Leah Ballerina

Our little goofball is a star! Leah successfully performed in her very first ballet recital this afternoon, on stage, in front of a large audience. She was awesome! I got a little teary eyed taking it all in with yet another "simple-to-say, deep-to-comprehend" thought: I am watching MY DAUGHTER dance on stage! (In my head, I always hear David Byrne singing "How did I get here?")

We were not allowed to film the recital, but we did get to capture the dress rehearsal yesterday. In true rebel style, Leah was not wearing a grass skirt like all the other cuties. I assumed incorrectly that she didn't have rehearsal earlier this week - and that's when the instructor handed out the new duds. As a result, she is clearly identifiable - yeah, we planned it that way.

Here's the video!



The girls look to the side of the stage to get directions from their instructor. When we asked Leah why she was looking behind her she said that she wanted to see the painting of The Little Mermaid on the backdrop... and she wanted to make sure there were no monsters on the stage. Atta girl.

The Rules of the Game Have Changed

Natalie is a crawling fool! With the proper attire (loose pjs tend to slow her down) on a floor with good traction (hardwood floors? forget about it), and with the right motivation (the camera as goal, for example) she can really motor!

While this means that we can no longer leave her on the floor and expect her to be within rolling distance of her original spot, it means that she is a happier, self-satisfying little rug rat who can gets our attention when she heads toward power cords, chair legs, toilet paper, overhanging table runners, and dog eyeballs. >>Look out, Jack!<<

The pace of life in our house just got a little bit faster. :)

Flowers for My Mama

Happy Birthday, Mom!



Every time something green breaks through the soil and blooms in my garden I am held in awe that anything can actually grow there, and I am reminded of my mom and the blood and sweat that she tills into the soil of her gardens every year. While I may not put into practice even a quarter of the things Mom does, I will never forget the times she walks me through her gardens, naming her plants in Latin, talking about how high they get where the temperature is warmer, and inevitably getting her fingernails dirty scratching around some poor seedling choked with a day's growth of weeds.



This little crocus batch has come up reliably every spring so that I know where to look for the striped, grass-like leaves as the snow melts. I didn't plant them, and I don't weed around them, but like my mom and her gardens, they persevere and they thrive. The best thing I can do is take pictures of them and share them here for you as a virtual bouquet.

Mom, I hope your anniversary of another complete tour around the sun is easy, sun-filled, and one that brings you nice things all day. I love you!

Thisssss izzzzz... a Great Evening!

OMG! OMG! OMG! I got to see Alex Trebek! And he was only like ten feet away from me! OMG! OMG!

Yep. I got to watch the taping of the Jeopardy! College Championship. And, double-yep. I pretty much freaked out the whole time. My handsome hubby and our dear and freakiness-forgiving friends came along too. Ms. happy-stuff did an excellent job recapping the night, so please check out her post for the low down on the surreal event.

For me, the waiting in line part was strange but it was nice to able to chat the whole time. The show itself was...some other synonym for surreal. I mean, THERE was Jeopardy! right on the stage with all the sound effects, the daily doubles, the answers in the form of questions, and a shiny film of slickness spread over everything from Alex Trebek's smooth talkin' ease. The whole thing exceeded my expectations. Johnny Gilbert was even there -- somehow I thought that he and other announcer guys like Rod Roddy (R.I.P., Rod) lived in their little, glittery sound booths and never came out.

Alex walked out into the audience during most of the breaks to answer questions and sign a few hand towels (I know, hand towels?!) and I think he tried to dispel some of the tight-wad-ness he tends to exude on the show. As clever and quick-witted as his answers were, there was still a cloud of erudition hanging over his perfectly combed silver hair that I couldn't see past. If I were to ask him a question it might have been something rude about the caliber of stick up his you-know-what, and then I probably would be quickly escorted out of the arena by one of the dark-suited guards. So I kept my hands down and enjoyed the moment for the (another synonym for surreal) thing it was.

We saw our cheeky little faces on the big screen a couple of times so there's a chance we might actually be on t.v. When the shows air in May, I will have to fight Leah for control over the remote as she usually watches Cyberchase at that time. Knowing me, I'll forget that it's on and/or be in the kitchen thawing chicken when they show us.

I don't have a list on paper yet, but tonight's fun will definitely be on the short list of super-fun things I have done for free. Playing with the girls, being goofy with my hubby, and bringing up funny memories with my brothers would be on the list too. You know what? I don't want a *short* list of super-fun things. Let's make that a really long list. :)

Gracias to the happy-stuffs, and Merci Beaucoup to the fabulous, dynamic Dargan's for taking such good care of our punks while we were out. You guys rock.

Recent pics of kid & dog tricks

While, I could stretch these pictures and thoughts into longer, individual posts, the procrastinator lounging on my shoulder says she probably won't get around to making another post in any sort of a timely manner. So, I now present some recent pics of kid and pet tricks (did you catch the rhyme?).

Natalie is beginning to crawl! She's only moving her little knees a couple of times before she collapses onto her tummy again, but people, there is forward movement. Sometimes her leg muscles get overeager and she gets up on her hands and feet for a while before she realizes she doesn't know what to do in that position, so she goes back down to her knees and rethinks the situation, sometimes with the aid of a thumb in her mouth. I will try to post a video of this within a week or so ("Don't bet on it," scoffs the lump on my shoulder).

Our tiny baby is also an official biter. She bites her clothing, her toys (she tore open her "birthday bear" who will undergo surgery this evening), her food (including me - OUCH!), and basically anything she can get into that drooly, tooth-filled cavity of hers. Here's a picture of her with the aftermath of a "biter biscuit."



Doesn't she look proud of herself? I could almost lick her clean, she's so cute, but I opted for a warm, wet washcloth. When I asked her just how dirty she thinks she could get with one of these teething bikkies, her reply was something along the lines of, "Wanna find out?!"



And then Leah and I played hide and seek. While I had the advantage of knowing *how* to hide (I don't clomp my feet on the floor as I find my spot, and I don't announce my spot to the seeker before my turn, and I don't pick the same spot every single time. Leah's methods need some tweaking.), I had the distinct disadvantage of attracting the attention of one giant canine who, for one afternoon, fancied himself a bloodhound. Wherever I went, I had to act quickly - Leah can only accurately count to ten - so I rushed to find a covert retreat. Jack, aroused by my haste, followed me to my perfect spot and stared at me as I tried not to laugh. All Leah had to do was find Jack, follow his expectant gaze, and ta-da! there I was. Somehow the situation seemed so absurd to me each time, I had a hard time not laughing. (See here for more on this problem.)



If you have a dog - and maybe this works for cats too - , do try playing hide and seek with them. Yes, try playing hide and seek with your pet. Get you pet to stay (staaaaaaayyyy...) in one room, while you tiptoe off to another room. When you're sufficiently hidden, make a high-pitched "beep" or other release noise to signal your pet to find you. When s/he finds you, attack him/her and get him/her really riled up! Most of their little brain is saying, "I don't know what the heck this person is trying to do!" But there's another part that says, "All this goofiness sure beats a half-sleep nap!"

Before we had kids, I played this with Jack and it's actually quite fun. My favorite part was how I could "hide" by climbing up on the counter in the kitchen. Jack never seemed to look up when he was seeking. He'd run right past, ears erect, tail wagging, totally clueless. Of course, my giggle would give me away and he'd let out a hound-y growl/bark to let me know he'd known I was there all along. Goofball.

More later, if you're lucky. ;)