Happy Birthday, Papa!

The hardest part about living in Texas is missing out on all of the family gatherings. Dad, we wish we could be there to sing to you in person, but for now, this will have to do! We love you, we miss you, and we wish you a very Happy Birthday!

Daddy Daughter Dance

Today I got to kiss my husband good-bye and tell him "Have fun on your date!" Good thing he was just headed to the Daddy Daughter Dance with Kelsie. Every year our city puts on a Daddy Daughter Dance. Kelsie has never really had any interest in going, which was just fine with Wally. But this year, the dance fell on Kelsie's good friend's birthday. For her friend's birthday party, the girls were getting their hair and nails done, decorating little purses, and making boutonnieres for the dads, so Kelsie decided she would give the dance a try. Wally was not nearly as excited as Kelsie was, but he is a good sport and only grumbled about having to wear a suit and tie. When they came home they were all smiles. They had a GREAT time and Wally is already looking forward to when he can take Chloe.

Little Miss Trouble

I usually hate those child-proof lids that come on nearly everything. But this week, I was wishing that everything was child-proof.

On Friday morning I was just finishing up my "Biggest Loser" workout video (which, by the way, I LOVE!) when a sweet little voice behind me said "Uh-oh Mommy." When I turned around this is what I found:

At first I thought it was a lot of soap that we could just rinse out in the tub. It turned out to be half a (brand new) jar of pomade. She also did her puppy's hair (that POOR puppy!) and finger-painted the couch. Oh, little Chloe, you are cute, but you are TROUBLE!

Raisinets Ruined

My mom is the most amazing woman I know. She has the patience of Job, she has incredible faith, she is an excellent cook, she is a dedicated mom and teacher, she is kind and generous... the list could go on and on! She also has these weird food fixations. One time she went on a salad kick and ate salad for BREAKFAST, lunch, and dinner for two months. Wouldn't you know that of all of the qualities I could have inherited from my awesome mother, it's the weird food thing? Lately my obsession has been Dark Chocolate Raisinets. I *LOVED* them. I ate them by the handful. I rationalized that they were actually good for me, because after all, they were just raisins. And then, everything changed for me.

I was cleaning my bathroom when Jackson ran in to find me. "Mom, Chloe's got stinkies!" he said. Wanting to get Chloe changed before she polluted the entire house, I moved quickly. I had Jackson get me a grocery bag and the wipes while I chased Chloe who was saying "No stinkies! No stinkies!" I caught her, pinned her down, and prepared for the worst. As I removed her diaper I was shocked to find a big handful of Raisnets in there. Jackson doubled over with laughter (he gets his mischievious side from Grandpa Miyasaki) and in one moment, I was cured of my Raisinet obsession.

Leave of Absence

By now, you both (meaning the two people who read my blog!) must be thinking "Wow, Evonne must have been really busy for the past few months!" Truth be told, I have been without an Internet connection, but now I am back in business!

Our modem suddenly died one Thursday afternoon. Wally, seeing an opportunity to upgrade, signed us up for AT&T Uverse. It turns out that Uverse is quite in demand right now and the soonest installation date was a good month and a half out. For a few weeks, I had to borrow my neighbor's wireless signal while sitting in my car in the driveway so I could check my e-mail. We asked everybody for an extra modem and finally found one which was great right up until the point where Windows Vista rejected the modem and refused to connect to the Internet.

But now, it's good to be back to blogging (and e-mailing and googling...)

Rock Star

There are certainly days when parenting is tough. And then there are those little moments that make it all worth it. Tonight I came home and found this little picture on Wally's desk, compliments of Jackson, and it made me smile! Our dad may not be a rock star, but he certainly rocks (and so does Jack!)

Lost In Translation

Chloe is a girl with a lot to say. The only problem is I understand less than 1 percent of what she tells me. Today was no different. As I stood in the kitchen doing dishes, she came trotting in holding Jackson's Build-A-Bear puppy. She started rattling off something about the puppy. I smiled and nodded and said things like "oh, really?" and "okay." Pleased with the outcome of our conversation, Chloe went off on her merry way. A few minutes later, I realized EXACTLY what she had been telling me as she handed me a sopping wet puppy. It seems that Jackson's puppy needed to go potty. As I cleaned up the puddle of toilet water from the bathroom floor and the trail that spanned the carpet of two rooms, I couldn't be mad. After all, I was the one who agreed and gave her permission!