And a few more...

More Seaside Pictures...

Sand and Sea...and Smores on the Beach

This past week sealed it...I was meant to live by the water. I have always had a peculiar fascination with the ocean. Even my dreams are almost always related in some way to the ocean. Instead of the infamous dream where you are running as fast as you can but can't out-run whatever is chasing you...I am always in the ocean, being chased by something, unable to make it to shore. Maybe I was a shark or something in a past life??? My favorite movies growing up were Jaws. I would watch them over and over again. As a little girl, I always wanted to be a marine biologist. Only problem...my fascination was equally matched by incredible fear. The sheer size and power of the ocean just baffles me. That it has the ability to wipe out an entire town is incredibly scary to me. It's kind of one of those things I can't quite get my mind around. Much in the same way planet earth is just another speck in the universe. We walk around each day as if we, and our beloved planet, are the only ones representing life. Seems rather narrow minded...or maybe I've just had too much time sitting in the sand ;)

Anyway, none of us were ready to come home...but alas, responsibility awaits. I wondered if there would be enough to keep us busy in Seaside for a week...turns out we ran out of time. I knew Claire would get a kick out of feeding the seals, but we never made it over to the aquarium. We did however: have a couple campfires on the beach; swim until our skin was unrecognizably raisin like; take a short but long enough hike to remind me just how out of shape I am; search tide pools for funny feeling sea creatures; celebrate Claire's eight month birthday and first Halloween; and most importantly, watch her discover a whole new view of life as she squished sand between her fingers and toes...and then proceeded to eat it BY THE HANDFUL.

My Wild Child

Annie captured this shot of Claire while she was crawling around the other day. While it's not a picture that displays immaculate grooming habits, it's sooo Claire. She started crawling a few weeks ago...September 30, to be exact. She is crawling like crazy now and has definitely picked up speed. She does that adorable thing now, when I leave the room, she protests by crawling behind me and crying as if she has just suffered the ultimate rejection and heartbreak. Anyway...about the time she started really crawling, I started calling her a "wild beast." Maybe not the kindest term of endearment...but very appropriate for Claire. So, when Annie showed me this picture I said, "See, wild beast, right there!"

We are leaving this coming Sunday for a week long trip to the coast. So, we made a run to Target this evening to stock up on baby food, diapers and swim- diapers which I found out are required to use the pool at the resort where we're staying. At first I thought, that's strange. After all, these new fangled diapers have only been around a few years at the most. I guess up until then babies just pottied in the pool, like they do in the bath, and people were none the wiser. Then I thought to myself, they should make adult swim diapers (makes for an interesting visual...don't ya think?). Not that I personally would find them useful, but what about the times you are sitting in the hot-tub next to that old wrinkly man with his arms up on each side. About the time he gets that half grin on his face, you have to wonder. Is he just really relaxed...or was he just to lazy to get up? Hmmm...

Anyway, while we were at Target we wandered over to the toy section. They have this dinosaur on display that measures about two and a half feet tall. You press the demo button and he goes through a series of roars and stomps, complete with the appropriate earth shaking sounds and fierce, glowing red eyes. I figured Claire would be terrified of the thing so we approached cautiously. She immediately pointed at it, looked back at me and said, "ooh, ooh." She LOVED the thing (Christmas gift perhaps?). We had to press the button about five more times and stand there as she stared in amazement. Just another example of why I call her a wild beast. Look at that picture...does that not just look like trouble??? I added "That Thing You Do" to my playlist...for Claire ; )

Berry Pickin'

Yesterday, Claire and I took a much needed day off and spent the day with Grandma and Adele. We took a drive out to Monmouth, a quaint little town about twenty minutes outside Salem, and home to Western Oregon University. Gary is working on an insanely gorgeous house out there and I had been waiting quite some time to see it for myself. I wanted to take some pictures while we were there, but there is still so much equipment lying around, it wouldn't have done the real thing any justice. Hopefully I'll have another opportunity to visit and post some pictures. Anyway...the little gravel road leading up to this mini castle is lined with blackberry bushes, which surprisingly in mid-October, still offered some yummy berries. Claire had never tried blackberries, so we had to get out and pick some. She wasn't quite sure about their taste, but she sure enjoyed squishing them and making a purple mess! We also stopped for some lunch, and despite all my efforts to keep Claire 100% pure and organic, she had her first ice cream cone. She put those two teeth to work and seemed to like the cone more than the ice cream! I think we need more days just like this one...

Happy Birthday Lauren

Dear Lauren,

Fourteen years ago today, at 8:52 a.m., we met for the first time. The first thing I said as I sat staring at you in awe, "It has his (your father's) nose." So, I was reminiscing a bit this morning about how we've celebrated this day over the years...

Your first birthday we celebrated as a double-birthday with your friend Claudia, whose birthday was four days before yours. Do you even remember Claudia? I love looking back at the pictures from that day...you were both stripped down to your diapers, strapped in your high chairs with cake from one end to the other. I remember you had an allergic reaction, which I think we concluded was most likely from the hot-pink dye used in the frosting, and broke out in an entire body rash. Then, I believe it was your fourth birthday, you invited several friends from your preschool and we had a party at the Gilbert House. Looking back at those pictures, it was evident you thought you were already big stuff, pigtails and all! When you turned double digits, I wanted to do something really memorable and special. So, we went to the Space Needle in Seattle. Do you remember when you drew that picture and set it on the window? It took about an hour for the Space Needle to make it's full rotation, but about the time we were finished with breakfast, your picture made it's way back to our table. Then there was your twelfth birthday when I had a limo pick you and your friends up from school and spend the night at the Phoenix Grand Hotel. Even the suite seemed pretty small with eight girls running wild. If I remember correctly, I don't think any of you actually slept at all that night. You certainly gave the hotel staff a run for their money! And now, at fourteen, you just asked to go shopping and then out to dinner at your favorite restaurant.

Even though this year seems to pale in comparison to your past birthdays, I hope the day is still special for you. I know this time in a girls life can seem uncertain and confusing. Rest assured, you are an amazing girl and will weather these years and soon look back with great affection as I do. You are the most generous person I know. From the time you were a tiny girl, every time we made a trip to the store, you would bring with you all the money from your piggy bank. You would usually buy candy or stickers and divide them up equally between everyone. You are also one of the funniest people I know. You have an odd sense of humor equal only to my own. As you are learning, and will continue to learn...the vast majority of the population doesn't understand us! That's okay though, it's more fun that way. You are growing up to be an amazing young woman, and are every bit as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside.

I know this post is all about you...but I had to add the picture of you and Annie, who so eloquently define a love-hate relationship, and of course a picture of Claire. After all, you live in a house full of girls, you've learned to share the spotlight...right? Happy birthday Lauren...I love you.

Where did my baby go?

I was talking to my mom the other day about our trip to the coast we are taking the end of this month. We will be gone for seven days and I hadn't realized (or taken the time to really think about) we will be gone on Halloween. "How can we be away on Claire's first Halloween?" I asked. "She'll only be eight months old," mom replied. I quickly said, "No, she just turned seven months...oh, I guess she will be eight months old then." Where has the time gone? I know she is still a baby but she's not really a little baby anymore. She's just changing so fast. My mother and I had tea the other day with her neighbor, who has a two month old daughter. Claire looked like a giant next to her, and Claire is on the small side for her age. She is really turning into her own little person. As exciting as this is, I kind of miss the newborn days. She was so tiny and helpless. Just in the last couple weeks I have seen more and more of her little personality. And wow...it's quite the personality! Lauren and Annie were both fairly mild and placid. Claire, on the other hand, is already sassy and full of attitude. Anyway, here are some seven month shots. This "old man" face, she just discovered she could do today. Probably has something to do with the fact that she has a cold and her nose is like a faucet...I know, gross! D'ya think she'll need a haircut before she's a year old???

A Born Pianist?

Of course you'll have to pause the playlist and turn your volume up to hear this...but it's pretty cute!

Oh Happy Day

Today marks the first day of fall! Here are the top five reasons fall is my favorite season...


The color of fall leaves is so magnificent. I was looking through the recent Pottery Barn catalog when the headline, Inspired Seasonal Decorating, caught my eye. After thumbing through the first few pages I thought to myself...I am so boring. Each room bursted with bright fall colors, complete with the name of which Pottery Barn paint color was used for the walls. Then, about midway through the catalog I found a bathroom done in dark woods, Stonehenge like wall color and wonderfully fluffy white towels. Perfect, I thought to myself, so boring and...me!


There is no feast quite like the Thanksgiving feast. It doesn't get much better than wonderful food, family, and...Black Friday the next day to kick off the holiday season!!!



I absolutely adore little trick-or-treaters! Especially the ones you look at and for the life of you, you can't figure out what the heck they are supposed to be. This year will be a bittersweet Halloween as Lauren and Annie are both a little old to trick-or-treat and risk remarks like, "Aren't you a little old to trick-or-treat?" I remember when I was about nine, maybe ten, we were at one of those family themed pizza parlors. I ran to the giant ball pit ready to dive in when, ball pit security stopped me and said, "Sweetheart you're too tall, can't let you in." A little piece of me died that day...I loved the ball pit. The preteen and early teens years are such a tough age, more so for girls I think. You can wear a bra and shave your legs now, but you still love to do cartwheels and...trick-or-treat!



What's better than taking your kids to the pumpkin patch to pick out the perfect pumpkin? We go to the same place each year. There are several in our area, but we were lucky to find the one we go to while on a field trip years ago with the girls preschool. With a hay maze, hayride, a cider making exhibit, cider donuts and tons of other stuff, we end up making a day of it...muddy shoes and all!



I love hot apple cider, made fresh from crisp fall apples. What a perfect way to warm up on a chilly autumn evening. I just wish I had a fireplace to enjoy it by!

Sisters

When I was pregnant the question I was asked most often, aside from, "When are you due?" and "Can I rub your belly?", was, "What do the girls think about this?" People always asked this question with an underlying tone insinuating doom. I think this was in part because the girls were eleven and thirteen years old, and that is not the most easygoing age to say the least. But I always found this unsettling and, well, strange. After all, from the moment I told the girls I was pregnant they were ecstatic. They were the ones dragging me to ogle over tiny baby clothes and test out all the annoying baby gadgets. And, every time either of them had extra money, they would go buy something for "the baby." As sweet as this was, I always told them they didn't have to keep buying her things...but they wanted too! And I remember from the time I could actually feel her move, we had a nightly ritual of laying on the bed, huge pregnant belly exposed, just waiting for a kick. The further along I got though, the cute little kicks turned into those huge rolls where you can practically make out body parts...that they found a little disturbing. Some time later on I was talking to a coworker who explained that when she told her teenage daughter she was expecting, she never heard the end of comments like, "Oh, great, a baby is going to be so annoying!" "Why did you have to get pregnant now?" So, I began to worry that all the new would wear off. Probably about the time we brought her home and she serenaded us with the ear piercing cry of a newborn. Or, maybe it would be the first time she spit up all over them or they had to change yet another diaper. But, almost seven months later, the new still hasn't worn off...much to the contrary. They still fight over her and insist the other has "had her longer." Claire definitely has no shortage of people to love her...and more importantly, to fix her hair (Click on the pictures and look closely at the hairdo, courtesy of Lauren)!

A Minor Rite of Passage

So, Lauren went to a dance this past Saturday. This was one of those bittersweet moments as a mother. Kind of like when you look at your daughter and for the first time realize she is no longer a little girl. And, about the same time you look down and go, "Oh my god you have cleavage!" "If I have to tell you to pull your shirt up one more time, I am going to staple it to your chest!" Anyway, after the dance our conversation went something like this:

Me: "How was the dance, did you have a good time?"

Lauren: "Yeah, it was fun!"

Me: "Was the music good, what did they play?"

Lauren: "Just normal music." "You wouldn't know any of it."

Me: "Oh, yeah, the kind that makes me want to beat my head against the wall and stick sharp objects in my ears to deafen myself."

Lauren: "Oh god mom."

Me: "Did you dance?"

Lauren: "Kind of, I guess."

Me: "With a boy, because you know your father and I..."

Lauren: "No mom, we all danced together, in a group."

Me: "Okay...cool!"

Lauren: "Can I go again next Saturday?"



Oh man...these are the times I wish she was homely and would rather stand in the corner and pick her nose. I remember when I was pregnant and about ready to pop, Lauren and I were driving while having a conversation similar to the one above. The song Letter to Me by Brad Paisley came on the radio. If you've never heard the song, I've added it to my playlist, along with John Mayer's Daughters. Anyway, I'll blame it on the hormones associated with pregnancy, but of course I got all teary...okay fine I balled my eyes out and proceeded to have the, "You really don't need to grow up quite so fast" talk. As complicated as our adult lives get, I certainly would not want to be thirteen again in these times. Seems no matter what you do as a parent, they still come home at least once a week asking, "What is blank?", or, "What does it mean to blank?" To which I respond, "That's it, we're heading to Pennsylvania to join the Amish!" And yes, I am quite aware they would not let us within ten miles. "But they don't have Abercrombie there do they?" "No, which is precisely my point!" *sigh* So, apparently Lauren will be going to the dance again this coming weekend. And as I told her, "Just remember, you never know if I am sitting outside in an undercover car watching your every move...just kidding." Or am I...

Claire Expands Her Social Circle

Annie spent the night with her friend Marianne this past Friday and when I went to pick her up, Claire made a friend, too! Wyatt was born the first of March, just two days after Claire. I remember once February came, it was like a race to the finish line for both Marianne's mom and me. We were both constantly asking the girls, "Has she had her baby yet?" The girls both hoped that we would go into labor at the same time so they could "hang out" at the hospital together. Anyway, this was Wyatt and Claire's first meeting, but they seemed to be equally fascinated with each other. I see playdates in their near future! Hopefully this is a sign that Claire will not be antisocial like her mother!

Mommy Needs a Time Out!

So, the other day I was close to a mommy meltdown, okay fine, I had a mommy meltdown. Nobody was necessarily behaving badly, except for me, I just needed a breather. Why do so many mothers never talk about their bad mommy moments? As if they're kept secret we will continue to believe they have some amazing threshold to the insanity that is raising children. That's why I love the straight talk of Heather B. Armstrong of dooce.com. Love her or hate her, which is usually the case, you have to appreciate her candid talk about parenthood. For instance, in yesterday's post (read it here) she talked about her hate of being crafty. It reminded me of the time my mother bought Lauren, at age two, real oil paints and proceeded to tell me how I had stifled her budding inner artist because I didn't allow her to run around the house paint brush in hand and adorn everything in her path. Anyway, I realized that in the last six months I have only spent, at the most, four hours away from Claire. So, Adele and Annie were kind enough to take Claire down to the park for a bit so I could enjoy the sound of silence, all twenty minutes of it. They took along the camera and captured some great shots. It was a nice, bright and sunny afternoon, but seriously, I am so ready for summer to be over. Bring on the rain already! I noticed, green is definitely Claire's color...don't ya think?

Show Us Your Pearly...White

Claire's first tooth made it's appearance just one day shy of her turning six months old. I forgot how hard this teething thing was! I cried right along with her as the days passed and I kept checking those telltale swollen gums to find nothing more than...swollen gums. But we both lived to tell about it and here she is showing it off! Seems I'm a little late in my reporting though as she now has her second tooth which proved to be much less traumatic for her. And while we're on the subject...does that baby gum numbing stuff actually do anything? I think every parent of a teething baby has a tube of this stuff or at least runs to the store at midnight in a rage of teething fury to buy some, but c'mon, does it ever really help? I remember slathering the stuff all over Lauren and Annie's gums and thinking the same thing, "uh, when does it start working and make the baby go to sleep?"