cedar understood everything but he enjoyed it none-the less. We had a great dinner here at the hotel with some of the staff and students of the workshop. Yesterday we enjoyed the Anthropology Museum. TOmorrow I think we will go to a market and stay around here as Eric has a lot to do with all of the instructors flying in. It is great to see all of his hard work in action. He is amazing. I'm so cheesy. Cedar went to sleep before 12am for the first time in severall nights (his schedule is really messed up) and that was very good. Eric is downstairs talking to two photogs (yikes I'm using the ling0) who are really nice and are little older than most of the students and a little more stable. They don't think it's weird that we are married (!). I had a Cuban tamale for lunch that was very interesting. IT tasted a little like corn and cream of chicken soup but not bad. I can hear a police or taxi radio outside. That is somewhat constant. Our hotel is across the street from the British Embassy, two blocks from the US Embassy and 2 blocks from the international consulate building. There seem to be a lot of really important people everywhere. It's kind of fun and feels very safe. The US Embassy is a like a fortress with barracades etc. Last night we ate Japanese Food (well, not me) at a restaurant near the Japanese Embassy. I feel so regal:)

Mexico!

Well we made it safely here on Tuesday night. THe flights were fairly painless. Cedar was pretty good all-in-all and we were greeted at the airport by a private car and driver eric hired for the workshop. Such luxuries I am un-accustomed to! Yesterday we went to the zoo at Chapultepec Park (like Central Park in NYC). Cedar loved it and we were pretty impressed too. It was nicer than Hogle Zoo in many ways and it was gratis (free). Then we rode the metro (a very warm experience) to the Historic Center of the city. We had some snacks went to a shop or two and then went to our favorite Mexico City restaurant, Cafe Popular and I enjoyed some tamales oaxacano (tamales cooked with mole sauce in banana leaves) Yummy. Today Eric is out photographing the Mexico City police. Cedar and I hooked up with our new taxi man, Carlos (a very kind, safe radio taxi driver) and went to the anthropology museum. Cedar loved the lifesize models of indigenous homes and ceremonies. He also loved the pond in the courtyard with frogs, coi and tons of turtles. Well, the child is anxious. Gotta go.

Getting Ready

Okay, so as Becca pointed out it has been a while since my last post. About 2 weeks or more to be not so exact. What a crazy couple of weeks it has been. Eric employed me to create name tags, schedules, gift bags, etc. for Foundry Photojournalism Workshop and then I have my job and Cedar and the list goes on and on. I have reached the point where the list of things to do before we leave for Mexico on Tuesday far exceeds the number of hours left before departure. Some things will go undone. I don't deal well with that reality. I am excited though. Eric will be tied up so Cedar and I will have lots of fun in Mexico City exploring. We will even have a car and driver for a while of it (we are really moving up in the world). We plan to go to Chapultepec Park--where there is a children's museum, zoo, anthropology museum, modern art museum and much more. We have been there before but there is so much to see it could take a couple of days. We also plan to go back to Teotihucan (No idea how to spell that) to see the pyramids. I'm sure there will be a great deal of shopping and treat buying as well:) Then it's off to San Miguel de Allende one of my favorite places in the world. I plan to spend a lot of time in the central square and at the botanical garden and doing quickbooks of course (we don't ever really go on "vacations")! Ahhhhh, it will be amazing.

Foundry Photo Workshop

So I have the coolest husband in the world. He has envisioned, planned and is about to orchestrate this fantastic conference in Mexico City in a couple of weeks. I just thinks he's groovy and needed to brag a bit. He's pretty cute too. Here is the link to the workshop website:
www.foundryphotoworkshop.org

Favorite Quotes

I just needed some inspirational quotes today and thought I'd send them out to cyberspace too. So here goes:

If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.
Henry David Thoreau

Establishing lasting peace is the work of education; all politics can do is keep us out of war.
Maria Montessori

Be the change that you want to see in the world.
Gandhi

Life is either a great adventure or nothing.
Helen Keller

Mother's Day

It was with mixed emotions that I greeted the day called Mother's Day. The jaded side of me hates going to church and listening to all the talks about how so and so's mother always made breadfast and baked bread and looked beautiful and climbed mt. everest all at the same time. Okay, I'm exaggerating but you know what I mean. Something in me always seems to feel inadequate during those talks. There was just such a talk today but I survived. The tender part of my heart aches for the children I don't yet have. But, I am so grateful for the one I do have. Cedar is such a fun kid. He is sweet and crazy and endlessly entertaining. He has taught me so much about love and life. He even bravely marched to the front of the chapel and sang 3 mother's day songs with the primary without me standing next to him (this was a first). I beamed with cheesy mommy-like pride. Even in the hardest mommy-moments it is worth it. Cedar has brought me greater joy than I knew was possible. It makes those moments when I think I might just sell him bearable. I am grateful for my own mother who taught me to be strong and creative. I am grateful for the mother who raised my husband and taught him to be gentle and good. I look forward with hope (and a lot of faith) to the day when another child will join our little family.

24 Things About Me

Okay, so at the risk of appearing narcissistic, I will do this questionnaire. Mostly, because I'm tired and need the diversion.

4 Places I Go Over and Over
Walden School of Liberal Arts
Nana's House
Target
Running

4 People Who Email Me
Mom
Diana
Claire
Verlane

4 of my Favorite Foods
Banana Pancakes
Cheese
Polenta Lasagne
Tamales

4 Places I Would Rather Be Right Now
Asleep
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
Camano Island, Washington
Europe

4 People I Think Will Respond
Becca
Jenn
Mom?
I have so few friends:)

4 Movies I Could Watch Over and Over
Bourne Supremacy
Kite Runner
Juno
Annie:)

There I did it!

The challenged shopper

Okay, so last night around 8pm I set out, with trepidation, on a big grocery shopping trip. I was concerned due to the late hour and my level of fatigue and the fact that I needed to buy a lot of food. I thought I had prepared well---I left the nino with the papa and I even remembered my handy-dandy re-usable grocery bags. I was doing pretty well, had all my items and was ready to check out. I was even on time (I need to be back by 9:30 to put Cedar to bed). I love using my ec0-friendly shopping sacks but sometimes the clerks get annoyed. So, wanted to avoid and confrontations at such a late hour I decided to just use self-checkout. I started to check out my grocery and remembered that I can't put the reusable bags on the weight-sensitive checkout area. So, I thought, I will just pile everything up and put it in bags at the end. That was fine until I got about halfway through and realized I was running out of room and the sensor kept getting messed up and the clerk and had to help. At which point, she reminded me that self check-out is and express checkout. You know like 10 items or less. I had like 50-100 items. The clerk tried to be nice but I could tell she thought I was a complete lunatic. I kept piling the groceries up and with each one felt more and more flustered. I'm pretty sure people were staring. Then I had to pile everything into bags. It took an eternity. I was somewhat mortified. Luckily, Smiths has a pretty regular turnover in employees and I doubt I will ever see the clerk again. Never go shopping when tired.

The demise of the hard-drive

We had a tragedy last night. Eric's beloved hard-drive containing countless hours of curriculum preparation and a great deal of info about the up-coming Foundry Photo Workshop (Eric's current project) took one last breath and died. We took it to the doctor (Bridge Technologies) and all was lost. It has been a very devastating rough day for Eric. Luckily, he has a completely separate computer for photography so no images were lost. He is purchasing software to upgrade to some other operating system that will allow him to be constantly backing up remotely (i'm really pretending I know what I'm talking about here). The moral of the story is---appreciate your hard-drive, you never know when it will take its last breath........

Random Thoughts

Just some random comments on life from the day's experiences:
1. If it seems too good to be true...it is.
2. If you go into a store intending to buy a sensible pair of sandals for a five year-old you may come out with a pair of Transformer light-up tennis shoes.
3. Teenagers are more naive than you think
4. Sea World does tours with live animals. No really, it's true.
5. Sea World has lemurs. Why?
6. Poor eyesight is genetic. (I'm sorry Cedar)
7. 6 year-olds cannot carry a plate full of french toast and yogurt parfait without spilling. They MUST be assisted.
8. There is no way to make balancing the checking account non-stressful.
9. I am allergic to cottonwood trees.
10. There are an unusual number of said trees in our neighborhood.
11. 5 year-olds can stay up very, very late even when they are tired.
12. Cats can be obese.
13. If you call a student to the director's (principal's) office they will assume they are in trouble. (incidentally one came just because he heard students were being called in and assumed he was in trouble and needed to be there).
14. If a 5-year-old is given a "freebie" it is possible that they will believe they won it and forget about the thing they didn't win.
15. Cats enjoy crochet projects.
okay, I'm done

Chopping the Mop

Okay so I don't know if it is the fact that I turned 29 or that I didn't get to wash my hair much in Moab earlier this week but I decided this morning to chop my hair. So this afternoon I marched into Dollar Cuts (I am cheap--it was either that or do it myself) and shocked the stylist by announcing that I wanted it short. She was disappointed by my lack of desire to have it layered but she did a great job. I even have enough hair to donate it to locks of love. Happy, Happy short hair day.

Fantastic Run

So, I had one of those great running moments tonight where I just felt weightless and powerful and just happy. Eric rode the bike and pulled the trailer so I didn't have to push the stroller and I had the extra push of keeping up with the bike. It was great! I really feel like biking is helping me cross-train. I made Eric do some nasty hills:) He thinks I won't be able to do them without stopping but we'll see tomorrow when I ride the bike! Not that we are competing or anything. It's great to have spouse who believes in exercise as much as I do! Love that boy!

Good Mommy Day!

Nothing especially spectacular to report today, just a day when things seem to go smoothly. Not that every other day is not smooth, it has just been a real adjustment coming back from Turkey and today I feel like Cedar, especially is back into the groove of things. And, I thought he was cute many times today. That is always a good sign and he wasn't even asleep! We enjoyed some scrapbooking time together (I HATE scrapbooking but Cedar loves it so I buy him stuff and he comes up with these crazy designs and thinks it's great--he has a babysitter who scrapbooks and we live in the scrapbooking capital of the universe). We made salt dough for FHE and it was just pleasant. AHHHHH sigh. Motherhood is good:)

"Officer....I ran out of tape!"

So I got pulled over this morning for running out of tape. I guess there is more to it than that. Yesterday, by some miracle, our car passed emissions and inspection and I went online and got the temporary registration for our car. I admit, I was a few days past the expiration (okay 4 days to be exact) but I figured there must be a grace period. So this morning, I thought "hmmm, I should put this temporary thing on the car" but sadly the only tape I had was some shoddy dollar store item that I knew wouldn't stick to the windshield. So, I tucked all the paperwork into my bag and went off to work. We were driving up University Avenue and I had just told my husband that he needed to laud me for taking care of the car registration when the blue lights started flashing. We rolled down the window and handed the kind officer all our paperwork and Eric's drivers license. I told him about the tape and let he laughed and let us go on our merry way. He didn't even check the license. Which, would have amounted to nothing as Eric is a very cautious driver. So, there you have it. The moral is.....don't buy tape at the dollar store. The END

Rollerskates and Bicycles

So, we had the Walden School skate party last night. I had forgotten how enjoyable roller skating is. It had been a long time but it all came back. The joy of whizzing across the rink and feeling the wind on my hair came rushing back. Okay, so as a kid I didn't have a 5 year-old upsetting my balance but nonetheless I felt like I was seven again. Further adding to my youthful glee is my new bike! It is shiny and purple and Eric bought it for me for our anniversary! I love it! I even got the attachment so I can cart Cedar around. Great! He is excited to try it out and so am I!

8 Years!

So, today is our 8th anniversary and I'm feeling sappy about it so I thought I would write. It has been a wonderful crazy adventure and life has never turned out the way I expected. But, my plans for life are generally drab in comparison to what actually happens and I'm grateful for all the adventures, twists and turns and chaos that make up my life. Yes, I am so glad I decided to marry Eric eight years ago today. Life is good and we are even closer friends today than we were 8 years ago. Sap, sap, sap. I know. But I do love the him.

Playdough and lexapro

We managed to find a pharmacy this morning and we were able to get some drug that is the same as lexapro (some euro brand) and they gave it to us without a prescription. What a beautiful thing. We went to Rumi's tomb this morning which was really cool except cedar decided to run through the graveyard. Ooops! We decided to head to Aladdin's Hill (it's really called that) for lunch. I had seen a McDonalds there on the way into town and I decided it was time to break down and eat american food. Cedar got a cheeseburger and an ice cream cone and we all had burgers and cokes with ice. It was lovely. To complete the cedar spoiling experience we went to a toystore (cedar is still alive) and purchased some really over-priced play-doh. We are having a grand old time playing with it on the floor of the hotel room while daddy takes a break. It seems he has some intestinal problems. Poor thing:( He had a great birthday. We are headed to the organic farm tomorrow which I think will be good. The kids are starting to get worn out and we are down to 4 chaperones-the lowest point of the trip and the men in this town are shall we say grabby. Ah, Middle Eastern men. I'm excited to go to the farm. I think it will be really fun for cedar. Our guide does not understand why we want to go to a farm. He needs some serious Walden indoctrination. He really does not think outside the box. Apparently in his two year guide course they didn't teach him about weird Americans who want to stay on farms. I guess he usually guides rich old europeans. I can see how we would be a surprise to him. Cedar is currently reminiscing about Mexico. I must admit, I have really enjoyed Turkey but my heart is Latin America. Did I mention we are going to Mexico for Eric's Foundry Photo Workshop that he has created and is putting on in Mexico City. We will be there from June 10-July 1st. Should be fun and I'm glad we will have a couple of months at home first. And, it will be very cheap. Turkey is much more expensive than we had ever imagined. Apparently the dollar is really hurting. I miss pesos.........Well, I have written a book. I will go now and play with play-doh

Konya

Wahoo for wireless internet in our hotel room. And the use of an english keyboard. We are in Konya one of the most "muslim" cities in the world. I really like it. It is the birthplace of Rumi the mystic poet and tomorrow we will go to a museum in his honor. Konya is a city of many religious pilgrims and is known for its tender mutton. We were able to find some really nice head scarves and several prayer rugs for our collection. Today is Eric's birthday (#34). Happy Birthday to Eric! We were able to arrange with the help of our trusty guide Firat a private whirling dervish show. It was amazing. I don't know how they do it. Cedar fell asleep which was the best birthday present of all. Tomorrow we are going to go to museums and attempt to procure prescription medication and tampons in a very conservative town. It should be very interesting. The food is good here but we are getting sick of meat and bread. Okay just meat for me and many, many aberguines. But our hotel room has a refrigerator (Firat hooked us up with the posh hotel room-sort of Holiday inn like) and my Diet Coke's are cold. Why do they drink soda hot? That is just plain awful. The kids are being pretty good. They bought baklava and put candles in it for Eric's birthday then told him something they liked about him. We recently heard gunshots out the window. Bachelor party? I'm not even phased by it. Eric is making fun of my blog's title. I thought buzz was clever!

random thoughts agaın from turkey

i have so much to say and so lıttle access to the ınternet so here goes
turkey ıs amazıngly sımılıar ın clımate and geography to utah
ı feel lıke we are ın escalante or arches natıonal park
cedar should never have sugar soda ever
squat toılets are alrıght....most of the tıme
ıf you son gets locked ın a bathroom stall ın turkey your guıde wıll start swearıng
our turkısh guıde ıs a crazy lıttle man who does not understand that teenagers do not get up early or ever arrıve anywhere on tıme
the turks take theır shoes on and off more than the japanese
cedar ıs not afraıd of clıffs
ı am
our bus ıs well....cozy
havıng our own room ıs awesome
ı dont lıke turkısh keyboards
aberguınes are quıte tastey
dıet cola ıs expensıve and um not cold here
thıs ıs a very safe country
ı hate cıgarette smoke
the kıds are really good most of the tıme
ı mıss bananas
the cave dwellıngs are amazıng and everythıng ıs very very old

More from the land of the Turks

We had a really busy day yesterday. We walked across the Galata Bridge to the Galata Tower and up to a very cosmopolitan shopping area. It was a bit of a challenge for Cedar. But, he has charmed some of the female students into carrying him anytime he wants:) The Turks are quite fascinated with Cedar's hair. It is so curly in this climate. We had a rough night sleeping last night (there was a lot of drama in the middle of the night). Why can't they just go to bed? So, today was a mellow day. We went to the Haga Sofia this morning which was totally amazing. It's such an interesting mix of West and East--Islam and Christianity. I was overwhelmed by the fact that I was actually visiting the place I studied in so many different classes (during my brief stint as a Near Eastern Studies major). Cedar loved the Haga Sofia as well. He learned what a mosaic is. He is a good kid. Well, needs to send some emails to his "Photog" friend so I will write more later.

Greetings from Turkey

So... we all made it here safely. Cedar and I got here last night and the kids and eric got here this morning. Eric is passed out next to me. He doesn't sleep well on planes. It was a long trip to get here. Here are my random thoughts from the trip over here:
--Cedar does well on one plane ride..not three
--It is possible to be woken up every 5 minutes by a 5-year-old.
--Cedar has the ability to narrate an entire 5-hour flight.
--Strong tail winds make for a fast but very bumpy ride over the Atlantic.
--Parisians are neither friendly nor amused by small children.
--It is possible to pay $7 for a diet coke---if you're in Paris
--I just don't really like France. And France does not like Cedar or me.
--Cedar can be hyper in the middle of the night.

Overall, it wasn't a bad trip over Cedar did finally fall asleep in the Paris airport, I carried him (asleep) onto the plane. The airline employees thought there was something wrong with him. He slept for about 4 hours. When we got here last night I was amazed with how modern parts of Istanbul are. It is a strange mix of old and new, west and east. We went to the Grand Bazaar today which was much more modern than I had expected. No raw meat smells just lots of tobacco and Kababe. I think I will develop a nicoteine habit through secondhand smoke here. The mosques are lovely and the people here are very friendly. Eric has taken at least 300 pictures already and Cedar has already had a tantrum about a miniature mosque he wanted. So, all is normal and well. I had some great Turkish casserole for lunch (very GF, very tasty). I found diet coke for 2 lira ($1.75) that is large enough for my tastes and life is good. Cedar is having a great time with the students who are all doing well. Cedar, I have just been informed, is in the attic. I have no idea what that means and it better not have anything to do with the roof! I will write more later!

The deodorant debacle

I apologize to those of you who have already heard this story but it's just too much fun not to share. So here goes....
Saturday afternoon we headed to the grocery store to pick up a few things for our up-coming journey. I was a little tired and very stressed out. We picked up the few groceries we needed and headed to the health and beauty section to get some travel-size items. We found ourselves in front of the deodorant section. Cedar announces "I want my own deodorant!" This statement was followed by chorus of giggles from me and all the BYU students shopping in the same aisle. I calmly told Cedar that he was 5 1/2 and didn't need deodorant. He continued to protest that he wanted deodorant. More laughter from the students. I decided it was time to be more firm and said to Cedar "I'm not buying you deodorant. You can use Daddy's." Then, I started to walked down the aisle. Cedar was unhappy with my firmness and yelled down the aisle, "I don't want to share with Daddy. His armpits are icky!" The chorus of laughter was even louder this time. I decided at this point that a. My child is humiliating me b. He really wants deodorant. I took him to the travel size aisle and let him pick out his very own deodorant.

I've decided there is no dignity or pride in motherhood. It is my child's job to me to let go of all pride!

Reading

So, Cedar came to me tonight and said I want to write you a word, Mom. We found a pencil and lined paper and wrote the word "was" from his spelling list. He was so proud and happy about it. In the last two weeks I have had the pleasure of watching him "get" reading and writing. I've tried really hard not to push him and I'm happy to see it paying off in the glee on his face. A happy "mommy" moment.

Avoiding Illness

So my query for today is:
Is it possible to avoid getting sick when you work in the main office of an Elementary/Jr. High/High School?

I mean really is there any hope for me. Can I really wash my hands enough to prevent the germs that are everywhere around me from entering my body? And what about that hand sanitizer stuff. Does it really work? Is it just something I use to make myself feel better. What about sanitizing wipes? Will they kill the germs on my phone? Does a sick room qualify as a hazmat zone? Can I be the "girl in the bubble"? I have become paranoid:( This has happened before. Incidentally my glands are swollen and my eyes are burning. My efforts are futile..........

Cedar-isms

So, being the proud Mama that I am, I'm pretty sure everything Cedar says is either brilliant, hilarious or amazing. And, all to frequently, humiliating. So, I've decided to blog Cedar-isms from time for my own personal amusement and hopefully yours too. So, here goes:

~"I am going to DIE if I don't eat right now"(said while driving approximately 1/2 mile from home)

~"We are never going running again until your are 2400 years old" (Said on tonights run that was apparently highly unpleasant for the boy)

~"Mommy, I got you a Coke" (the boy knows how to woo me)

~"I'm dry on the bottom but not on the top" (after the shower)

~"I'm going to ask Hunter about that dinosaurs--he knows more than you about dinosaurs" (said to Eric during a long discussion of dinosaurs. Note: Last week during a discussion of the planets Cedar indicated he would ask Hunter for the answers because "Hunter pretty much knows everything about space" Hunter is a very bright classmate of Cedar's who knows far more than Cedar's parents.

~"I didn't just get scriptures I got the Bible too" (After receiving his very first set of scriptures)

~"Mommy, look what I wrote" (He hands me a piece of cardboard with the letters F-R-E-E written on it. Which he learned from that horrible freecreditreport.com ad that he sings constantly "F-R-E-E that spells free, creditreport.com baby!"

Well, now you know just how adorable Cedar really is and how much I need another child to divide some attention with:)

Countdown to Turkey

So, I'm starting to sort of freak out about Turkey. We leave in 9 days. I still speak no Turkish, I've never eaten Turkish food and I have to figure out how to pay my bills while I'm gone. I have gotten so comfortable traveling in Latin America where I speak the language, love the food and understand the culture. I guess it is time to get out of my comfort zone a little and have an adventure....with 21 students and Cedar.
OTHER RANDOM THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY:
--Recycling makes me happy.
--I like Sharp Cheddar cheese much better than colby jack.
--I can't spell
--Filing financial receipts is moderately theraputic
--I have more mixing bowls than I thought (Verlane's adventures in moving)
--I feel healthy for the first time in over a week :)
--Ethanol really isn't as efficient as some might think (I think used oils might be better)
--Cedar has a vast vocabulary. He properly used "manipulation" in a sentence today. Scary.
--I don't like change
--I like my life

Blogs.....

So enough of my friends have started blogging that I thought I might give it a try. I make no promises on number of posts or updates and don't even ask about pictures yet but I'll try my best. So here goes...................
Random thoughts for today:
---Cedar is loud, very loud
---I am going to Turkey in three weeks
sub-thought---I don't know how to even say hello in Turkish
---My husband is brilliant, sometimes lazy but always brilliant.
---I am slowing morphing into a vegetarian...maybe....The cattle industry is scary, chickens live in cages and on and on
---I'm glad I voted
---I still love running--even when it is freezing
---I like this blog thing
---Will anyone read this blog thing
---My son is peeling his own apple, I should stop "blogging" is that a word?