Dangerously Beautiful

At least all this ice has given me an opportunity to take pictures I would never otherwise get! The way the ice sparkles in the sun is almost magical.

Electricity and Water

We are supremely grateful for both electricity and water today, because most of the city is without power, and for awhile it looked like we might all have our water shut off. (There was a power outage at the city water plant. Apparently it's fixed.) We're warm, safe, dry, and although we have lost quite a few trees to the ice, none of them are close to the house. All our friends are warm and safe, and it looks like we will have survived the Great Ice Storm of '09.

A couple more pictures...

(I would just like to point out that this picture is taken straight-on and not at an angle. Note the roofline of the house across the street in the left corner. Most of the icicles formed yesterday, now the entire branch is leaning. There is one new icicle on the left side, that is straight. Cool, right?!?)

Winter Pictures

The ice storm today left lots of pretty icicles and ice-covered bushes, trees, and everything else.

Changes

Today I got a new calling as the Primary President. I'm a little nervous about it, but mostly I'm excited! I love hanging out with the kids. We have such a fun group.

I'll miss being with the sisters in Relief Society, and especially working with the presidency, but it's time for a change and I feel like it's a good one.

And I'm excited to get to see Rachael in Primary all the time! Although in another year or two she might be sick of me...

Tagged

Sixteen Random Things

I got this tag from my cousin Maegan on Facebook, but moved it to my blog.

1. Although I was born in Utah, I claim to be from Colorado. I lived in Colorado for 25 years so I think it counts.
2. I didn't really want to move to Kentucky but I love it now that we are here.
3. I've never been a patient in a hospital. I have only ever been to the hospital to visit someone.
4. In 2007 we saw the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and Niagara Falls.
5. I have been to the top of Haleakala in Hawaii - twice.
6. I have 40 cousins, four siblings, two brothers-in-law, seven nephews and three nieces, but only one daughter.
7. My greatest wish for Rachael right now is that she would figure out why it's important to use the potty. All the time.
8. I realized sometime during high school that being a straight A student was overrated but still got a college degree in Chemistry.
9. I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up. If I grow up.
10. I named my dog Belle because she's a yellow lab. (Now she's a southern Belle, ha ha ha).
11. I love to bake. I love teaching Rachael how to bake. Think I'll make some cupcakes today.
12. I learned to drive when I was 15 but I didn't own my first car until after I was married.
13. When we were in college Ryan and I used to stay up all night cramming for finals, living on Diet Coke and M&Ms.
14. At some point during those all-nighters, one of us would look across the table and say, "Don't forget, these are the best years of our lives." And we would laugh hysterically.
15. I love photography. And my Canon DSLR.
16. Since Maegan tagged me, my #16 random thing is my suggestions for names for her baby: Monroe, Fillmore or Harrison for a boy, and Kennedy, Reagan or Tyler for a girl. [I should say here that in case you don't know Maegan, they name their kids after presidents.]

I tag Lorie, Amy, Jolayne, Jessie, and D'Ann.

Thanks Maegan!

Preschool

Because the last two weeks have been kind of rough, I hope she has a great time today.

Benadryl and Cortisone

Rachael had an allergic reaction to something yesterday. By the time she went to bed she was covered with a light sprinkling of bumps that resembled mosquito bites. Today, they covered her entire body, including her ears, hair, and belly button.

I'm thankful for Beandryl and Claratin to stop the reaction and Cortisone to stop the itch. She really didn't feel too bad, which is the one bright spot, but spent the day in an antihistamine-induced haze watching movies and eating popcorn.

Here's to hoping the hives clear up quickly.

Democracy

Rachael and I watched the inauguration today. I know there is a lot of pomp and circumstance associated with what amounts to a 35 word oath of office - and they still managed to get that wrong! - but it's fun to watch and makes me immensely proud to be an American. I don't think it's a perfect system but I do think it's the best one out there.

Sisters

This my sister Lesley. She lives with her husband and three girls in Pennsylvania. Last year on my birthday, Ryan was in China, so we drove up to visit. She and her husband bought me balloons and a fantastic Godiva chocolate cheesecake. And Chad watched Rachael so Lesley and I could shop. (Rachael took this picture when we were out to lunch one day. Cute, right?)

I am such an awesome sister I got her a birthday present. A super duper Jack Skellington tote bag. That turned out to be a LOT smaller than I thought.

So I'm grateful for a sister that treats me like a million bucks, even when I treat her like $10 in return. Happy Birthday Lesley.

Good Friends

Between the cold weather and Rachael's cold, nearly everything we had planned last week got canceled or postponed. The same thing happened to my friend Niki, except she had three sick boys. Friday afternoon she called and asked if I wanted to get out and go see a movie with her on Saturday. I'm so glad she called! It was so great to get out of the house and have a break.

Thanks Niki! Let's do it again sometime! And thanks to Ry for letting me go on short notice.

Cold Medicine

Poor Rachael has a cold. But there are some good things...

• She's old enough for kids' medicines
• Those Triaminic strips are great for kids!
• She is also old enough to drink any of the liquid medicines
• I don't have to take a day off work to stay with her
• She's content to play with toys and watch movies when she's sick
• She actually apologizes for being sick!
  

And hopefully she will be feeling all better in a day or two.

Indoor Smoking Bans

Today I read an article that Kentucky is one of 8 states that are flunkies on tobacco control. Fortunately the city where we live passed a smoking ban about two years ago, and I am so glad! Restaurants and other public places don't allow smoking definitely smell better. Years ago when Boulder, CO passed a similar ordinance we started eating more often in Boulder, then it came to Longmont and we were so thrilled.

I still can't do anything about the people that stand right outside the doors at WalMart and smoke, but at least I can eat my dinner at a restaurant and not come out smelling like smoke.

Color Wonder Markers

I love Crayola's Color Wonder Markers! Mostly because they only write on the paper they were designed to draw on. No mess on the table, the chairs, the clothes, or the kids. I also love these big sheets of Color Wonder paper that I stumbled across a few weeks ago... we got them out for playgroup last week and everyone could color at the same time. So fun!

A Free Saturday

It is so lovely to have a Saturday with nothing planned! It seems like our weekends are always scheduled... events, vacations, working around the house, whatever. It's so great to just have a lazy day to do nothing.

Independence

It's been a tough week for Sentimental Mom. Rachael had her first Sunday as a Sunbeam, then Thursday started preschool. Sentimental Mom cannot believe her little baby girl is old enough for either of those things, and is still wondering where that sweet baby who was desperately attached her mommy has gone.

Fortunately, Logical Mom and Proud Mom crammed Sentimental Mom in the closet and locked her in. Logical Mom knows Rachael is almost four and ready for some new challenges. And Proud Mom took lots of pictures and gave Rachael a kiss and a hug goodbye, then sent her on her way. Then Logical Mom and Proud Mom went to the store and out to lunch with friends.

Poor Sentimental Mom... Rachael turns four in about five weeks. Someone better buy her some Kleenex.

The Checker Ball

I have three decorative balls in the family room. I bought these mostly to be decorative, but also because I don't care if kits play with them. Today for playgroup that's just what the kids did, rolling them down the hall, playing "bowling." They sure had a great time.

My checkered ball, though, did not survive the event. It has suffered some chips and blows in the past, but today pieces of it kept falling off. Or, as Alex said, "It's falling to pieces."

We gave all the pieces an appropriate send off in the garbage can, then promptly went to the craft store to buy a replacement.


Hopefully we can do more bowling next time!

Patience

Today I had a Relief Society Meeting. We all get along pretty well and we're a rather chatty bunch, so these meetings can go on for some time. Today was a record, I think, we went for 2 hours and 45 minutes. Rachael has kind of gotten the hang of it. I feel bad that she gets so neglected for that amount of time, but she gets to watch a movie and play with her toys, and for the most part she's pretty well entertained. I'm grateful she's learning to be patient when my attention is elsewhere.

Substituting

Today was Rachael's first day as a Sunbeam in Primary. I have mixed emotions about that... on one hand, she's certainly ready for something besides nursery at church. On the other hand, I can't believe my baby is old enough to be a Sunbeam!

The Primary has asked me to substitute as the chorister for the next couple of weeks (it's a small change from substituting at the piano!). I'm really glad I had the opportunity to be in Primary for Rachael's first day! It's exciting to see her grow and change.

Being Fancy

Some days you just have to play dress up with your three year old. Aren't we fancy? She's so great to share - she even let me wear the Fancy Nancy crown.

A New Year

I've given this some thought, and I think I'm going to make a couple of small changes this year. First of all, I don't think I'm going to try to blog every single day. Some days I have lots of things to talk about, some days nothing. I feel like after coming up with at least one thing a day last year, at this point I will be recycling old stuff (which is OK, to a point) if I blog every day. And now I also have the Family Blog where I can write things, too.

Secondly I'm not going to use the ellipses (you know, the ...) on the title of every post. It was a good schtick for a couple of months but now I'm way over it.

Happy New Year!