Handel's Messiah

Every year since we've been in San Antonio, I have played in Handel's Messiah the first weekend of December. It is one of my favorite parts of the Christmas season.

Halloween

This is what the kids looked like as they headed to our ward Halloween party.

I finished sewing the Harry Potter robes the next day (Halloween) and five minutes later, the boys were out the door trick-or-treating. (Sorry, this picture is really low quality, but you can get the drift.)

Food, glorious food

What is more fun than introducing food to someone who's never had any?! Emily participates at meal times from her high chair. She likes to chew on carrot sticks, green beans, broccoli, and celery. She has actually consumed broccoli, cheerios, apple sauce, bananas, oatmeal (despite what you see in the video below), and all the paper she can get her gums on. 

Mr. M discovered a tooth poking through Emily's gums this morning. I caught her gnawing on the pumpkin stem, but she wouldn't recreate it for the camera.

Friends

Axie has been participating in a little playgroup for the last few weeks. It's a group of 4 moms, and we take turns hosting the kids for a few hours. It's been really fun for Axie; she gets excited about seeing her friends. When the boys are back in school, it will also be nice for me to have a morning with just Emily.

Here are a few photos from the most recent playgroup. This is Axie and her friend, Westly. I think they're pretty cute. Westly is also learning Spanish from his mom and dad (home language).

In other news, I am in week 4 of my couch-to-5k training. I run 3x a week, but I'm also doing strength training at the YMCA. I'm excited for the weather to start cooling so I can run outside more.

The boys are going back to school next week. We met their teachers last night. Ethan is happy that he knows 7 kids in his class already. Scott didn't know any of his classmates, but his teacher seems nice. We are hoping that this classroom is a better fit for Scott, although Mr. M expressed the feeling that he is a square peg in a round hole. We will see how things go for him.

My violin studio is coming together nicely for the fall. We start the day after Labor Day. Most of my students are coming back, and I'm picking up a few new ones. I've been enjoying my weddings gigs and am hosting my own "play" time this afternoon with two new violin and cello friends. Starting to gear up for the Messiah the first weekend of December. I'm in charge of the prelude music, and I'm organizing a violin choir of children and youth to play two part versions of O Come Little Children and Silent Night. Good times!

Dad's home!

There was much rejoicing when Mr. M returned from his 15 day visit to Guatemala. Here is a photo of the girls with their dad, wearing the souvenirs he brought them. I also have a matching skirt, but haven't quite figured out how to wear it yet (it's a wrap around which makes it a bit tricky).

Nap and play

Emily is gaining some motor control, although as seen in the movie, she is mostly benefiting from random flailing to make her toys spin.

This is one is cute because you get to see some of those gummy, chubby-cheeked smiles. What is there not to love?

No pants (bah bah!)

All day, Scott (age 7) has been hanging around in his underwear. "Mom, I don't have any clean pants to wear." I was a little surprised, but figured it must be my fault for not being more on top of the laundry. Just as I put in a load, he came down fully dressed. "I forgot that a few days ago, I took a pile of clean pants upstairs and put them in my drawer!"  Evidently, he didn't think to look there before complaining of having no  pants to wear.

Axie went to a little playgroup with 3 other kids our age from the ward. We are going to take turns hosting. I took advantage of a few hours to myself by mowing the lawn, taking a shower, and having a rest with Emily.

Here are a few photos of us at the park last night while Ethan was at scouts. My phone claimed it was 99 degrees, but we were mostly in the shade, so it was probably only 90.

Her very favorite thing to do at the park

And there was much giggling!

The heat was making her pink

Nothing better than hanging upside down!

Except being a monkey and climbing up, up, up!

"Are we through here yet?"

Over the fence

This post is an essay that I found in Scott's papers that he brought home from school back in February. No teacher comments or any indication of what the assignment was. Punctuation and spelling are his.


Have you ever been to a place that feels like you're dreaming? Well I have. In the back yard you can get there just by climbing over the fence. Just as you get there you keep on going because there's a cactus under the spot that you see. I stay alone in there but I don't mind. My brother usally punts the ball over the fence so I see some fly balls. It feels so relaxing. So relaxing that you can feel the trees well youre walking.
There are some cardinals that live at the arbor but I don't see them often. I like to sit under the trees. I like to imagine that there are pigs there with me. Once I even thought about pigs attacking monkeys. There are a ton of prickly balls. (burs) It's Awesome! Are you even thinking about this? I see the road well I'm climbing over the fence. It's really quiet when im there. Once I feel asleep in there. When the ball comes over the fence I throw it back over the fence. I hate it when burs stick to my clothes but the burs are easy to pull out. I never climb the trees because there are ants. I find ant mounds sometimes and usally step on them on purpose. In the evening I don't go there because there are moths. Every time I climb over the fence I hope no one sees me. For the winter I will go back there to get firewood. Sometimes when I am feeling nice back there I yell, "BIG FAT PIGS!" If you were there you would probably love it. Sometimes slivers of cactus spines stick to my legs and man they hurt when you pull them out. That's mostly all I remember.

P.S. Did I mention that I hit a ball over the fence with my bare hands?

P.P.S. I never mentioned that Ethan comes over to get the ball.

Conversations with a 2 year old

Yesterday, Axie, from the back of the minivan, called out, "Mom, Scott is not being hayve!" A little while later, she scolded him, "Scott, beHAVE!" 

I love this picture of her from a recent dental check-up.

If you are wondering who this Axie is, Elizabeth has decided to go by her middle name. It's Swedish, after my great-great-grandmother, who was quite a spunky woman, a problem solver who could take care of herself. I don't know if the name is having an effect on her or if it's just coincidence, but Axie is very Axie. She's funny and independent and sweet all at once, and she hit the whys from one day to the next. When I dropped her off at Grandma Gail's yesterday, she was fine. When I picked her up a few hours later, she was asking why, why, why. 

Tonight, looking at a large framed print on our wall, she said, "Mommy, look at that lady." 
"Yes," I answered, "she's looking at the boats."
"Why?" she asked me.
"Why do YOU think she's looking at the boats?" I asked her back.
"No, Mommy, YOU think. I am not thinking," she insisted. 
"But you asked the question," I returned, forgetting that using logic with a 2 year old is pointless.
"No, YOU asked the question," she countered. And that was that.

Axie loves to read books. Note the pile in the picture below that she picked out herself from the library today. She adores her baby sister, Emily, and loves to sit with her. She points to herself and says, "Big sister", then points at Emily, "Little sister!" "Mommy, can I hold her hand?" When Axie is tired, she tells me she is cold, which means she wants to lie down under a blanket. Axie enjoys helping with cooking (this is usually stirring something in a pot or pushing the button on the blender), doing dishes, and spraying stains in the laundry. She loves baths and playing at the park, especially on the swings. She sings the clean-up song and puts away books and toys. A few days ago, I was upstairs with Ethan and lost my temper. I was shouting, and Axie came upstairs in the middle of it. "Mommy, you need to settle down." She was right, and I was grateful to her for calmly pointing it out. Anytime my voice even threatened to get louder in the continuing conversation, she reminded me to settle down. 

It's fuzzy, but I still like it.

5K on July 4th

On July 4th, I participated in a 5K with my dad and brother on Amelia Island. Mom came to cheer for us. It was my first real race, and it was fantastic!

I loved the start. It was that feeling of all moving in the same direction together, the same feeling I get when I'm driving south in Marin County towards the Golden Gate Bridge. 

Dad was my running partner. He was recovering from a calf injury and needed a turtle, and I needed a rabbit, so it was a great partnership. I think I ran about 2 miles before needing to walk, except for the slow down at the water station at the half-way point.

The end was my favorite part. As we approached the final bend, the crowd was cheering us on. We picked up the pace and sprinted to the end. It was exhilarating and motivating and satisfying, definitely a rush. All those good brain chemicals were just flooding me with happiness, the kind of happiness that requires many exclamation points.

I've picked out my next race which is set for September 8th. My goal is to run the whole way. I've been doing interval training on the treadmill at the YMCA, but I probably need to just practice running, too.

Here's to becoming a runner!

Before

After - look how happy we all are!

Vacation in Florida

 We had a great trip to visit my parents in Florida. It was relaxing and fun. Two of my brothers were there as well. The kids got to play with some of their cousins. Mr. M finished his revisions. We ate good food, relaxed, spent time at the beach, and had a great time. I didn't take enough pictures to remember it all, but here are a few memorable moments.

Grandpa Tom and Grandma Sue took the gang to the zoo so Mr. M and I could finish up some last edits.

Mr. M receiving some good news about his dissertation.

Uncle Ben!

See, I iron.

All tuckered out

Axie and Grandma Sue

Dad and daughter - love this picture!

Emily's first time down by the water

A mom, a baby, and a monster

Emily rolled over for the first time. She's only done it a few times since.

Something to report

Despite a late surge in contractions, culminating in Mrs. M's water breaking just as she was placed on the operating table, we still had to have a c-section. Dilating only to 1 cm was not enough to justify putting off the delivery any longer (42 weeks + 1 day). At 9 lbs 2 oz, 20.5 inches, I suppose it was for the best.


Emily Carmen and Mom



The whole family (minus Mr. M at the camera)

Elizabeth insisted on holding the baby again and again. " I hold emee. That's my sista. I hold her."

Nothing to report

My due date has come and gone, and my mom leaves Thursday to go visit my brother and s-i-l, who is due this week. She will probably have her baby before I do - bah! Here I am at 41 weeks (yesterday):

I have another appointment with my doctor tomorrow. I guess we'll have to come up with a plan if I don't go into labor on my own.

In good news, Mr. M is turning in a draft of his dissertation today, the defense is set, and we have purchased tickets for Los Angeles! Maybe when he clicks "send", it will trigger a huge contraction in my body, my water will break, and labor will kick in! One can always hope.

Plans and belly shots

We are entering the home stretch. I can confidently say that there will be a baby in my house 3 weeks from today. (My due date is 4/1).

Just for fun, and for documentation purposes, here are some belly shots.

Here's the regular view looking down:

If I lean way over, I can glimpse my feet:

And here is a side shot, captured by Ethan:

So, as I said, within the next 3 weeks, there will be a new little girl in the family. Can't wait to meet you, Emily! Luckily, she is not the only thing we have to look forward to or it might be the longest 3 weeks in the world.  Tomorrow is my last day of violin teaching before I officially start my maternity leave. Thursday is Ethan's choir concert. Friday is the day Elizabeth gets her cast off (hallelujah!). Saturday and Sunday are General Conference. My adored and much revered mother arrives next Monday, and two weeks from today (if not sooner), Mr. M submits his dissertation. And then, it's party time!

There is still work to be done until then, of course. Some of the things I would like to get done before Emily arrives include scheduling 180 piano auditions (I work for a piano competition in CA), making Harry Potter robes for the boys (I have the fabric and the pattern already), cleaning all the bathrooms and floors and baseboards, mowing the lawn, touching up all our paint inside, catching up on all the laundry and getting rid of all the bachelor socks, hanging a few pictures, making soap, finishing the last of the mending, planting the garden, cleaning out the garage, and then all the regular things like cooking, keeping up with the dishes, homeschooling Scott, and finishing a few books. I can get about one extra thing done every day, so depending on Emily's timing, I may get it all done! I'm nothing if not ambitious:)

What's happening at your house?

A monster!

Usually we get a little more scary arm-waving, but she seems to have been more focused on getting the shirt on.

Things to remember about my girl

These are just some little happenings that I wanted to write down. If I were a baby book person, they would go in the baby book. I may come back and add things as they happen.

Elizabeth sits on my lap. Closing her eyes, she asks, "Mommy, where are you?"

"I'm right here," I tell her. "Where are you?"

"Under my eyes," she tells me.

*****

Elizabeth sits at the table drinking milk. Suddenly, she starts to growl and wave her arms, menacingly. "Oh, no! Are you a monster?" She nods yes. "A milk-drinking monster?" "ROARHARRR!" she answers.

*****

It has been a while since I changed Elizabeth's diaper. She is pushing a chair through the kitchen. "How are your pants?" I ask her.

"Leave me alone, mama!" she answers me. Then she continues pushing the chair and starts singing Lead me, guide me, walk beside me, help me find the way....


*****


We are sitting in the car at a stoplight. From the backseat, I hear Elizabeth exclaim, "Come on, people! Come on!"

Broken foot

On Friday night, Miss Elizabeth climbed up to the top of our Expedit bookshelf. She has done this before and she loves jumping into our big blue beanbag. So, when Scott came down and reported that she was up on the bookshelf, I told him to move the beanbag over and let her jump down. I knew there was no point in my going upstairs to get her down; she would just climb up again.

A few minutes later, I heard cries. Hurt cries. I hurried my hugely pregnant self up the stairs and found Elizabeth in tears, on her hands and knees. She had jumped OVER the beanbag, Scott reported, and landed on the floor toes first, then face. She couldn't wiggle her toes or put any weight on her left foot. I brought her downstairs, sat her in our big leather chair, and gave her an icepack. I knew she was in a lot of pain because she actually kept the icepack on her foot for 10 minutes. (Usually, she touches the icepack to the injured whatever for 10 seconds and is good to go.)

After Mr. M got home and  we ate dinner, I took Elizabeth over to the TX Med Clinic near us. They did x-rays and suspected one, possibly two, hairline fractures in the top of her foot. After 3 hours there, they sent us away with a copy of the x-rays, a splint on Elizabeth, and instructions to follow up with a pediatric orthopedic doctor.

This morning we went to the doctor. They got us in 40 minutes after we called! The doctor said he was impressed with the service and care we got from TX Med Clinic, as the fracture was difficult to discern, but definitely there. Elizabeth, as you can see from the photo, is now in a cast. It will come off in 3 weeks. She isn't supposed to take a bath or go outside, but if we have to do either of those things, we have very specific instructions on how to do them both.

It's our first broken bone. On the plus side, Elizabeth says she isn't going to jump off the bookshelf anymore.

This is for you, Ben!

Sometimes people live too far away to appreciate the little things that happen because those are not the things we document. Here is a very short video of Elizabeth entertaining herself yesterday down at the Produce Terminal (it was my turn to shop for the produce co-op).



I like the way she sensibly pulls her pants up after all that hopping.

Happy belated birthday, Mr. M!

Mr. M is not big on birthday celebrations, especially his own. Things were pretty low key on his actual DAY (mostly so he could focus on cranking out that dissertation). This afternoon, I happened to make a chocolate zucchini bread which was very cake-like, and we all decided it was not too late to stick a candle in it and sing to our favorite man.

The zucchini bread might have been so crispy on the outside and so moist on the inside that I might have eaten half a loaf all myself and called it dinner.

Happy birthday to the best husband I ever had and my kids' favorite dad ever!

Big music day

It was a big day in the life of Erin the musician. I held my spring recital for my violin studio this afternoon at the local public library, and tonight I played in the San Antonio Symphony Pro-Am concert in which amateur and semi-professional players sit side by side with symphony members. I confess that I was stressed about both and extremely grouchy on the inside. I think I managed to only be somewhat grouchy on the outside, but at the end of the day, I feel wonderful and will remember the day as such. I only hope that my family members can remember it with the same fondness and forgive me my grouching.

The recital was a great success. I have 9 students, 2 of whom are Ethan and Scott. The actual performance time was just over 15 minutes. Short and sweet. Ordinarily, I perform something, too, but since I have been putting all my practice time into the music for tonight's symphony concert, I excused myself from performing at the recital.  Everyone did really well, and I'm so pleased with the progress my students are making.






This was the 2nd Annual Symphony Pro-Am concert. I applied late January and received notification about 3 weeks ago that I was accepted to play first violin. Our parts were emailed to us, and we received seat assignments when we reported for our first and only rehearsal (1 hour). There was a half hour break and then our performance: Liszt Les Préludes, a piece I have played twice previously at Interlochen. It's a challenging piece with lots of arpeggios, noodles, and very high notes for the first violins. They had me seated in the third stand (!!!), so I was feeling a lot of pressure, but my stand partner was very nice. I realized in the rehearsal that no one was going to yell at me or put leaves down my shirt, that I just needed to do my best and enjoy it, so I did! It turns out that my stand partner  was also at Interlochen in 1992 in WYSO! Such a small world. I am going to dig out my programs and see if I can find her name.

Announcements before rehearsal started

 Mr. M, Scott, and Ethan all came to support me and listen. Scott seemed to really like it, but perhaps it is just because it makes for good blog material. He has been posting almost every day on his own blog. (It is a private blog, so if you would like an invitation, let me know.)

Linguistic success!

Mr. M has been speaking only in Spanish to Elizabeth since December. Some days he metaphorically beats his head against the keyboard and says things like, "She will never answer me in Spanish, never, never, never!"

Last night, at our family dinner, Elizabeth came into the dining room from the kitchen. (The 7 cousins eat together in the kitchen at their own table.) "Daddy, I want more bread." He picked up a large piece of bread and broke it in half, ready to give her one of the pieces. "Dame! Dame!" she said, reaching for both. (For any non-Spanish speakers, that means "Give me!") Mr. M looked momentarily stunned, then handed her both pieces. I'm not sure who was more pleased, Elizabeth or Mr. M.

Moments from homeschool today

We have just finished our first full week of homeschool. I think I am learning as much as my 2 kids who spend the day with me, although my learning is more about myself and relationships and discipline than academic learning. Somewhat surprisingly, I feel like I get more done during the day in terms of laundry and dishes. I really like spending time with Scott. We are still settling in to our routine and making adjustments, but I think it has begun well.

Elizabeth loves to cook with me. Here she is taking a turn at rolling out pitas.

Meanwhile, Scott was working on math and snacking on grapes. He also took a turn rolling out pitas.

The one thing I do really miss is taking a nap. A whole week with only one interrupted nap (today) and it was catastrophic. Scott kindly read Elizabeth some books and helped her settle down for a nap, so I could have a nap today. Unfortunately, she woke up before I did. She changed out of her pull-up into panties, spent some time playing with water in the bathroom sink and spilling it all over the floor, and then got into my lipstick and mascara, both of which had to be thrown out. When I picked her up to clean her face, she peed on me. Not the best way to wake up from a too-short nap. I chalk it all up to motherhood and experience.

More than ever, I feel like the way I choose to spend my time is so important. Here I end this post to retire to my bed, so that tomorrow I may call upon all my coping skills and banish Monster Mom.

February update

We eat a lot of pancakes at our house. It's our go-to last minute dinner, and one of our favorite breakfasts. The kids are all (still) fascinated by the wheat grinder. I love this picture. Who knew that wheat grinders could be as captivating as a big screen?

Scott loves to help in the kitchen. Here is his first attempt at flipping the pancakes. He comes up with ideas every single day of what to do for cooking class in homeschool.

Speaking of homeschool, we have officially begun. Scott came home from school last Thursday and insisted that he was done. The last straw for him was losing 6 minutes of his recess time (which is significant, since recess is only 15 minutes long) because other kids in his class wouldn't settle down.

I was delighted to hear that he had made up his mind. I had been thinking it was such a waste for him to sit at school all day when he was capable of, and wanting to do, so much more. Scott is really a homeschool kind of kid, forever coming up with his own projects. He planned and organized a book fair last weekend, which involved writing and illustrating a bunch of books (about Harvey and Snortey, of course!), creating a money system (pig dollars), and a series of games and contests which would provide his cousins (who were to be the main book fair participants) with currency. Alas, one of the cousins scorned his efforts, turning her younger siblings against the book fair. Only his oldest cousin wanted to participate, but how can you have a contest or a game with just one person?  He was quite upset about it and determined never to plan anything fun for the cousins again.

 Ethan, on the other hand, LOVES his class and his teacher at school. He loves to be "in the system".  He has just joined the Junior Math Pentathlon, which will be meeting once a week after school. I'm grateful that both homeschool and public school are available as options.

We aren't really celebrating Valentine's Day tonight, but we did have a special table ready for the kids when they came down today. Love Crunch was our breakfast, a chocolate granola studded with chunks of dark chocolate and freeze-dried strawberries and raspberries. There was also a Valentine from Harvey and Snortey to the boys and a bag of treats from us, the parents. Those bags say "Hogs and Kisses" - here is a link to the website that gave us free printables for the bags and also to attach to the Hershey Kisses inside. It was so fun to watch Scott's face as he opened his bag.

Wishing you all a happy V-day, a happy Tuesday, and a great week!

Bowling

Elizabeth the wonder bowler!

We've been using myjobchart.com for many months to help motivate our boys to help at home. Scott recently redeemed "go bowling" with some of the points he had earned. I decided to schedule it for a Monday and call it our Family Home Evening activity.

There was a special going on at the bowling alley. For $5 per person, we got unlimited games, shoes, AND a fountain drink AND french fries or popcorn, for each of us. The kids were in heaven. I was happy, too, since it usually costs more than that just to rent shoes and a lane.  Mister M got us another 10% off with his university ID. The lanes had bumpers that went up for the kids and went down for the adults. We played a full game and then part of another game before it was time to leave.

As a bonus, the bowling alley was right next to Krispy Kreme and the hot light was on, so we popped in before heading home (because with popcorn, french fries, and fountain drinks, we still needed more junk food). I find it very restful to watch the donuts glide under the glazing waterfall.

And this summer, when it's blazing hot, we'll be going back to that bowling alley for the Monday special and the air conditioning!

New beginnings and help accomplishing your goals

Anyone who knows me at all knows how much I love new beginnings. January 1st and the first day of a new semester are some of my favorite days, but I'm a person who believes that every day can be a new beginning. There's something wonderful about going to bed at night and waking up in the morning, believing that it's a fresh start.

One of the things I'm most proud of doing last year is finally getting into the rhythm of meal planning. It has saved me a lot of money in groceries and gas, since I'm not always running out to the store at the last minute or ordering pizza. One of my goals for the new year is to create a morning routine and then eat my frog. These are two things I've learned from Tsh Oxenreider (blogger at SimpleMom.net) in her e-book One Bite at a Time. I wrote back in October about how much I admire Tsh; beyond admiration, my feelings now include gratitude.

For the next week, you can get One Bite at a Time (on Kindle, Nook, or as a pdf) for $4 - that's $1 off when you use the promo code HAPPYNEWYEAR. It's valid until January 10th.

You can also pop over to (in)courage and enter a giveaway to win one of 10 copies of One Bite at a Time. Good luck!