Garden

We planted snap peas, lettuces, cabbages, broccoli, carrots, and mustard greens in late March. The greens have done well and we're starting to eat some. The carrots were a complete bust; we've had zero. The peas were a delicious, smashing success. But they're all done now and we've ripped them out to plant cow peas. We've never planted cow peas so we're not sure what to expect. They look like green beans except they are purple.

Tomatoes, eggplant, and cucumbers followed in mid-May. The tomatoes and eggplant were all choked out by mint. (Mint is delicious -- we've made many a lovely mojito with it, but it grows in quantities which almost no backyard gardener can use.) We thought the cucumber was another mint casualty until we got into the patch today to rip out the mint and discovered a healthy, thriving cucumber plant in its midst. Much rejoicing followed.

To make up for the sad lack of tomatoes, Pete bought some pre-started tomato plants at the famer's market today. We plunked them into the ground this afternoon and we're hopeful that we'll end up with some good tomatoes by the time August rolls around.

Hiking

Teeny orange caterpillar of some sort.

We hiked about 6 miles, round trip, through part of Golden Gate Canyon State Park to Windy Peak. It was fun and difficult and very worth it.

Camping

Campfire.

Rushing water. 

Crickets. 

S'mores.

Ladder ball. 

The freshest of mountain air. 

An occasional train rumbling and screeching through the canyon. 

Levi's laugh that begins with an asthmatic-sounding grunt. 

Lance's guffaws. 

Ashley's giggle. 

Sisters and brothers and friends around a campfire, under a clear sky with music and full bellies.

An afternoon of wading in the Colorado River behind us, a morning of hiking to Hanging Lake in front of us. 

This is the life. 

New Year Update

So, it's 2013.  That shocks me for a lot of reasons.  I remember a writing prompt given to me in fifth grade, years ago.  We were supposed to write about what life would be like in the year 2000.  I was certain we'd have flying cars and humanoid robots doing our household chores, a la Rosey from the Jetsons.  Here we are 13 years after that supposed reality and I'm still doing all the dishes and laundry I can't pass off to the kids.  I do not have a flying car.  Suzy the stupendous Subaru is car enough for me but I can't deny that a flying Suzy would be awesome.

Anyway, it's 2013.  I'm starting another college semester in about 2 weeks.  This time I'm taking some kind of lower level algebra.  I guess it's pre-algebra for college.  I'm also taking a philosophy class.  I took introduction to ethics, which falls under the umbrella of philosophy, last summer.  It was a fun class with interesting lectures.  This time my philosophy class is logic, persuasion and argument or some such business.  I'm looking forward to it.

I read some reviews of my philosophy professor on this site.  He has pretty good ratings.  There is one bad one but the reason this person rated him badly is because he goes off on tangents and tells stories during his lectures.  I think that's awesome, so I'm not counting it against him.  I don't know who my algebra professor is yet so I can't look them up.

I finished last semester with good grades in both biology and its lab and my last English composition class.  I loved those biology courses.  I learned so much and was able to apply a lot of the knowledge I already have to learning the information in that course.  The English course was annoying in that it was a freshman composition class that I've somehow avoided when taking other English classes.  It was pretty basic.  I did have to write a rather lengthy thesis that counted as a third of my grade, but I'm proud of it.

Works is busy.  Good grief, it's busy.  This is a really bad sick season.  There is lots of flu, gastroenteritis, strep, pneumonia, and garden variety upper respiratory viruses.  I'm so tired of hearing the same old symptoms -- which no one can cure -- that I'm having a difficult time not rolling my eyes and telling everyone to just go home, stay hydrated and ride it out with OTC medications.  They expect a doctor to fix them with some kind of magic.  I'm sorry, but when viral symptoms start, it's going to be a few days before you feel better.  Coming to see the doctor doesn't mean you are fixed.  Please do not call us when you're not better tomorrow.  And for Pete's sake, do not come back to the office; you're just going to expose yourself and your kid to whatever else has mutated overnight and is hanging about now.

The kids are doing well.  Miriam is flourishing in middle school.  I'm relieved.  I was nervous about her starting there this year but she's doing just fine.  Solomon is struggling some.  We are trying to cope with ADHD and all the stuff that goes with that.  Solomon is so smart and a hard worker, though.  I know he'll be successful in the end.  Samuel is doing well.  I think we finally have the right combination of therapies at school, medication from the doctor, and IEP accommodations to suit him.

What really pleases me is the broadening of the kids' horizons.  They're offered so many opportunities by living in this area.  They're friends with a wonderful array of kids and they're learning so much about people; they don't even realize it, but I can see it.  We're taking advantage of music and art opportunities that only a city like this can offer.  I recently bought tickets to a ballet performance for the four of us.  I cannot wait and the kids seem pretty excited, too.

Things with Paul are pretty great.  I have the best time with him and I'm so grateful for him.  We've gone to some fantastic events in the last year together -- lots of theater shows, some concerts, a couple of ballets, and we're going to the symphony and to see David Sedaris in the next two weeks.  I'm so excited to experience these things with someone who enjoys them as much as I do.

We've had our share of sad and disturbing things happen.  I'm still bothered by a lot of them on a regular basis.  They cause me anxiety sometimes.  I wish I could change them but the reality is, I can't.  No one can.  It's the bad thing about being in this world.  All of those don't cancel out the wonder that is the rest of our lives.

Girls' Night on the Town

Jenn and I went out with our group of girlfriends on Saturday evening.  We had a fantastic time.  We laughed, talked, ate, drank and basically enjoyed downtown Denver.

We had dinner at Tamayo.  That is a delicious place.  I had sopa de tortilla garnished with avocado, cilantro and tortilla strips with just the perfect hint of spice.  It was fabulous.  Then I had quesadillas surtidas made with queso oaxaca, roasted poblano chiles, tomatillo salsa and garnished with crema fresca.  I thought I had died and gone to heaven or some other equivalent.  And the wine ... oh, the wine.  It was a Spanish Tempranillo that was just divine.  Divine wine.  Some photos for your drooling pleasure:

 Sorry, it was so yummy that I had several bites before I thought to take a picture.

Jennifer had grilled mahi mahi with huitlacoche sauce and potato-poblano puree.  I have to go back sometime and order that fish.  I had a couple of bites and it was amazing.  The sauce had so many different flavors -- slightly spicy, tangy, sweet and peppery all at once.  Oh man, my mouth is watering.

After dinner we walked a few blocks to the theatre district and saw Girls Only.  What an entertaining show!  It was part play, part variety show and part improv with a little home video and some puppets thrown in.  It was all about girl stuff, from childhood diaries to bras to pantyhose to tampons to purses to hormones.  It was in a small theatre and the actresses did a lot of interacting with the audience.  We laughed so much!  (And there was more wine, although not as good as the Tempranillo.)

I think our next Girls' Night will be a game night or something resembling a game night.  Our last game night evolved into a laughing, talking night.  Do you see a theme here?

So ...

It's been a while.  I keep thinking of stuff I want to write here and then running out of time to write it.  When I do have the time to write, the stuff isn't as pressing and I decide not to do it.  Lame, huh?

We had Thanksgiving.  I didn't go to Arkansas.  I was kind of worried that it wouldn't feel like Thanksgiving without 40 people and 2 turkeys and 17 side dishes.  But we made do.  I had Paul and his son over.  Jonathan and Lance were here.  We also invited Paul's friend and her son because all their family is in Ohio and they couldn't travel there.  We had a really great day.  I made the turkey and it was fabulously delicious, if I do say so myself.

I drove to get the kids (again) last Sunday.  We saw a whole fleet of trucks from Midland.  It was cool.  The kids got all excited and I was a little nostalgic.  On that same trip, I saw two vehicles with license plate frames from car dealerships in Midland, too.

The Christmas tree is up.  We assembled it and strung the lights last night while watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Shrek the Halls on television.  We added ornaments this evening. 'Tis the season for hot chocolate, snow and debating Christmas/religion with Solomon.  Oh, boy.

Our office Christmas party is this Saturday evening.  I'm really looking forward to it.  It's just my second one but the last year was lots of fun and this year Paul is going with me.

Next weekend Jennifer and I are going out to dinner with girlfriends and to see a play.  We're excited.  The group of friends we're going with is so much fun.  They're witty, intelligent women and we all get along really well.

The weekend after that, I'll keep Jennifer and Caleb's boys while they go to Caleb's company party.  That will be fun.  I'm thinking that if it's not too cold, we might make up some hot chocolate and go walking around their neighborhood to look at Christmas lights.  I was just there tonight and there are lots of lights up already.

The day after that, I'll take the kids to meet Moises and they'll be gone for another 2 weeks.  I'll have Christmas here with Paul and Jennifer and Caleb and other assorted cool people.  And there'll be New Year's Eve and it will be 2010.  Man, time is flying!

So those are the plans for the rest of the month.  I'm looking forward to it all.  It's what the holidays should be: time with family and friends, food, fun and anticipation of the coming year.

More Reasons to Love Colorado

A Blank Screen & What's Happening

I'm sitting here on the sofa with my laptop. I'm listening to Norah Jones and just finished an iced coffee. The ceiling fan is on and I turned on the air conditioner as soon as I woke up.

My plans for the day include working out to Britney Spears and Eminem. After that, I'll go swimming for a bit and then lie by the pool, reading. At some point I have to go to the store and buy butter, heavy whipping cream and a new pastry cutter. I sliced up strawberries and set them up with sugar in the refrigerator yesterday. I will make shortcake and real whipped cream this evening, hence the shopping trip.

We went to Idaho Springs yesterday and took a walk through its little downtown area. 'We' are Jennifer, Caleb, Jonathan, Charissa, Elizabeth, Christopher, Noah, Adam and myself. Also, Abby, the new, very cute, very sweet dog. We took photos of flowers, an old train, artistic signs and each others' silly faces. We had lunch at Beau Jo's Pizza. It is delicious food.

I had dinner last night with a new friend. It's the third dinner we've had together. We shall see where this goes. It seems to be going somewhere good.

I'm flying to Albuquerque on Friday. I have reserved a hotel room near Old Town. I'll have the kids with me from Friday afternoon to Sunday morning. I am planning for us to walk to Old Town and see what is appealing. We will swim and play and catch up on some snuggling.

I turn 30 this week. I've been thinking about it a lot, but in sort of a vague, distracted way. I have no philosophical tidbits to put down here about this milestone. I'm not dreading it, I'm not expecting a big revelation and I don't feel a sense of urgency to accomplish major goals. It's another birthday. It just is.

Now my screen is no longer blank and you know what's happening here. And I feel a little better, having written something.

1 Adult, 5 Children

A summary of our weekend:

Meals prepared: 7
Snacks served: 5
Time outs enforced: 8
15 minute increments of audio/visual entertainment removed: 3
Crying fits: 7
Reminders to use the restroom: 43? (I really don't know.)
Walks taken: 1
Walks missed due to rain/headache/cold: 2
Playgrounds visited: 2
Children caught playing on the forbidden treadmill: 3
Birds' nests built: 1
Sword fights refereed banished: 5
Loads of laundry done: 4
Teeth brushed: it's a never-ending job
Hands washed: no one knows
Dandelions picked lovingly: 7
Full-on belly laughs: innumerable
Hugs: too many to count

And you know what? All the crying fits, time outs, sword fighting and treadmill discovery were worth the last three.

Spring Snow

It's sort of oxymoronic, but we've had 3 'winter' storms since spring began 2½ weeks ago. The National Weather Service has issued formal warnings with time limits and everything.

The first was the worst. The school district canceled school preemptively because of it. This is the same school district that hasn't canceled school all winter and only called one delayed start. The kids and I were on our way to school when a neighbor and the father of one of Samuel's classmates stopped me and told me school was closed. I hadn't even bothered to check because it was 35 F, with no current precipitation and no wind. I figured that if the storm really got bad, they'd close school early. Oh, well. So the kids spent the day with Jennifer and her boys, which they loved.

The snow started at about 8:30 and picked up considerably all morning. At work, people were calling in and rescheduling their appointments faster than anyone could answer the phones. Finally, the afternoon schedule was completely cleared and closed off. I left at lunch time and went to Jennifer's house.

I had planned to pick up the kids and go home to ride out the storm but I quickly changed my mind. The snow and wind were so bad, I could only see about a ½ mile ahead of me. I skidded a few feet several times and twice thought I was going to go off the road. It was not fun. It took me an hour to get to Jenn's house; that drive is usually 15 to 20 minutes. So we camped out there until the next morning.

Blizzards are lots of fun the next day, though. We went sledding and had a blast. It was the kids' third or fourth time to go sledding but they've never gone on a hill as big as we used this time. It was really high and really fast and really fun.

There is something simple about sledding and playing in the snow. Being bundled up a la Christmas Story-I-can't-put-arms-down! is a novel experience as an adult. Tramping through snow half way to my knees is hard but it's a fantastic work out. And when I fell, I didn't care. What's to care about? And there's nothing quite like getting a big shove down a 20 foot hill and not having any control over where I stop or if I go flying face first into the snow.

What We Did Today

After I spent a couple of hours spring cleaning, I decided we should take advantage of the beautiful weather. So we drove a few minutes to Cherry Creek State Park and played on the beach. This was our view for 2 hours. I love living here.

Things Are Good

And by things, I mean the things that make up my life at the moment: children, home, work and friends. I don't mean Things, as in extra stuff. I'm not a stuff person; stuff gets in the way, clutters my space and gets on my nerves. So, not that kind of Things.

The election is over and I'm obviously happy with the turn out. We're back on Standard Time, which I prefer. Winter is coming and there is snow on the ground (Yay!). Thanksgiving with its delicious food and great family time is a mere 12 days away. And I have someone to cover my spot the Monday after Thanksgiving so we can take our time driving back. After that comes Christmas and our very first family tree.

We had parent-teacher conferences this week. I got great reports on all 3 kids (more about that later). We attended the book fair and got some new books for everyone. We have a 3-day weekend and slept in this morning. There is a birthday party to attend tomorrow and then the kids will spend the night with their cousins and uncle. Jennifer and I are going downtown for a girls' night out with friends. Next weekend is family movie night at the school and we'll go in our pajamas to watch Wall-E. I'm getting involved with the school, volunteering for the kids' teachers and helping the school nurse on my day off.

I've managed to stay on top of the dishes and laundry for 2 straight weeks. Actually, if you count the 2 weeks the kids were gone, I've managed this for 4 weeks -- a month! I'm making myself unload the dishwasher when it finishes running so I can re-load it after each meal instead of piling dishes in the sink. I'm making myself hang up clothes straight from the dryer instead of piling them in the armchair in the living room. And I'm folding the things in the basket when it gets full instead of letting it overflow until it threatens to bury me in an avalanche of clothing.

The office is moving its location as I write this and that means my daily round-trip commute will be chopped from 50 minutes to 14 minutes, beginning Monday. I get to unpack and organize a beautiful office space on Sunday. Parking will be excellent, our office is on the first floor instead of the third. Our windows have a 180 degree view of the Rockies instead of a dismal parking lot and a congested interstate. We have plenty of storage for supplies, bigger exam rooms and uncluttered desk space.

So, yeah. Things are good. I'm going to savor this because history tells me it won't last forever and I'll need this good feeling to get me through the next low point.

Fun With Dry Ice

We got a shipment of varicella vaccine at work today. It has to remain frozen until used so it is shipped in dry ice. I love varicella days at work. I pour water over it at different times during the day to watch it vaporize. I am always a little sad that I can't do more with it, what with charting and making phone calls and taking patient histories and all.

Anyway, I decided that today was the day to introduce my children to the wonders of dry ice so I brought the styrofoam container home. We started by pouring water on it. The kids were appropriately impressed. Then we poured hot water on it and listened to it crack up in the container. We finally poured in so much water that it froze into a solid mass with a layer of bubbling water on the top.

We tipped the container so the vapor flowed over the side like water. I showed the kids how to wave a hand gently over the top of the container to form waves in the vapor. Finally, we dripped some food coloring in the container and poured water over that. Very, very cool.

Fun Was Had By All

We spent a beautiful afternoon by the pool. It was warm and sunny. The water was cool and relaxing.

The kids had so much fun. Solomon and Noah practiced cannonballs. Miriam perfected floating on a swim noodle. Adam and Samuel tried blowing water explosions out of their swim noodles. There was lots of laughing. Jennifer and I got comfortable on the lounge chairs and talked about the kids, work, family and all that other stuff. We all snacked on fresh watermelon and cherries.

The pool was busy. Three couples tossed a football around in the deep end. A few people listened to music. A group of girls in their late teens sat across the way with only one objective: to get the perfect tan.

Everyone was having a great time. But the kid having the best time was the 10-year-old, hiding under his beach towel and having fun all on his own. He was really enjoying himself.

Update on New Year's Resolutions

Seeing as the mid-point of 2008 is quickly approaching, I thought I'd give an overview on my New Year's Resolutions. It's always a good thing to assess and evaluate one's progress, right? In case you don't remember, I decided that the year's theme would be to Do Stuff on Purpose. Specifically, I planned to seek out outdoor activities and to find new books, music and art. I was also going to write down the little stuff in my journal.

I completed my move to Colorado. If that's not doing something On Purpose, I don't know what is. Almost no one packs up all their stuff and moves 700 miles away without meaning to.

All 3 children have bikes and are getting quite good on them now. They are proudly boasting shins and knees full of scrapes and bruises to prove their hard work. I haven't bought my bike yet. I don't see much reason for it until the kids are riding faster than I jog. We get out and bike/jog on the path near our apartment whenever we can. We've also started hiking and flying kites.

I bought camping gear to add to our outdoor activities. We have used our tent and sleeping bags once, but that trip was cut short due to the unfortunate timing of a nasty stomach virus. Trust me, you don't want to know the rest.

Finding new music has been easy since moving here. My favorite radio station plays at least one song I've never heard every day. Sometimes they are good, sometimes they aren't. I've also been hounding Caleb and Jennifer; they have great taste in music and know wonderful artists that I want to know.

Finding new books has been a little more difficult, partly because I haven't had much time for reading. But the biggest reason that it has been hard is that I read an amazing book that made it hard to get into anything else for a while. It was one of those books that I was truly sad to finish. I started, stopped, started again and finally gave up on 3 books after that one because I just couldn't let it go. Fortunately, I am back on track now. (In case you want to read it, the amazing book is Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides.)

I realized recently that all the books I love are books that I want my children to love, too. Obviously, they can't read most of them (nor would I want them to read a few of them for several more years!) for themselves. But then it occurred to me that they are finally mature enough to listen to longer books without pictures and I can make a project out of reading great series of books to them. We have started with The Chronicles of Narnia. We are half way through The Magician's Nephew and they are loving it.

The kids and I have discovered origami. There is a neat little section of our On Demand cable menu that posts videos of how to fold certain shapes. We invested in a beginner's kit and an extra envelope of special paper. It's pretty fun. The kids are getting really good at matching the edges of the paper and making sharp creases. That has to do something for their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, right? In any case, it keeps them out of my hair for 15 minutes when I need it.

As for journaling and blogging ... well, the blog speaks for itself. My journal has been rather neglected lately since so much information goes here. I'll work on that. I've also made some steps in the right direction for scrapbooking. I asked for scrapbooking supplies for Christmas but I haven't done much with them yet. Last week I spent $16 on prints from Snapfish so I can begin filling those scrapbooks. I can't wait for them to get here.

So, there you have it. The year is half over and we are well on our way to living a more active and creative life. It's kind of fun to make New Year's resolutions and actually keep them.

Kite Flying

We flew kites today. I had been planning to take the kids out with their kites for the last two weeks, but the weather was either too cold or not windy enough. Or there was other stuff to do.

Today was perfect, though. Nothing else to do, sunny, cool and with a perfect wind. So we headed to an open field with our kites. As we crossed the street, I saw a huge gray cloud in the distance. No big deal, we see them all the time since we are on high ground.

As I was putting together the first kite, the wind picked up a lot. The temperature dropped noticeably. Then, all of a sudden, it started to rain. Wait. That's not rain, it's actually frozen, making it sleet or hail or snow -- whatever you call it, it's frozen and it stings when it hits. Samuel was stumbling around blindly because he didn't want to open his eyes.

We took cover in Jennifer and Caleb's van and tried to decide if we should wait it out, or call it quits. Just as I was getting really disappointed and about to suggest that we leave, the snow/hail/sleet/rain blew over and it was sunny again. Weird Colorado.

Anyway, we had a great time flying our kites. The kids took to it really well, especially Miriam. She couldn't get her kite off the ground, but if someone else did it for her, she could control it and keep it from crashing. Yay!

We were having so much fun running around the field to avoid crashing kites that we didn't even notice the inches of mud caking up on our shoes. The grass in the field is pretty new and it is in very loose soil. The little bit of moisture that fell made a subtle mud that we didn't notice until it was too late. The kids thought this was hilarious. We spent a good ten minutes scraping mud off of everyone's shoes after we put away the kites.

All in all, a great afternoon! I can't wait to take the kids out for it again.

Hiking

We went hiking today. The kids really surprised me. We trekked 2.7 miles in the foothills and there were surprisingly few complaints. They even said they had fun. Imagine that.